i
EXOTIC METHOD EFFECT ON THE
READABILITY OF HERCULE POIROT’S DIALOGUES
IN THREE
AGATHA CHRISTIE’S
INDONESIAN TRANSLATED NOVELS
AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Sarjana Sastra
in English Letters
By
YOHANES PASKALIS PAE DALE
Student Number: 104214057
ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAM DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS
FACULTY OF LETTERS SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
iv
STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY
I certify that this undergraduate thesis contains no material which has been
previously submitted for the award of any other degree at any university, and that,
to the best of my knowledge, this undergraduate thesis contains no material
previously written by any other person except where due reference is made in the
text of the undergraduate thesis
Yogyakarta, September 15, 2014
v
LEMBAR PERNYATAAN PERSETUJUAN PUBLIKASI KARYA ILMIAH UNTUK KEPENTINGAN AKADEMIS
Yang bertandatangan di bawah ini, saya mahasiswa Universitas Sanata Dharma
Nama : Yohanes Paskalis Pae Dale Nomor Mahasiswa : 104214057
Demi pengembangan ilmu pengetahuan, saya memberikan kepada Perpustakaan Universitas Sanata Dharma karya ilmiah saya yang berjudul
EXOTIC METHOD EFFECT ON THE
READABILITY OF
HERCULE POIROT’S
DIALOGUES
IN THREE AGATHA CHRISTIE’S
INDONESIAN TRANSLATED NOVELS
beserta perangkat yang diperlukan (bila ada). Dengan demikian saya memberikan kepada Perpustakaan Universitas Danata Dharma hak untuk menyimpan, mengalihkan, dalam bentuk media lain, mengelolanya dalam bentuk pangkalan data, mendistribusikannya secara terbatas, dan mempublikasikannya di internet atau media lain untuk kepentingan akademis tanpa perlu meminta ijin kepada saya maupun memberikan royalti kepada saya selama tetap mencantumkan nama saya sebagai penulis.
Demikian pernyataan ini saya buat dengan sebenarnya.
Dibuat di Yogyakarta
Pada tanggal 15 September 2014
Yang menyatakan,
vi
“One dies only if he's not anymore in the
hearts and minds of those who know him.”
-vii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
First of all, I would like to thank my Jesus Christ for His blessing on me in
the whole process of my undergraduate thesis writing.
My grateful thanks are expressed to my great advisor, Harris Hermansyah
S., S.S., M.Hum., who spent his time to help me finish this undergraduate thesis
with his all bright suggestions. My grateful thanks are also expressed to Dr. B. Ria
Lestari, M.Sc. as my co-advisor and the First Examiner, Adventina Putranti, S.S.,
M.Hum., during the second process of this thesis writing and my thesis defense. I
also want to thank all lecturers of English Letters Department USD for
multifarious knowledge they have given to me during my study period in Sanata
Dharma University. This gratitude is also addressed to staff of Faculty of Letters
for helping me during this process.
Furthermore, I would like to give grateful thanks to my beloved parents
for such great supports, prayers, care, and love; to my mother who always keeps
me remember with this thesis, and to my father who patiently reminds me to pray
for my success. I also want to thank both of my sisters for their time and supports
to me, especially in teaching me how to deal with the MS. Word and other
technical matters. Lastly, my great gratitude is addressed for all my perky friends,
especially those from 2010 year for supporting me and becoming my discussions
field during my thesis writing. May God bless and gives grace to us all. I can say
we are the best in supporting each other.
Inspired by a singer named Jason Mraz, I want to invite you to do what he
viii
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TITLE PAGE ... i
APPROVAL PAGE ... ii
ACCEPTANCE PAGE ... iii
STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY ... iv
LEMBAR PERNYATAAN PERSETUJUAN PUBLIKASI KARYA ILMIAH ... v
MOTTO PAGE ... vi
1. The Accuracy and Readability of Domesticated and Foreignized Translation of Specific Words in Stephenie Meyer‟s Twilght into Indonesian Translation Twilight by Devita Sari ... 8
2. “A Study on The Translation of The Christian-Related Term in The Constitution of The Sisters of Notre Dame” ... 9
3. “Translation Quality Assessment on the Accuracy, Naturleness, and Acceptability of the Translation of Leo Tolstoy‟s „After the Dance‟ into „Setelah Pesta Dansa‟ by Anton Kurnia ... 10
B.Review of Related Theories ... 11
1. Theories of Translation... 11
2. Translation Readability ... 14
3. Translation Methods ... 17
C.Theoretical Frameworks ... 21
ix
3. Population and Sample ... 33
4. Data Analysis... 35
CHAPTER IV: ANALYSIS RESULT AND DISCUSSIONS ... 38
A.The Readability of Poirot‟s Dialogues in Pembunuhan atas Roger Ackroyd, Tirai, and Pembunuhan di Pondokan Mahasiswa ... 39
1. Exotic Method on Christie‟s TL Novels ... 39
2. The Readability Result of Poirot‟s Dialogues in Three Agatha Christie‟s TL Novels ... 40
a. The Readability Result of Poirot‟s Dialogues in Pembunuhan atas Roger Ackroyd ... 41
b. The Readability Result of Poirot‟s Dialogues in Tirai ... 43
c. The Readability Result of Poirot‟s Dialogues in Pembunuhan di Pondokan Mahasiswa ... 44
B.The Effect of Exotic Method on the Readability of Poirot‟s Dialogues in Three Christie‟s TL Novels ... 48
1. The Effect of Exotic Method in Pembunuhan atas Roger Ackroyd ... 49
2. The Effect of Exotic Method in Tirai ... 58
3. The Effect of Exotic Method in Pembunuhan di Pondokan Mahasiswa ... 63
CHAPTER V: CONCLUSION ... 70
BIBLIOGRAPHY ... 73
APPENDICES ... 76
Appendix 1: Poirot‟s Dialogues in Pembunuhan atas Roger Ackroyd ... 76
Appendix 2: Poirot‟s Dialogues in Tirai ... 80
x
ABSTRACT
DALE, YOHANES PASKALIS PAE. Exotic Method Effect on the Readability of Hercule Poirot’s Dialogues in Three Agatha Christie’s Indonesian Translated Novels. Yogyakarta: Department of English Letters, Faculty of Letters, Sanata Dharma University, 2014.
