Summary of PhD thesis: Doan Thuy Quynh

Project completed at:

University of Social Sciences and Humanities

Vietnam National University, Hanoi

 

 

Scientific instructor:Associate Professor, Dr. NGUYEN THI PHUONG THUY and Associate Professor, Dr. NGUYEN HUU DAT

 

 

Independent reviewer 1:. ………………………………………………

Independent reviewer 2: ……………………………………………….

 

Objection 1: ………………………………………………….……

Objection 2: ……………………………………………….………

Objection 3: ……………………………………………….………

 

The thesis will be defended before the Thesis Evaluation Council of the training institution meeting at:..........................................

........................................................................................................

at ………. o'clock …. day …. month …. year……….

 

 

Thesis can be found at the library:

National Library of Vietnam

Information Center - Library, Vietnam National University, Hanoi

 

INTRODUCTION

1. Reason for choosing the topic

English songs, especially English songs from 1980-2000 on the theme of love, are loved by many music listeners because of their good lyrics and melodies, the lyrics express a strong expressive function, attracting music listeners. Almost all songs have lyrics that are bold in the style of artistic language, which is the highlight of the song, and the rhymes are musical. English songs from 1980-2000 have a special effect on society. Listeners can understand the messages about feelings, life, people, and the surrounding environment hidden deep inside the lyrics that the musician wants to express. Therefore, English songs from this period are also used by teachers to teach English, to increase the attractiveness in class, and learners can acquire knowledge about language and culture.

Translations of English songs from the 1980s to 2000s on the theme of love were also widely accepted by Vietnamese music listeners. Typical musicians who translated Vietnamese lyrics for English songs during this period include Pham Duy, Le Huu Ha, Nguyen Hoang Do, Quoc Bao, Anh Bang, Truong Ky, etc. Their translated and copied music attracted a large number of listeners in the country and overseas because the linguistic material in the translation had artistic value, both having the expressive function, the stylistic characteristics of artistic language, and the informational value of the original to convey the message to music listeners.

The reason why English songs and their Vietnamese translations are attractive to the public and have an impact on society is because of their attractive lyrics. To feel the song in depth, the listener must understand the content and meaning conveyed in the lyrics. For the above reasons, we decided to choose the topic "Case studyfrominsongsEnglish 1980-2000 with Vietnamese translation (love theme)"to compare the original lyrics and the translated lyrics in terms of semantics, pragmatics, style of word combinations and phonetics (rhymes) in the lyrics to see the similarities and differences of the lyrics in the two languages. The study of comparing the lyrics in English songs from 1980-2000 with the Vietnamese translation (love theme) will have practical and useful contributions, providing new materials and methods in research, supporting the teaching and learning of English as a foreign language effectively.

2. Research purpose and research tasks

The thesis aims to find similarities and differences between the lyrics of the two languages ​​and draw some suggestions on the method of translating songs and the method of teaching English through songs. To achieve the above purpose, the thesis raises the following research questions:

1. What are the similarities and differences between the original English lyrics and the lyrics in the Vietnamese translation in terms of semantics and pragmatics?
2. What are the similarities and differences between the original English lyrics and the lyrics in the Vietnamese translation in terms of style?
3. What are the similarities and differences between the original English lyrics and the lyrics in the Vietnamese translation in terms of phonetics?

To answer the above question, the research tasks of the thesis are:

- Overview of the research situation on lyrics in the world and in Vietnam.

- Describe and compare the semantic and pragmatic characteristics of the lyrics in the original with the translation to find out the similarities and differences in semantics and pragmatics between the two types of texts (applying Peter Newmark's pragmatic translation strategy).

- Examine, describe, analyze and contrast the styles of word combinations in the original and the translation to find similarities and differences, to see how the translation retains those stylistic features.

- Examine, describe and compare rhymes to find similarities and differences in rhymes, to see how the translation retains the characteristics of rhymes.

