Translation as cultural negotiation : Verga's La Lupa and Rosso Malpelo translated into Maltese

Abstract

In this dissertation I carried out a cultural comparative analysis of two typical short stories from Giovanni Verga's influential works and their translation into Maltese. The thesis starts with a discussion about issues in literary prose translations, wha t theorists have said on the matter, the difficulties which arise and ways how literary prose texts can be interpreted and translated into another language. Following this, I wrote a brief description of Verga's life and what inspired him in writing literature and choosing the verismo as his new style of writing. Right after, I presented the short stories La Lupa and Rosso Malpelo in their original form parallel with the translations made by myself into Maltese. The translations carry footnotes at the bottom as part of the analysis where I described the challenges and the reasons behind the decisions taken. The last chapter is a general review of the analysis. However, the main aim is to deal with i) proper names and cultural terms connected to a specific time and place; ii) metaphors and other figures of speech and; iii) terms from local dialect, which all lead to the final conclus ion. The aim of the dissertation is primarily to determine the challenges of translating different cultures with reference to Verga's La Lupa and Rosso Malpelo. I have chosen this subject because I love Italian literature, especially Verga's style of writing. After consulting my tutor and taking in consideration his opinion, I have decided to base my analysis upon this topic.