[CfP - Vol. 45, Special Issue 2]: Subjectivity and Materiality in Audiovisual Translation and Media Accessibility

Guest Editors

Willian Moura (Federal University of Santa Catarina) and Iván Villanueva-Jordán (Peruvian University of Applied Sciences)

Academic discourse often pits subjectivity against objectivity, especially concerning their connection to truth. Subjectivity is often associated or confused with bias or distortion in research methods or data analysis, while objectivity is seen as a promise to inhabit Cartesian space—to observe and comprehend reality “as it is”. In Translation Studies, research into text production, text reception, and texts as products requires recognizing language and other communicative modes as more than just research objects; they are mediums for representing ideological constructs and cultural artifacts (Angelelli & Baer, 2016). The artifacts created through language and other semiotic means serve not only as tools for representing reality but also play a role in integrating distortions and crafting totalizing discourses about the world. Subjectivity relates to how subjects establish self-making as part of a broader social and historical temporality, and not only as effects of discourse (Butler, 2005). Subjectivity, as a process, implies that individuals continuously refine their understanding of themselves and reality, shaped by intellectual experiences, external perceptions, sensations, and embodied experiences. This perspective underscores the importance of materiality in relationships among subjects and between subjects and their (cultural) environments. As Brian Massumi (2002) argues in his essay “On the Superiority of the Analog,” “Reading, however cerebral it may be, does not entirely think out sensation” (p. 151). For Massumi, the body is a sensor that continually responds to perceived images, be they visual, aural, or other. He suggests that the body or bodies surpass the status of objects, functioning simultaneously as matter and a dynamic process for capturing moments within the virtual and the digital.

Building on the notion of the body as a sensor, this special issue of Cadernos de Tradução explores connections with Ahmed’s (2014) research on the mutual influence of emotions and the body. As Koskinen (2020, p. 21) argues, “Affect is (also) embodied”. All languages have evolved numerous strategies for handling, adjusting, and manipulating affects. In translation, these strategies are compared within the involved languages and against the contexts of the texts in question (Koskinen, 2020). Lima et al. (2023) offer a similar perspective by examining the interplay between translation and the body. They contend that bodily politics play a crucial role in translation processes, both in theory and practice and that translation is not just a cognitive activity but also a physical and emotional experience. These perspectives prompt examination into how the body’s responses to various stimuli, including digital and virtual inputs, shape individual subjectivities and contribute to the construction of embodied knowledge. This, in turn, influences how translation is understood and applied (Iturregui-Gallardo & Soler-Vilageliu, 2021; Ramos Caro et al., 2021).

This special issue seeks to gather studies exploring the relationship between materiality and subjectivity in audiovisual translation (AVT) and media accessibility (MA). A key focus is the body or bodies as a material process and interface, feeling and processing translations, and the act of translating. The focus extends beyond views of translation and accessibility as representational, semiotic, or communicative. It delves into how these practices impart meanings that resonate with and mark the body and the subjective experiences of translation agents and audiences. We are particularly interested in research into intersections between the physicality of the body and material objects and semiotic processes and resources. This is evident in affect studies, as detailed by Koskinen (2020), and in Robinson’s (2015) ideosomatic approach. Ergonomic studies in AVT and MA, especially those emphasizing phenomenological aspects—how audiovisual translators physically and emotionally experience their work in professional or educational settings—are also of great interest.

Key questions

We propose the following key questions to guide contributions to this special issue within the designated themes of materiality, subjectivity, AVT, and MA:

• How do AVT and MA contribute to constructing subjectivities through media content?
• How might the expression of subjectivity in AVT and MA transform or contribute to standardized practices, quality criteria, or audience reception?
• In what ways can AVT and MA support/afford the expression of subjectivity?
• What role does technology play in mediating subjectivities and materiality in both AVT and MA?
• How do cultural and linguistic factors shape the subjective experience of translated audiovisual content?
• How might the concepts of quality in AVT and MA be challenged when considering audience experiences beyond standardized quality criteria?
• How can the comparative analysis between source and target text so ingrained in Translation Studies be expanded to include the material dimension of texts beyond the discursive dimension of AVT and MA?
• In what ways are AVT and MA financially sustainable for professionals? What critical perspectives can be raised in a global context where artificial intelligence (AI) and machine translation (MT) are quickly advancing?
• How can empirical evidence that takes into consideration audiovisual translators’ subject positions and embodied experiences be used to challenge commonly held positions for or against AI and MT?
• How have current apps and social media made AVT more accessible to users who now translate, subtitle, and dub content as part of their everyday activities? Can these AVT technologies be considered part of their agency and subjectivity? Have they become or are now considered embodied translation technologies?
• What boundaries exist for creativity and subjectivity within current theoretical models and assumptions of AVT and MA? What role do stakeholders play in upholding conventions and standardized quality criteria in AVT and MA?
• Which research methods and analytical strategies are pertinent for investigating materiality in AVT and MA?