3. Research object and scope

The research subjects of this topic are lyrics in English songs and lyrics in Vietnamese translations (singable translations).

The scope of the research is the lyrics in English songs from 1980-2000 about love between couples and the lyrics in Vietnamese translations.

4. Research methods

To conduct this thesis, we used the comparative method, the descriptive method, some other research techniques such as semantic lexical analysis, direct component analysis and statistical techniques.

5. Research resources

English sources are taken from publications published by Hanoi National University Publishing House and Phuong Dong University Publishing House and Vietnamese sources are taken from reputable websites: lyric.karaoke.com/Album/nhac_ngoai_loi_viet and hopamviet.vn, translated by famous Vietnamese musicians and Vietnamese musicians living abroad.

6. Theoretical and practical significance

Theoretical significance: The research results of the thesis will contribute to consolidating and clarifying some theoretical issues on artistic language, stylistic theory, comparative theory, translation theory, and song translation theory. The thesis will contribute to promoting the research on comparative theoretical trends of artistic texts (songs) in Vietnam.

In terms of practical significance: The results of the thesis are not only reference materials in the scope of translation research in general and lyric translation in particular, but also assist in foreign language teaching and learning.

7. Thesis layout

In addition to the introduction, conclusion, references, appendix, the thesis content has 04 chapters:

Chapter 1: Overview of research situation and theoretical basis

Chapter 2: Comparing the lyrics in English songs with their Vietnamese translations (love theme) in terms of semantics and pragmatics

Chapter 3: Comparing the lyrics in English songs with their Vietnamese translations (love theme) in terms of the style of word combinations

Chapter 4: Compare the lyrics in English songs with the Vietnamese translation (love theme) in terms of phonetics (rhyme)

CHAPTER 1: OVERVIEW OF RESEARCH SITUATION AND THEORETICAL BASIS

1.1. Overview of documents related to the research situation

1.1.1 The situation of lyric research in the world

In the world today, no one has done comparative research on Vietnamese - English, English - Vietnamese lyrics, there are only studies on English lyrics. To conduct comparative research on lyrics, it is necessary to consider lyrics that have been studied from a number of angles. These research works so far have mainly focused on the main trends: composition, linguistics and translation, in which there have been a few studies very close to the comparative direction.

There are not many works on lyrics research from the perspective of composition in the world. We find two publications quite interesting and special, namely “New definition of lyric, theory, technology, and culture” by Mark Jeffreys (1998) and “The Arts of Writing Great Lyrics” by Pamela Phillips Oland (2001).

Research on lyrics from a linguistic perspective is of interest to many scholars around the world, from basic research to in-depth research on semantics. Typical studies include the following authors: Travis K (2008) on Funk music lyrics, Dwiki Rifardi (2017) on the semantics of lyrics ofBob Marley,Janne Harpela (2015) Johansson (2016), Wiji Lestari (2017) Lydia Ankuno (2018) study conceptual metaphors of love in lyrics.

Studies on lyric translation are very close to the comparative direction and are of interest to many scholars in the world, typically the studies of Low (2005) with the work "Song and Significance, Franzon (2008) with the work “Choices in Song Translation: Singability in print, Subtitles and Sung Performances”and scholars who have applied the research results of the above scholars such as Damla Kaleg, Nantaporn Sangroj, Chrisna Leni and Athriyana Santye Pattiwael.

1.1.2 Situation of lyric research in Vietnam

In Vietnam, no one has done any research on comparing Vietnamese - English, English - Vietnamese lyrics. Research works on pop music lyrics in Vietnam so far have mainly focused on the main trends: music, linguistics and translation.

The pioneer in studying lyrics from a musical perspective in Vietnam is Duong Viet A (2005) with his work "Lyrics in Vietnamese music,followed by the doctoral dissertations of Tran Thi Ngoc Lan (2010) and Vo Van Ly (2011).

