Re(framing) Arabic Metaphorical Expressions in English Subtitles: The Case of Noom El Talat

On ( 2021), (Amer Al-Adwan and Mohammad Ahmad Thawabteh) published a new chapter in (a book: Translation as a Set of Frames) titled (Re(framing) Arabic Metaphorical Expressions in English Subtitles: The Case of Noom El Talat). This chapter has addressed an under-researched area in AVT, namely subtitling Arabic metaphorical expressions into English. The analysis revealed that the subtitlers have adopted four main strategies in translating the metaphorical expressions identified in the comic film Noom El Talat : reduction to sense , image substitution , image transfer and omission . It was also evident that most of the metaphorical expressions have been sacrificed and only the intended meaning has been translated into English. The analysis shows that the subtitler has conducted transcultural appraisal when subtitling Arabic metaphorical expressions into English, supporting Pedersen’s (2018, p. 43) claim that subtitlers handle metaphors “differently, depending on whether they are trans- or monocultural, as indicated by their choice of translation solution”. Finally, it is essential that the subtitler thoroughly studies the context in which Arabic metaphorical expressions exist. This would determine the exact frames that are activated in the English subtitles and consequently shape the relevant images that are conjured up in the mind of the target viewer. With this in mind, it goes without saying that “the translator becomes a kind of bilingual and bicultural ‘mediator’ between two different conceptual systems” (López, 2002, p. 315).