We encourage authors to use these questions as a general framework for their research, while also welcoming diverse perspectives that broaden these areas of interest.

Themes and topics

Given the key questions above, we welcome theoretical and empirical studies that explore the following themes and topics related to AVT and MA:

• Audiovisual translators’ subjectivities and lived realities
• Audience, fandom, and user agency, experience, and reception
• Affect, emotions, and embodied experience
• Critical viewpoints on processes, workflows, and quality standards
• Digital technologies, sustainable work in relation to bodies
• The materiality of semiotic resources (voice, texture, movement, 3D environments)
• Semiotic resources beyond language: creativity and subjectivity
• Critical perspectives on translation ergonomics: work environments, materials, tools, and technologies
• Plural perspectives: transfeminisms, LGBTI+, queer, and crip studies
• Research methods and analytical models
• Interdisciplinary theoretical approaches
• The role of stakeholders and the effects of their subjective decisions on translated audiovisual content
• Translator training and the didactic/pedagogical role of AVT and MA
• The role of subjectivity and objectivity in audio description, subtitling for the deaf and hard-of-hearing, audiosubtitling, sign language interpreting, and in creating easy-to-understand audiovisual information

Submission guidelines

To propose a manuscript, first send an abstract to the guest editors: willianmoura.tradutor@gmail.com and ivan.villanueva@upc.pe. Proposals in English, Spanish, and Portuguese will be accepted.

Proposals must include:

• Provisional title
• Author(s) name(s), affiliation, email address, and Orcid
• Abstract (between 250–500 words, excluding references) containing information about the research topic, theoretical framework, and methodology, in addition to the research rationale and relevance to the field
• Five keywords
• List of preliminary references (following APA 7 guidelines)

After approval, authors must provide the full version of the manuscript following the journal’s template.

• Manuscripts may not exceed 10,000 words, excluding references.
• Manuscripts may be rejected if they do not follow the journal template.

The guest editors will also read the accepted manuscripts and suggest improvements, if necessary, after considering the referees’ reports.

Deadline

Abstracts must be submitted by July 15, 2024.
Authors will be notified of acceptance by August 1, 2024.
Full manuscripts must be submitted by January 15, 2025.
Peer-review reports will submitted to authors by March 30, 2025.
Final manuscripts are due April 30, 2025.
Publication of the special issue: June 2025.

Contact information

For more information about the special issue, please contact the guest editors directly, at the following email addresses: willianmoura.tradutor@gmail.com and ivan.villanueva@upc.pe.

References

Angelelli, C. V., & Baer, B. J. (2015). Exploring translation and interpreting. In C. Angelelli & B. Baer (Eds.), Researching Translation and Interpreting (pp. 5–13). Routledge.

Ahmed, Sara. (2014). The cultural politics of emotion (2nd ed). Edinburgh University Press.

Butler, J. (2005). Giving an Account of Oneself. Fordham University Press.

Iturregui-Gallardo, G., & Soler-Vilageliu, O. (2021). Audio subtitling and subtitling: a comparison of their emotional effect on blind / partially sighted and sighted users. Onomázein, (Special Issue 8), 61–82. https://doi.org/10.7764/onomazein.ne8.077

Koskinen, K. (2020). Translation and Affect: Essays on sticky affects and translational affective labour. John Benjamins Publishing Company.

Lima, É., Pimentel, J., & Pisetta, L. (2023). Translation, affects, and body politics: Towards transformative thinking and action. Trabalhos em Linguística Aplicada, 62(2), 179–181. https://doi.org/10.1590/01031813v622202386744633

Massumi, B. (2002). Movement, Affect, Sensation. Duke University Press. https://doi.org/10.1215/9780822383574

Ramos Caro, M., Espín López, L., & Rojo López, A. M. (2021). The psychophysiological impact of audio described porn. Onomázein, (Special Issue 8), 104–127. https://doi.org/10.7764/onomazein.ne8.06

Robinson, D. (2015). The somatics of tone and the tone of somatics. Translation and Interpreting Studies, 10(2), 299–319. https://doi.org/10.1075/tis.10.2.09rob