This undergraduate thesis focuses on the discussion of a translation method named exotic method which affects the readability of three Indonesian translated novels written by Agatha Christie, titled Pembunuhan atas Roger Ackroyd, Tirai, and Pembunuhan di Pondokan Mahasiswa. These three novels are translated by three different translators, but it is indicated that exotic method of translation coined by Hervey and Higgins is applied in translating these three novels. By the application of that method, the French terms in the dialogues of a main character in those novels named Hercule Poirot are not translated. This exotic translation form brings effects on the readability of Poirot‟s dialogues part, especially for the target language reader who are Indonesian who do not speak in foreign language (in this case, the foreign language is French).
There are two problem formulations in this undergraduate thesis. The first
formulated problem is about the readability of Hercule Poirot‟s dialogues in three Christie‟s Indonesian translated novels. The second problem evaluates the effect of applying exotic method in translating three Christie‟s novels from English into
Indonesian that are seen on the readers. These two problem formulations are also dealing with the examination of the selected data on target language readers to
find out the readability of Poirot‟s dialogues and to analyze the effect of applying
exotic method.
The method used in this research is the qualitative method that mostly implicates empirical or field research, although the library research is also done in selecting data for analysis. The empirical research is done to find out the readability of Poirot‟s dialogues and to analyze the effect of applying exotic method. This empirical research includes the process of compiling affective data through questionnaires.
There are two analysis results in this research. The first result of this research is the average scale 1.8 for the readability of Poirot‟s dialogues in three
Christie‟s Indonesian translated novels. Based on readability-rating instrument, it
means Poirot‟s dialogues are in level „quite readable‟. It is concluded in the field
research on the readers using twenty three selected data. The second result reveals
there are two effects seen on target language readers in reading Christie‟s
Indonesian translated novels caused by applying exotic method in translating those novels. The first is the reader‟s misinterpretation in understanding Poirot‟s
purpose, and the second is that the readers skip French terms in reading Poirot‟s
xi
ABSTRAK
DALE, YOHANES PASKALIS PAE. Exotic Method Effect on the Readability of Hercule Poirot’s Dialogues in Three Agatha Christie’s Indonesian Translated Novels. Yogyakarta: Program Studi Sastra Inggris, Fakultas Sastra, Universitas Sanata Dharma, 2013.
Skripsi ini membahas pengaruh penerapan metode penerjemahan bernama exotic method (metode eksotis) terhadap keterbacaan tiga novel karya Agatha Christie yang diterjemahkan ke dalam versi Indonesia, berjudul Pembunuhan atas Roger Ackroyd, Tirai, dan Pembunuhan di Pondokan Mahasiswa. Ketiga novel itu diterjemahkan oleh tiga penerjemah yang berbeda, namun telah diindikasi bahwa metode penerjemahan eksotis yang dicetuskan Hervey dan Higgins telah diterapkan dalam penerjemahan ketiga novel itu. Karena penerapan metode itu, istilah Prancis dalam dialog tokoh bernama Hercule Poirot tidak diterjemahkan ke dalam bahasa Indonesia. Terjemahan eksotis seperti itu mempengaruhi keterbacaan dialog Poirot, khususnya bagi pembaca bahasa sasaran yang tidak memahami istilah asing yang muncul dalam dialog Poirot (yang dalam objek penelitian ini adalah istilah bahasa Prancis).
Ada dua permasalahan yang dibahas dalam skripsi ini. Permasalahan pertama adalah seberapa terbacanya dialog Hercule Poirot dalam ketiga novel terjemahan karya Agatha Christie yang dibahas. Permasalah kedua membahas pengaruh yang ditimbulkan penerapan metode eksotis dalam penerjemahan ketiga novel karya Agatha Christie dari bahasa Inggris ke dalam Bahasa Indonesia yang merupakan bahasa sasaran. Kedua permasalahan ini juga melibatkan pengujian data utama kepada pembaca untuk menemukan tingkat keterbacaan dialog Poirot, serta untuk menganalisa pengaruh penerapan metode terjemahan eksotis.
Metode penelitian yang digunakan adalah metode kualitatif yang menitikberatkan studi lapangan, walau studi pustaka juga dilakukan untuk menyaring data yang akan dianalisis. Studi lapangan ini juga dilakukan untuk menentukan keterbacaan dialog Poirot dan untuk menganalisis pengaruh penerapan metode eksotis. Studi lapangan ini meliputi pengumpulan data afektif melalui kuesioner.
Terdapat dua hasil analisis dalam penelitian ini. Hasil pertama adalah skala rata-rata 1.8 untuk keterbacaan dialog Poirot dalam tiga novel terjemahan
tersebut, yang berdasarkan tabel tingkat keterbacaan berada pada level „cukup terbaca‟. Hal ini disimpulkan dari analisis lapangan terhadap dua puluh tiga data
1 CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
A.Background of the Study
Translation has been used commonly as one kind of communication media
to bridge a gap between two different language and cultures. It means that one
language in a text can be replaced by another language as the target so it can be
understood by people who speak in the target language. Until now, translation has
been used in many fields which include writing delivery message. Many kinds of
text like journals, newspaper or magazines, bible, and literary works can be
translated so they can be read not only in one language. Translation, if it seen
from a translator‟s perspective, is not just noted as a result or product of a
language transfer, but more as a process. In terms of translation as a process, it
can cover the method, strategy, technique, procedure, ideology, and some other
aspect of translating a language. It will be explained that translation method is the
main point of this research, on how it relates with a kind of translation problem
found in translated text.
A text is explained as stretch or writing produced in a given language to
make a coherent whole (Hervey & Higgins, 1992; 14). Any kinds of text can be
translated into many languages. Usually it is done to help the particular texts go
abroad. Literary works are one kind of text that always popular among people.
Narrative literary works like novels are usually sold abroad to gain more
means they have to be translated first. But, literary works are one kind of text that
has own complexity in its translation process. In translating a literary work like
novels, the translator needs to deal not just with the grammatical aspects, but also
the cultural aspect and the essence contained in each language expression on the
source language text. This matter is also found in the process of translating bible,
but this study discusses about the novels as one kind of narrative literary text.