The research works on lyrics from the linguistic perspective that many Vietnamese authors are interested in today are the research works of Nguyen Thi Bich Hanh, Tran Anh Tu, Tran Kim Phuong, Phan Ngoc Anh, Ngo Huu Hoang, Dao Thi Dong Hop and Pham Van Tinh. Nguyen Thi Bich Hanh (2009) (2014) is interested in "Linguistic symbols in Trinh Cong Son's lyrics" and "Cognitive metaphors in Trinh Cong Son's lyrics". Tran Anh Tu (2018) again delves into research on "The relationship between the tone in the lyrics and the melody of Nghe Tinh folk songs”. In addition, there are a number of articles on pop music lyrics published in specialized magazines, specifically “Tien Quan Ca from the perspective of critical discourse analysis" by Ngo Huu Hoang (2019) and Dao Thi Dong Hop, "Unusual combinations in Trinh Cong Son's lyrics from a grammatical perspective” by Tran Kim Phuong (2011), Nouns indicating time and season in Trinh Cong Son's lyrics by Tran Kim Phuong and Phan Ngoc Anh (2011) and “Some thoughts on the lyrics of today's songs" by Pham Van Tinh (2003).

Research on lyrics from the perspective of translation has also recently appeared in Vietnam. Typical research works by Le Hung Tien (2010) have mentioned a small part of the issue of translating lyrics through the discussion of establishing equivalence in song translation, Nguyen Ninh Bac (2014) and Ngo Tu Lap (2016) have discussed in depth how to translate lyrics.

Looking through the above research works, it can be seen that in Vietnam and in the world, there has not been any scholar who has mentioned the comparative study of Vietnamese-English and English-Vietnamese lyrics. Therefore, we chose to studyCompare casesfromin the articlessingEnglish 1980-2000 with Vietnamese translation (love theme)is new, necessary, meaningful both in theory and practice.

1.2. Theoretical basis

1.2.1 Theory of comparison

Bui Manh Hung (2008) proposed five principles of comparison: the phenomena to be compared must be described fully, accurately and deeply, the phenomena to be compared must be considered within its system, the linguistic phenomena to be compared must be considered pragmatically, the concepts used in the comparison must be consistent and attention must be paid to the typological characteristics between the languages ​​to be compared.

When comparing, we need to follow three steps: Describe what is relevant in the languages ​​being compared, identify what can be compared, and compare to find similarities and differences.

In comparison, there are two-way comparison and one-way comparison. The thesis researches the comparison of the original lyrics with the translation, which is a one-way comparison, English lyrics are the source language, Vietnamese lyrics are the target language.

1.2.2 Theory of lyrics

1.2.2.1 Definition of lyrics

Lyrics are the linguistic material of a song, carrying aesthetic values ​​and equivalent to literary language.

1.2.2.2 Function of lyrics

Lyrics have three functions: the impact function, the expressive function and the poetic function. These functions belong to the pragmatic function.

1.2.2.3 Some stylistic features of the lyrics

According to Richard Gill (1995), style in artistic language represents the author's choice of words and combination of words in the process of creating his work.

The stylistic value of word combinations in lyrics is expressed in: The style of combinations in reverse order, the style of word combinations in natural colloquial style, the style of "strange" combinations using rhetorical devices. Combinations of different linguistic units in different languages.

1.2.2.3 Some characteristics of rhyme in lyrics

-Rhyme in English

Units of rhyme: The basic units of rhyme in English are syllables (for rhymes of single words) and syllable blocks (for rhymes of polysyllabic words).

Types of rhymes: According to Thompson (2006), based on the position of the rhyme, people divide it into internal rhymes and end rhymes. Based on the number of syllables of the rhyme combined, rhymes are divided into single-syllable rhymes, double-syllable rhymes and triple-syllable rhymes. Based on the harmonic function of the combined rhymes, rhymes are divided into perfect rhymes, imperfect rhymes and sight rhymes/ eye rhymes.

