Translating irony. Translation strategies and techniques used by Polish translators of Pride and Prejudice

Abstract

This article presents the results of a comparative analysis of two Polish translations of Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. The authors of the translations are Anna Przedpełska-Trzeciakowska and Magdalena Gawlik-Małkowska. Attention is given to rendering irony, which is the novel’s characteristic feature. The analysed excerpts illustrate the main translation strategies and techniques used in the Polish translations. A comparative analysis shows that techniques applicable to rendering humour and culture-bound elements can be used to translate irony as well. The Polish translations convey irony, but there are differences caused by the translators’ interpretations and by their choice of s trategies and techniques. Przedpełska-Trzeciakowska often uses the strategy of foreignization, but she tries to guide the reader so that they can perceive the implicature. Gawlik-Małkowska’s translation is more literal and more modern, and its irony is more covert.