In some English-Indonesian translation novels written by a famous
English crime writer, Agatha Christie (1890-1976), we can find out that some French terms in the dialogues of one main character named Hercule Poirot are not translated into TL (target language) which is Indonesian. The French terms are
written as well as its original form in the SL (source language) version novels
which are written in English. It is found in most of Christie‟s novels which
involve Hercule Poirot as one of the characters in the related story of the novels.
In addition, the French terms appeared in Hercule Poirot‟sdialogues are caused by
the social background of this character. He is created as a former Belgian police
and has problem with his English, it seen in many of his dialogues and it becomes
his particularity that seen in each of his appearance. By how the French terms are
delivered in TL novels, the researcher defines that a translation method named by
Hervey and Higgins (1992) as exotic method is applied in translating the SL
version novels. The following Poirot‟s dialogue found in Agatha Christie‟s novels
Source Language (English):
“Ah!” cried Poirot, “never will my English be quite perfect. A curious language. I should
then have said disarranged, n’est-ce pas? “
Target Language (Indonesian):
“Ah!” keluh Poirot, “bahasa Inggrisku tidak akan pernah beres. Bahasa yang ganjil.
Seharusnya aku mengatakan mengacau, n’est-ce pas?”
(from Agatha Christie‟s The Murder of Roger Ackroyd and Pembunuhan Atas Roger Ackroyd-translated by Maria Regina).
By what are revealed above, the form of Poirot‟s dialogues in Christie‟s
TL novels have strong possibility to cause readability problem among readers
who do not speak French and it may be difficult for them to understand the
context and meaning of the dialogues. Like in the quotation above, the TL
(Indonesian) readers who do not speak French will not understand the meaning of
n‘est-ce pas, butit keeps written without any translation. In this research, that kind
of translation is done with purpose by the translators of related novels. Hervey and
Higgins, in Thinking French Translation, state that all texts are produced for a purpose, and so it becomes a thoughtful consideration and rational reason to
choose the right methods and practices in translating the SL text (1992; 14). It is
considered that the terms are not translated in order to keep the style of the
character and also the story in the novel itself. The story essence is also main
point needed to be delivered clearly, and as the foreign terms exotically appear in
Poirot‟s dialogue, the TL readers will get the same nuance as what SL text
delivers.
The exotic translated Poirot‟s dialogues in Christie‟s TL novels certainly
the lack of the TT (target text) which has been translated from the SL text, this
research considers it as a part of the translation process, furthermore as an effect
of a translation. It can be seen that Poirot‟s dialogues in Christie‟s TL novels are
translated using the exotic method. The readability problem for the readers in
reading the TL novels is caused by the application of this method, and it is the
basic concern of this study.
Based on the idea that the difficulty for TL readers in reading Christie‟s
TL novels is to understand the context of Poirot‟s dialogues containing French
terms (or what we can call Poirot‟s exotic translated dialogues), this study is
purposed to learn the impact of applying exotic method in translating text. In
which, it is revealed by studying the readability of the translated text. In
reader-oriented scope, this study gathers affective data which will be used to support this
thesis. Eventually, by this study, people can learn more about how observable the
problems of readability that are found in TT as the result of applying exotic
method in translating ST (source text). Translators can have more consideration
on deciding a translation method to translate text, such as novels.
The topic is not studied from all of Agatha Christie‟s novels. Hercule
Poirot appears in more than thirty of Christie‟s novels, but this study is narrowed
only on three of Christie‟s translated novels, which are; Pembunuhan atas Roger
Akcroyd, Tirai, and Pembunuhan di Pondokan Mahasiswa. This study takes those three novels as objects by the consideration that the French terms in Poirot‟s
dialogues in those three translated novels are appeared in various word forms like
leads readability problems among TL readers in understanding Poirot‟s dialogues.
Besides, the data taken from those three novels are enough in order to answer the
formulated problems and conclude this study.
B.Problem Formulation
From the background of the study, this study formulates the problems as
follows:
1. How is the readability of Hercule Poirot‘s dialogues in TL (Indonesian)
version of three Agatha Christie‟s novels?
2. What is the effect of applying exotic method in translating three Agatha
Christie‟s novels on TL readers?
C.Objectives of the Study
As shown above, this study has two objectives. First is to find out the
readability of Hercule Poirot‟s dialogues in three Agatha Christie‟s Indonesian
translated novels. The result of the first objective is used to identify and recognize
the readability problem on those novels, specifically for the TL readers in reading
Poirot‟s dialogues, and so to measure the application of exotic methods in
translating those three novels. The second objective is to evaluate what effect of
applying exotic method in translating those three Agatha Christie‟s novels that are
seen on the TL readers, relating to the application of the method of translation
D.Definition of Terms
The following explanations are the definition of some particular terms that
used by the writer:
Translation Method: Molina and Albir (2002: 507) described a
translation method as the way of how a translation process can be done related to
the purpose of the translation itself. Translation method affects the whole text.
Exotic method: By Hervey and Higgins (1992), exotic method defined as
the signaling cultural foreignness, where TT marked by exoticism is consistent to
use grammatical and cultural features imported from ST with very minimal
adaptation (1992: 34). It is also called exoticism. The method itself related to the
way or system of how the defined exotic feature applied in a translation process
on a text.
Readability: By the definition stated by Richards (1985: 238) in Teori Menerjemah Bahasa Inggris by Nababan (1999: 62), readability is how easily written materials can be read and understood.
Target Language (TL): Hervey and Higgins describe target language
(TL) as the language into which the original text is to be translated (1992: 15). In
this research, the Christie‟s translated novels as the target text are written in
Indonesian, therefore the TL is Indonesian.
Source Language (SL): In Dictionary of Translation Studies
(Shuttleworth & Cowie, 1997: 157), source language (SL) is described as the
The SL novels are the original version of TL novels used as the objects of this
research. The original novels are written in English.
Source text (ST): By Hervey & Higgins (1992: 15), it is described as the
text requiring translation. In this research, the source text is not used as object of
study because the readability problem is only found in non-foreigner readers, who
are Indonesian as the TL readers, with no further translation aspect, like accuracy.
The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, Curtain, and HickoryDickory Dock are the ST of
TL novels used for the objects. Those three of Christie‟s novels as ST are used for
supporting contents.
Target text (TT): TT is the text which is a translation of the ST (Hervey
8 CHAPTER II
REVIEW OF LITERATURE
A. Review of Related Studies
Some studies below support the analysis and methodology of this
research, particularly in investigating translation methods applied in TT and
also about its readability.