-Rhyme in Vietnamese

Unit of rhyme: The basic unit of rhyme in Vietnamese is the syllable (syllable in Vietnamese coincides with morphemes and coincides with words).

Types of rhyme: According to Mai Ngoc Chu (2005), based on the position of the rhyme, people divide it into back rhyme and foot rhyme; based on the level of harmony of the rhyme, people divide it into main rhyme, common rhyme and pressed rhyme; based on the variation of tone in the syllable carrying the rhyme, people divide it into flat rhyme and sharp rhyme.

1.2.2.4 The relationship between lyrics and music and poetry

Lyrics, music and poetry have a very close relationship because the process of moving from speech to song is affected by three laws: the laws of language, the laws of poetry and the laws of music.

1.2.3. Theory of translation and song translation

1.2.3.1 Translation Theory

Peter Newmark's translation model (1988): Peter Newmark proposed eight translation methods including word-for-word translation, literal translation, faithful translation, semantic translation, communicative translation, idiomatic translation, free translation and adaptation, presented in a V-shaped diagram, aiming at two strategies: semantic translation and communicative translation.

To compare English pop music lyrics with Vietnamese translations in terms of semantics and pragmatics, we apply Peter Newmark's translation model to see which word and sentence units in the lyrics are preserved by which translation strategies.

1.2.3.2 Song Translation Theory

Peter Low's Song Translation Model (2005)

Low proposed three methods of song translation: literal translation, paraphrase translation, and free translation. Low also classified song translations according to the priority of the semantic content being translated. He proposed the Pentathlon principle, which consists of five factors that go into song translation: singability, sense, naturalness, rhythm, and rhymes. And for the song translation method, the translator of a song can decide for himself which features of the original text are important and should be retained.

The thesis proposes three types of song translation: literal translation, close translation and distant translation.

 

CHAPTER 2: COMPARE ENGLISH LYRICS WITH THEIR VIETNAMESE TRANSLATIONS IN TERMS OF SEMANTICS AND PRAGMATICS

We applied Peter Newmark's translation model to compare the personal pronouns, titles, and main content in 62 original songs and 62 translated songs in terms of semantics and pragmatics..

2.1 Compare the semantic and pragmatic characteristics of the lyrics in the original with the translation

2.1.1 Compare the personal pronouns expressing the characters in the original lyrics with the translation

The original idioms are translated into the translation using the idioms and groups of nouns/noun phrases listed in the following table:

Table 2.2: Statistical table of comparison results of the National Single Window

Strategy	DTNX	Quantity	Ratio	Total
Semantic translation	Dedicated Mobile Phone	135	15.66%	69.83%
	Provisional DTNC	467	54.17%
Translate announcement	Combined DTNX	151	17.51%	30.15%
	Noun/noun phrase	109	12.64%

Table 2.2 shows that the DNNs are translated using two strategies: semantic translation and message translation; in which the DNN strategy accounts for 69.83%, the DTB strategy accounts for 30.15%. Semantic translation includes a group of specialized DNNs (I-I, me, we)and the temporary DTNX group (I/you - you/em or em/anh). The announcement includes the combined DTNX group (I/you - we) and groups of nouns, noun phrases (you-guy/girl,she-best friend).

The translation of the original into the translation using temporary idioms, grouped idioms, noun phrases or specialized idioms has great value in terms of pragmatics because idioms in Vietnamese have an expressive function, create great expressiveness, and have high interpersonal value.

2.1.2 Compare the title in the original lyrics with the translation

The titles of the original translated into the translation are listed in the following table:

Table 2.3: Table of title comparison results

Title		Quantity	Ratio
Title reserved	Translation reserved	51	82.25%
	Reserve not translated	3	4.83%
Title not reserved		8	12.90%

Comment: Table 2.3 shows that reserved titles account for a very large proportion of 87.09%, while non-reserved titles account for a small proportion of 12.90%. Of the 62 titles compared, 54 are reserved, of which 51 reserved titles are translated (Love story– love story…),3 reserved titles not translated (Donna-Donna…)8 titles not reserved (Unchained melody-wait for me to come back…).Most of the translated reserved titles are translated using the announcement translation strategy, so they have a great impact on music listeners.

