DOMESTICATION AND FOREIGNIZATION IN THE ENGLISH-VIETNAMESE TRANSLATION OF JIM BENTON’S LET’S PRETEND THIS NEVER HAPPENED =

Abstract

ABSTRACT ‘Domestication’ and/or ‘foreignization’ plays a critical role in translation and it depends on the translator’s choice about whether and to what extent they are employed in any translation. In light of Venuti’s theory on ‘domestication’ and ‘foreignization’, ‘Let’s Pretend This Never Happened’ written by Jim Benton and its translation by Phong Linh were chosen for analysis. Combining three models by Peter Newmark, Espindola, and Aixela, and the researcher’s categories, instances of culture-specific items, wordplay, and syllables from the translation were extracted for analysis by comparison and contrast, and expert consultation. The frequency of domestication and foreignization was also discussed. The study found out that foreignization was much more predominant than domestication. Of 45 instances, there are only 8 domesticated instances. Only common expressions were more domesticated than foreignized. Foreignization seems more advantageous than domestication in the current context when the target readers are more capable of English and the information-searching demand is explosive.