1. The Accuracy and Readability of Domesticated and
Foreignized Translation of Specific Words in Stephenie Meyer‟s
Twilight into Indonesian Translation Twilight by Devita Sari.
In that thesis, Maria Agatha Rina Widiastuti discusses about the
accuracy and readability of domesticated and foreignized translation of
specific words found in Stephenie Meyer‟sTwilight in its original version and
its Indonesian translation version (2011: xi). The related specific words are
chosen based on the balance of the number of domesticated and foreignized
words. Her thesis also reveals about two ideologies and strategies in
translating cultural words that studied from Venuti‟s Translator Invisibility
Theory (1995). The accuracy and readability of certain specific terms in the
translation of Meyer‟s Twilight are displayed as the problem formulations of
that thesis (2011: 3).
Widiastuti‟s thesis is circumstantially related with this research by
the point of the second problem formulation in her study discussing about how
specific words in related novel and about the translation method that also
being discussed in this research. The different focus between the this study
and Widiastuti‟s is that this study focuses only on readability problem on TL
readers and the translation method identified in certain TL novels, while
Widiastuti‟s study focuses on accuracy and readability of translation
ideologies, which by Widiastuti are learned as translation strategies
(domestication and foreignization) on specific terms in her object of study
(2011: 9).
2. A Study on The Translation of The Christian-Related Term in
The Constitution of The Sisters of Notre Dame
Fransisca Margareta Kuil, in her thesis, discusses about how the
Christian terms in the Constitution of the Sisters of Notre Dame are translated
into Indonesian according to the theory of SL-emphasis and TL-emphasis and
how the methods of translation in the translation of Christian related terms
according to Hervey and Higgins‟s theory. In her thesis, she uses the Christian
terms in the Constitution as the object of study and data source of her
qualitative research. She is also comparing the Christian terms with its
translation in the Indonesian version of the Constitution to find out more about
the types and how the translation methods are applied in the translation of
Christian terms (2010: x).
This research relates its theory with Kuil‟s thesis by the point of
how her study discusses about the translation methods and in what way they
translation product). The translation theory, in its common and concerning to
the method by Hervey and Higgins used in her study is also reviewed in this
research. But somehow this research is different with Kuil‟s by the main point
that this research focuses on the readability problem caused by the French
expressions found in Poirot‟s TL dialogues, in three Agatha Christie‟s
translated novels; Pembunuhan atas Roger Ackroyd, Tirai, and Pembunuhan di Pondokan Mahasiswa, while Kuil is studying the translation of Christian Terms in the Constitution of the Sisters of Notre Dame (2010: x).
3. Translation Quality Assessment on the Accuracy, Naturalness, and
the Acceptability of the Translation of Leo Tolstoy‟s “After the Dance”
Into “Setelah Pesta Dansa” by Anton Kurnia.
Mostly in her study, Diah Puspitaratri reveals how her study
assesses the quality of an Indonesian translation comparing to its English text.
It is done to evaluate the accuracy, naturalness, and acceptability of
Indonesian translation in the perspective of target language. The point is to
find the quality assessment of Setelah Pesta Dansa by Anton Kurnia as the Indonesian translation text studied as the main object.
What is adapted from Puspitaratri‟s study for this research is the
method of collecting data and how Puspitaratri analyzed that affective data to
assess the quality of the TL version of Tolystoy‟s After the Dance, which is
translation quality assessment, but more about the analysis of applying
translation method in translating ST and its effect on readers.
B. Review of Related Theories
The theories used to support the analysis of this study are divided
into theories on translation, translation readability, and translation methods.
This chapter is then also taking detail on exotic method of translation which
is the main topic of this research.
1. Theories of Translation
Along its history, translation itself has been variously defined.
From all kinds of defined understanding on translation, one used to support
this research is Roger T. Bell‟s definition of translation(1991: 23), which is
related with the perspective on translation:
Translation is the expression in another language (or target language) of what has been expressed in another, source language, preserving semantic and stylistic equivalences.
As what is defined above, translation is purely defined by its
common appearance. Once a SL text is translated, the expression and other
semantic forms in it will have another form that is equivalent to the TL. This
research takes one point by Hervey and Higgins (1992) in seeing translation as
a process, which closely relates with the translation method discussed in this
study. They state that what involve in translating are not just two different
Beside those main ideas, a translation text can possibly bring
expressions in one language into another, with some impact on those
expressions. Mona Baker gives some points about expressions and foreign
words found in a TT which can be seen as a translation product. The points are
used to support the main idea in defining what translation is. As what taken
from In Other Words: A Coursebook on Translation, Baker is discussing about cultural terms, state:
Once a word of expression is borrowed into a language, we cannot predict or control its development or the additional meanings it might or might not take on (1992).
It means some terms or expression in a text can possibly have
additional meaning if it translated, or otherwise, some meanings or values of
the terms probably are missed in the TT. It is about how an expression or
cultural term is used in target language. This study sees the consistent use of
French expressions on Poirot‟s dialogues in Christie‟s novel as one of the
translator‟s manner (in base of reader-oriented translation) to keep the essence
of the messages and nuance that delivered in the expressions. Even though the
idea is about translation strategies, we have more discussion on translation
method. The strategy is put as supporting idea to learn a translation method.
Strategy will refers to how the translator encounter the problems in translating
process, but method stands on how the process itself will be, as what
technically applied to translated ST (Molina & Albir: 2002: 507-508). By
different point of view, the form seen in Poirot‟s dialogues has some
translation strategy in which the translators will keep the cultural terms be
untranslatable (2011: 4). This research agrees with one statement in
Widiastuti‟s work that the consistent use of the foreign semantic form in TT is
purposed to keep the sense of the literary style and bring the TL readers
abroad to understand the idea of the expression.
To understand more about the circumstances of foreign words in a
translated text, this study reviews Andre Lefevere‟s translating studies (1992),
which states:
To „regularize‟ foreign words, to translate them as if they were not
foreign words in the original, may therefore be to detract from the complexity of the original (1992:29).
Some foreign words (and phrases) may no longer sound foreign for the readers of the target-language, in which case they will have lost the effect intended by the author (1992: 29).
If the French terms are translated to the closest equivalence in TL,
Poirot‟s dialogues in Pembunuhan atas Roger Akcroyd, Tirai, and
Pembunuhan di Pondokan Mahasiswa, the word style and several effects of characterization created by the author of the novels (Agatha Christie) will
somehow disappear. These three TL novels are translated by different persons,
but by the form studied on them, the method in translating the novels is
similar.
To find the possible reason of why the foreign expressions are not
translated is not the main focus of this research. That point is beyond the
scope of this research which only learns the aspect of method use relating to
translators have reasonable decision to put the French terms delivered in TL
novels as well as its original form in the SL novels. By the theories above, the
researcher finds out that the translation language in TL novel is a result of
translator‟s consideration on the reader‟s understandings. If the foreign terms
are translated into TL, it is highly possible that the readers will not get the
effect intended by the novels author, the context, content, style, and nuance of
the terms and so the related character speech will not be appeared as well as
SL.
2. Translation Readability
This research involves readability as one of three important aspects
in assessing translation text, which is accuracy, readability, and acceptability.
It means the researcher learns how the TT as a translation product can be
readable for TL readers. Better translation product should be one which highly
readable and understandable, and so the sense of the TL text can be highly
similar with the original one (ST). To support the study of TL text readability
related to the TL readers, this research uses points discussed in the theory and
practice of translation by Nida and Taber, reviewed in the second chapter of
their book, about reproducing the message (1972: 12):
Translating must aim primarily at “reproducing the message”.
A meaningful equivalent is “tender compassion”, and it is precisely in this manner that many translation attempts to reproduce the significance of this source-language expression.
The nature of translating is what they discussed about. The text message is
translation text. They stated that it is precisely that a meaningful equivalent is
described as „tender compassion‟, that many translations attempt to reproduce
the significance source-language expression.
Nida and Taber are also conducting that style is secondary to the
content of the text, but indeed, it is important (1972: 14). Novel is a written
literary form. It has content on its narration. The style and essence of its
characters‟ are seen from many points of views according how reader deal on
it, but the strongest are seen on the dialogues. In Christie‟s novels involving
Hercule Poirot as the character, the nuance of Poirot himself is alive by his
dialogues in the story. It is more than just simply described in the narration.
The dialogues identify the characterization of Hercule Poirot. That is one point
considered as how the method applied on the TL novels, but it definitely also
cause a lack in reading for the TL readers who are mostly familiar with local
language. It is defined as readability problem.
This research also uses this theory to support the study because it
has strong connection with the focus of the study which discusses the
understanding of the TL readers on Poirot‟s exotic translated dialogues. Based
on the theory used in this research, the primary aim of translation is
„reproducing the message‟, to get the most equivalent content of the text (or
specifically, of the conversations and dialogues in the text) in the translation
result in TL novel the foreign expressions should be delivered as its original
reflected the same concept and context so the expressions can be understood
well by the TL readers and TT (target text) can be readable.
The first formulated problem discussed in this research examines
the readability problem among TL readers of Christie‟s novels. We can
assume that the TL readers who do not speak French will surely not
understand about the French terms on Poirot‟s dialogues, but it is considered
that the idea of Poirot‟s dialogues itself can still be understood even after
exotic method is applied. This research reveals that there is weakness on using
exotic method in translating three Christie‟s SL novels into the TL version.
The application of this method affects the readability of TT, especially on
reading Poirot‟s dialogues part. As to examine the readability of TL readers,
this research uses „readability rating-instrument‟, one modification of
Nababan‘s „accuracy rating-instrument‟. The researcher adapts the table form
from one of this study‟s related studies, the one from Widiastuti‟s study
(2011), which also learns about accuracy and readability on translation with
modifications on it.
This research uses the „readability rating-instrument‟ only, with the
scale (1) up to (3), with indicator level; readable, quite readable, and not
readable. The specific scale that then accumulates the readability rank of each
data while studying the TL readers on the field will be displayed later in the
The following table is the form of „readability-rating instrument are at least two terms that cannot be understood by the TL readers.
3 not readable
The TT term is hard to read. All of the terms of translation cannot be understood by the TL readers.
The „readable‟ rating refers to the text which is easy to read in
terms of the meaning of the whole terms and also its context. The „quite
readable‟ rating refers to the text that is still can be read with such condition,
that there are at least two terms in the text that cannot be understood by the
readers. The context of quite readable text can still be understood. The „not
readable‟ rating refers to the text which is hard to read because all of terms in
the text cannot be understood by readers. The context involved in the text is
not understood
3. Translation Methods
This research relates the exotic method of translation with the readability
aspect on Christie‟s TL novels. While reviewing the methods of the
translation, this research also takes some points of translation strategies
done on a process of translation, besides the translation technique and
procedures.
In their journal, Molina and Albir put some points about literal translation, which occurs when there is an exact structural, lexical, and morphological equivalence between two languages. It is described that there
are kinds of lead strategy of translating a text, which are: borrowing, calque
and literal word- for-word translation (2002: 499). The „borrowing‟ is
mentioned as one of the translation strategy, when a word taken directly from
another language that is applied in translating ST. It somehow has same
appearance like Hervey & Higgins‟ exotic method. But while the „borrowing‟
is applied on a text as result of finding suitable solution for the translation
unit, the exotic method is more functioned as the technical manner to reach the
aim of the translation itself, it affects the whole text.
Logically, method and functions should function harmoniously in the text. For example, if the aim of a translation method is to produce a foreignizing version, then borrowing will be one of the most frequently used (Molina & Albir: 2002: 508).
Foreignizing version there means how the ST filled by the foreign
features in languages or illustration of the text is translated into the TT along
with those foreign features, with less adaptation. The term itself is also
reviewed in other studies with different name, like what called as
Foreignization by Venuti (1995) which reviewed by Munday in Introducing Translation Studies (2001:146-148).
Foreignization, as the review of Venuti in Munday‟s Introducing Translation
Studies (2001: 147);
Foreignization, on the other hand, „entails choosing a foreign text and
developing a translation method along lines which are excluded by dominant cultural values in the target language‟.
By what is seen on the text, the terms in TT brings the readers
abroad with SL terms, which the cultural terms in SL will be left as what it
formed in SL text without being translated.
Mainly in this research, theories of translation methods are taken
from Hervey and Higgins‘ Thinking Translation; A Course on Translation
Methods: French to English (1992), in its third chapter, about cultural issues in translation. In that part, Hervey and Higgins mention some various type of
cultural transposition to analyze SL which the writer defines it as the way
chosen by the translator to transfer or to translate the SL text into TL text, the
methods are explained as follows:
a) Exoticism
This type is what the researcher defines as exotic method. It is also
simply one form of „borrowing‟, but specifically Hervey & Higgins (1992)
name it exoticism, or exotic method. This is a kind of cultural transposition
which has the extreme options in signaling cultural foreignness in a TT. An
ST marked by exoticism is consistent in using grammatical and cultural
features imported from ST with minimal adaptation. This method brings the
ST‟s features exotically on TT. It constantly signals the exotic source culture
A TL text which exoticism applies has an impact on the TL public.
The ST could have had on an SL public, from whom the text has fewer
features of a different culture (1992: 34).
b)Cultural Transplantation
Cultural transplantation, whose extreme forms are hardly
translations at all, but it is more like adaptation, that the wholesale
transplanting of the ST setting, resulting in the entire text being rewritten in a
target culture setting (1992: 34).
c) Calque
A calque is an expression which consists of TL words and is
acceptable as TL syntax, but is unidiomatic in the TL because it is modeled on
the structure of an SL expression. This lack of idiomaticity may be purely
lexical and relatively harmless, or it may be more generally grammatical
(1992: 34-35).
d)Cultural borrowing
Cultural borrowing is different with the other types because it does
not involve adaptation of the SL expression into TL forms. Translators often
turn to cultural borrowing when it is impossible to find a suitable indigenous
TL expression. Cultural borrowing only presents the translator with a true
choice in cases where previous translation practice has not already firmly
e) Communicative translation
Simply explained, communicative translation is usually adopted for
all cliches, idioms, proverbs, etc. which have readily identifiable
communicative equivalents in the TL. Communicative translation is somehow
appropriate in the context because it renders the situational impact with TL
expressions (1992: 32, 36)
C. Theoretical Framework
All theories that are previously explained help the analysis of this
research. They are also needed to answer the formulated problems before the
researcher can conclude this study.
Some theories in Hervey and Higgins‟ Thinking Translation; second
edition, in its third chapter about cultural issues, show a clear point of how we see translation as a process, which then can be related with the methods and
strategies of translation used in translating a SL text into TL text. Mostly, the
discussion of exotic method is also strongly related to their theories (1992:
34). The researcher studies Foreignizationfrom Venuti‟s theory (1995), in its
relation with the exotic method as how they are involved in a translation
process, but still Hervey and Higgins‟ exotic method is the main point in this
study. Some points about foreign words by Mona Baker become a review of
the appearance of foreign words such as expressions in TL text.
Methodology reviewed in Widiastuti‟s thesis, in assessing translation
answering the first problem formulation, especially in gathering the affective
data. Hervey and Higgins‟s exotic method is also reviewed more to analyze
the second formulated problems, as well as the other point about foreign
23
CHAPTER III
METHODOLOGY
D. Areas of Research
The area of research in this study involves the analysis on a
translation effect, oriented on the TL readers as the client of the translation
product. Although it is still in the part of quality assessment, this research
narrows the focus on translation readability, which relates with the study of
translation effect caused by the application of certain translation method in
translating text. The translation effect is evaluated by studying the TT and
how it is read by TL readers, it is still seen as a part or at least a result of a
translation process. A translation process, in overcoming the cultural
equivalence between SL and TL, includes two types of activity, which are;
understanding ST and formulating the TT (Hervey & Higgins: 1992: 15). The
process itself lead translator to decide what method will be applied in
translating ST into TT. Based on the specific problem discussed as the topic of
this research, exotic method is the applied method which brings effect to the
readability of related TT. This research is concerned on studying the TT
(target text) and TT readers.
E. Object of the Study
Objects of the study used for this research are the specific
dialogues of Hercule Poirot in three Agatha Christie‟s TL novels titled;
Mahasiswa. The specific dialogues mentioned above are the Poirot‟s exotic
translated dialogue (in which exotic method is applied) in those three
Christie‟s translated novels. In which the French terms appear without any
translation in those TL dialogues.
The first formulated problem in this research is concerned with a
readability study, so it mostly focuses on a text which has been translated from
the ST to learn how readable it is. The ST (source text), which in this study are
the three of Agatha Christie‟s SL novels; The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (ST
of Pembunuhan atas Roger Akcroyd), Curtain (ST of Tirai), and Hickory Dickory Death (ST of Pembunuhan di Pondokan Mahasiswa)were not used as the object of the study because they are not read by TL readers. Problem
formulations are based on TT learning.
F. Method of the Study
In collecting theories and data in order to answer the problem
formulations, two kinds of method are used in this research; library research
and empirical research.
On library research which in term of translation studies is defined
as a method of collecting data in form of written materials, all supporting
ideas and also the data were collected from the theory books, journals, articles,
and academic papers that were relevant and can be used to support this
research. The supporting information used for this research was also taken by
It gave more comprehension on the research object. However, the main data
for analysis were taken only from the TL novels. Related to this study, the
library research particularly used to gather the base theories of translation
itself, theories of readability in translation, the theories of translation methods
and strategies. Some academic papers from graduated students and printing
sources were also used as the related studies for a help to consider the research
method in collecting and delivering data, especially in analysis.
The empirical or field research put more attention on how to
collect data on the field to seek evidence, which include the direct observation
on TT readers by distributing questionnaires. Affective data that has been
collected were then also been studied to get readers‟ preferences to support the
thesis in answering the formulated problems and conclude the study. By this
field study, this research can get some responses from TL readers related to
readability aspect of Christie‟s TL novels.
The data which was collected by these methods are primary data
because they are directly collected from the related sources and studied on the
field by the researcher. It includes data selecting and processing.
G. Research Procedure
1. Types of Data
In the analysis process, the collected data were divided into two
first one is called as objective data, that are taken from texts and the second is
affective data taken from the field research.
a. Objective Data
The elaboration of the data source is defined as objective data.
Objective data of this research were taken from three translated novels written
by a famous English crime writer, Agatha Christie, and each of the novels was
translated into Bahasa Indonesia by different translators. These three novels
titled; Pembunuhan atas Roger Ackroyd, Tirai, and Pembunuhan di Pondokan Mahasiswa were all published by PT Gramedia Pustaka in Jakarta
Pembunuhan atas Roger Ackroyd was translated from Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Maria Regina. It has been published by PT Gramedia Pustaka for three times. Firstly it published in July 1979, secondly in February
1984, thirdly in November 1990. The novel was divided into 27 chapters and
consists of 447 pages. It was famously told as the most controversial
Christie‟s masterpiece which includes Hercule Poirot by its story twist.
Hercule Poirot character was mostly appeared in the whole part of the story,
so his dialogue quantity were high, with the result on what seen in
Pembunuhan atas Roger Ackroyd, French terms were plentiful found in his dialogues.
Tirai was translated from Curtain by Dra. Gianny Buditjahja. It was published in 1982, divided into 20 chapters and consists of 320 pages.
Tirai or Curtain was the last novel of Agatha Christie appearing Hercule
was dead in the end of the story of this novel. It was told as the last case for
Hercule Poirot.
Pembunuhan di Pondokan Mahasiswa was translated from Hickory Dickory Dock by Julanda Tantani. It was published in 1993 by PT Gramedia Pustaka, consists of 23 chapters and 312 pages. The title of its ST novel;
Hickory Dickory Dock was also titled as Hickory Dickory Death by other
publishers. The words „Hickory Dickory Dock‟ itself was adapted from a
popular English nursery rhyme.
b. Affective Data
As mentioned in the method of the study,this study is described as
a qualitative study. Miles and Huberman in Qualitative Data Analysis: an expended sourcebook stated that qualitative data is mostly performed in the form of words, not in form of number (1994:1). So, as a qualitative study, the
data and result of the study are performed as explanations and descriptive
review.
The data used for this study were taken from the related TL novels
(as known as TT), they are three of Agatha Christie‟s Indonesian translated
novels involving Hercule Poirot character, titled Pembunuhan atas Roger Ackroyd, Tirai, and Pembunuhan di Pondokan Mahasiswa. The analysis unit taken from TL novels as the data are Poirot‟s dialogues which contain French
terms, it is then be used to identify the translation method in TL texts.
To study the readability aspect, the researcher did a survey on TL
foundation of this research was based on the observation on the readability
aspect of TT (Christie‟s TL novels). Qualitative approach was done on the TT
to study its readability.
This research involves TL readers as one of the fields and areas to
gather data. The readability rank of Pembunuhan Atas Roger Ackroyd, Tirai,
and Pembunuhan di Pondokan Mahasiswa was examined by distributing the questionnaires to twenty five respondents who were selected after considering
the reader‟s profile of translated fiction readers. The reader‟s profile was used
as qualification in selecting proper respondents for this research.
The proper respondent for this research are described as follows;
the respondents were 18-25 aged university students (from any study
programs), men and women are allowed. They should at least have read more
than three different fiction stories in any genres and forms (such as short
stories, novels, or texts from internet source which officially published),
whether those are the popular reading or not. That point was needed for the
qualification to reach the right respondent with good capability on reading
narrative reading, like novels, whether in understanding the language aspect
and also the story content.
The respondents were those who do not speak French. This last
point was aimed at fitting the respondent as the right TL readers who were the
field of this study. It has been considered that the readability problem in
reading TL novels is only possibly happen among the TL readers who do not
became affective data. The function of the data for this study itself was
explained in data collection.
2. Data Collection
It has been revealed in method of the study that all the data were
collected through the library research and the empirical research which focus
on the field of data colleting process. This part explains more detailed form of
data collecting itself. The data collection was conducted through the TL text
analysis and the survey on TL readers by the questionnaire.
a. TL Texts Analysis
Before constructing the questionnaire to collect the affective data,
TL novels (Pembunuhan Atas Roger Ackroyd, Tirai, and Pembunuhan di Pondokan Mahasiswa) have been read and analyzed to get better understanding on the background language used in Hercule Poirot‘s
dialogues. It then helped the researcher identifying what translation method
and strategy applied in the TL texts (TL novels). Understanding on the whole
story of TL texts was also needed. It was very useful to find the foreign
cultural terms (which in this research is French) that become one main aspect
of readability problem found in related TL texts. Reading the TL novels was
also done to split the specific part in the novels which then used as data. They
are Poirot‟s dialogues containing French terms. The dialogues were then split
again according to the research needs, then they were used as samples or we
b.Questionnaire
To examine the readability of TT, especially for Hercule Poirot‘s
dialogues which include French terms, this research used questionnaire in
gathering data.
The main data were taken from specific Poirot‟s dialogues which
then were listed in then questionnaires and distributed to the respondents.
Some direct interviews with the respondents were also done to get preferences
which then helped this study to answer the second problem formulation. In
terms of readability, the questionnaires were functionalized to measure the TL
readers understanding on Poirot‟s dialogues that contain French terms related
to the topic of this study, also to affirm the readability problem of the text
itself.
In the questionnaire, the scoring system was adapted from
Nababan‟s‗readability rating-instrument‘. Scale (1) up to (3) is given to score
the readability rank of Poirot‟s dialogues in related novels; Pembunuhan Atas
Roger Ackroyd, Tirai, and Pembunuhan di Pondokan Mahasiswa with indicator (1) for readable, (2) for quite readable, (3) for not readable. The
related dialogues need to be learned as it is called TL text analysis. It then
resulted as the list of quotations of TL text in questionnaires which the
respondents give score on. By the questionnaires, this study found out the
readability scale of the TT which exotic method is applied.
As to answer the second problem formulation, in the
translation in each French term was given. It named as table 2, while Table 1
was the list of original quotations of Poirot‘s dialogues in the TL novels
where the French terms are not translated at all. The TT quality as a
translation text and the applying method were analyzed by its readability to
help analyzing the effect of the applying exotic method on the readability of
the text. The additional translations of French terms given on Poirot‟s
dialogues in table 2 were obtained from some credible sources, including dictionaries and French speakers.
The questionnaires used Indonesian because they were distributed
among the TL readers who are Indonesian, and this research analyzes the
applied exotic method on TL novels which the TL itself is Indonesia. The
example below shows how the data was placed on the questionnaires.
Example (1.1) delivers the data view of table 1 of the questionnaire, while example (1.2) delivers the data view of table 2.
Example 1.1 Data View on Questionnaire (table 1)
No Tsa1 Skala
1 2 3 1. “Voila ce qui est curieux,” gumam Poirot.
“Saya rasa tidak ada orang yang duduk di kursi dengan posisi seperti itu.” (A/7)
No : Data Number
Tsa : „Teks Sasaran‟, it refers to TT (Target Text)
Skala : Scale
Example 1.2 Data View on Questionnaire (table 2)
No Tsa2 Skala
1 2 3 1. “Voila ce qui est curieux—itulah yang
janggal,” gumam Poirot. “Saya rasa tidak ada
orang yang duduk di kursi dengan posisi seperti
itu.” (A/7)
The data is in form of Poirot‟s dialogue in Christie‟s TL novels. Its
readability is then be examined by the respondents by giving scale on that
quotation‟s readability. The readability rating indicator for each of the scale
was also displayed in the questionnaires to supply better understanding for the
respondents on how to do the questionnaires.
Data code was not displayed on the questionnaire to make it
simpler for the respondents. It was displayed on data elaboration in the next
chapter. The information of the data in the questionnaire was showed in
simpler code, which was Novel/Chapter (see on example 1.1: A/7) and it has also been explained in the questionnaire. The alphabet indicates from what
novel the data was taken. A represents Pembunuhan atas Roger Ackroyd, B represents Tirai, C represents Pembunuhan di Pondokan Mahasiswa. The number indicates the chapter where the data was taken from.
Data code was mentioned in the analysis result. The view of data
result was different with data view on questionnaires, it had completed with
Example 1.3 Data Result
No Code TT Scale
1. 05/TT/A/7/132 “Voilá ce qui est curieux,” gumam Poirot.
“Saya rasa tidak ada orang yang duduk di kursi dengan posisi seperti itu.”
1.8
In which,
Code : Data code
TT : Target Text
Scale : Score/Scale result (based on readability-rating indicator)
05 : Data number in Appendix
A : Indicator code; to show the data source. In which, A represents Pembunuhan atas Roger Ackroyd B represents Tirai
C represents Pembunuhan di Pondokan Mahasiswa
7 : Novel Chapter
132 : Novel Page
3. Population and Sample
By reading and collecting data from TL novels as the objects, the
researcher concluded the population and sample of data that then were used in
the analysis. All Poirot‟s dialogues appearing French terms in all part of
Pembunuhan atas Roger Ackroyd, Tirai, and Pembunuhan di Pondokan Mahasiswa are the population, the wider field to be narrowed then as the main data. There are a hundred and thirty six (136) data in the population The data
population of this research were the Poirot‟s dialogues in three Christie‟s TL
novels only, in spite of the fact that French terms are also found on several
narrator speech, but in very slight number. The samples were the twenty three
(23) data selected out of the population. It was then used as the main data for
the analysis. For further information, all Poirot‟s dialogues with French terms
in it were counted in population, whether the terms are pronouns, phrases,
idioms, expressions.
The twenty three samples were taken from whole data population
found from three Christie‟s TL novels. This research only took twenty three
data because the number of whole data would be too much to be analyzed.
The small number of data would simplify the questionnaires building and
analysis process. In selecting the main data, random sampling was used, but it
was used by these considerations; First, exotic translation form in Poirot‟s
dialogues were not appeared in the whole chapters in the novels that if the
sample is taken by kind of category like part of speech, the number of each
would be far different from each other, and so main data were better to be
taken randomly. Second point is that many of the data have the same form,
which means many of the French terms in that Poirot‟s dialogues were exactly
similar and repeatedly appeared in Poirot‟s dialogues. So then the researcher
only took one of them that were similar to be part of the main data.
Beside those points, in sampling the main data from population, the
researcher selected out Poirot‟s dialogues with most rarely-heard French terms
for TL readers (Indonesian), especially for the dialogues appearing French
expressions, and the rest were the dialogues appearing simple French terms
point above). Some discussions with French speakers were also done to help
the researcher selected twenty three main data to ensure that those selected
data have certain quality to be analyzed.
4. Data Analysis
In analyzing the data, some steps were done. First of all, the
researcher read the related TL novels to find the specific problems (in terms of
topic of this research) and selected out certain parts that were then used as
data. The next step, to analyze the related data in the field, it is needed to form
questionnaire which then was assessed by respondents to collect affective
data. In analyzing the affective data that has been collected, the scale scores
given by the respondents were then been calculated.
The affective data (as the result of respondents‟ assessment) were
analyzed as follows: the researcher calculated the scale assessed by
respondents of each related data (Poirot‟s certain dialogues) given in the
questionnaire, it was used to find the scale of each data and average scale of
entire twenty three main data. That scale was rated as the readability rank of
Poirot‟s dialogues in TL novels which then affirmed the answer of the first
problems formulation. For example, if the final scale of the whole data is (1),
it means the specific dialogues in TT are „readable‟. And so the other
Table 2. Readability-rating
Scale Readability Rating 1 - 1.6
Readable
1.7 - 2.3
Quite Readable
2.4 - 3
Not Readable
By the assessment on the result of collected data, this research had
an understanding on the readability of Poirot‟s dialogues on the TL novels.
The effect of applying exotic method on a translation text discussed as the
second formulation was also confirmed by the result of questionnaires‟ TT-2
as supporting data. It was compared with the result of the TT-1. The final
results were analyzed and observed then to draw the answer of second
problem formulation.
The discussions of the effect caused by the application of exotic
method in translating Poirot‟s dialogues in Christie‟s novels were included in
data elaboration. The conclusion of this research was revealed after all phases
above been done. Below are the examples of analyzed data view.
Example 2.1TT-1 Data Result
No Code TT-1 Scale
1.1 05/TT/A/7/132 “Voilá ce qui est curieux,” gumam Poirot.
“Saya rasa tidak ada orang yang duduk di kursi dengan posisi seperti itu.”
Example 2.2TT-2 Data Result
No Code TT-2 Scale
1.2 05/TT/A/7/132 “Voilá ce qui est curieux—itulah yang
janggal,” gumam Poirot. “Saya rasa tidak
ada orang yang duduk di kursi dengan
posisi seperti itu.”
1.2
It has been explained that ST are not analyzed because this
research focuses only on the readability aspect of translation. The scale result
was the result of accumulated scale on the data in questionnaires assessed by
the respondents. TT-2 was only made for the twenty three main data to be