2.2.3 Compare the main content of the original lyrics with the translation

The original lyrics translated into the translation are listed in the following table:

Table 2.4: Statistical table of results comparing the main content in the original lyrics with the translation

The lyrics		Number of sentences	Ratio
Sentence reserved	Translation reserved	424	42.80%
	Reserve not translated	82
Sentence not reserved		676	57.19%

Table 2.4 shows the results of comparing 62 original songs and 62 translations in which 424/1182 reserved lyrics were translated (She fills my heart with very special things/My heart is full,is a thousand love stories), 82/1182 reserved lyrics are not translated (keeping the original English version) and 676/1182 lyrics are not reserved (Life is a moment in space/Life will be lonely forever).Most of the translated reserved lyrics are translated using the announcement translation strategy so they have a great impact on music listeners.

2.2 Applying the comparison results to classify song translations

From the results of comparing the lyrics in terms of semantics and content, the thesis classified the translations, including 17 literal translations, 32 close translations and 13 distant translations. Thus, we can conclude that the translators who translated English songs from 1980-2000 into Vietnamese followed the main trend of close translation.

 

CHAPTER 3: COMPARISON OF ENGLISH LYRICS WITH THEIR VIETNAMESE TRANSLATIONS IN STYLISTIC ASPECT OF WORD COMBINATIONS

We selected 46 original songs and 46 translated songs - fully translated versions with the same number of verses and stanzas as the original - to compare the stylistic characteristics of the word combinations.

3.1 Survey and description of the stylistic characteristics of the original and translated lyrics

The results of the survey of the stylistic characteristics of the original and translated lyrics are specifically listed as follows:

Table 3.1: Statistical table of the number of word combinations in the original and translated versions

Types of word combinations	Type 1	Type 2	Type 3
Original	99	724	323
Translation	97	864	292

Table 3.1 shows that the number of word combinations in the KNTN style is the largest, followed by “unique” and “strange” combinations, and finally reverse-order combinations. The translation has more word combinations in the KNTN style than the original, but the original has more strange combinations than the translation.

3.1.1Style featuresoriginal lyrics

- Combine words in reverse order (type 1)

For example:Happinessplease give it to me(noun inversion combination).

- Combination with natural colloquial style (type 2)

For example:Ohmy, my, my, it's a beautiful day(repetition)

- "Strange" combination (type 3)

For example:lone summer(combined words using personification),

3.1.2 Characteristics of the style of the translated lyrics

- Combine words in reverse order (type 1)

For example:Happinessplease give it to me(noun inversion combination).

- Combination with natural colloquial style (type 2)

For example,What a joyful Sunday!on the street(using colloquial language).

- "Strange" combination (type 3)

For example:silver hair fades with rain and sun (combined from the translation using metaphor)

3.2. Compare the stylistic characteristics of the original lyrics and the translation

3.2.1 Compare the stylistic characteristics of the lyrics in terms of form

Table 3.2: Comparison table of lyrical style characteristics in terms of form

Combination types	Specific combination types	Original	Translation
Reverse combination	Noun island	+	+
	Adjective island	+	+
	Adverb inversion	+	-
	Invert word order	-	+
Combine in KNTN style	Repeat word	+	+
	Use colloquial language	+	+
	Shorten the subject	+	+
	Shorten from	+	-
Strange combination using rhetorical devices	Personification	+	+
	Metaphor	+	+
	Comparison measures	+	+
	Paradoxical measures	+	-

Table 3.2 shows that the styles of similar word combinations are all inverted nouns, inverted adjectives, use of repetition, use of colloquial words and shortened subjects; the difference is that the original combines inverted verbs, inverted adverbs, shortened words, while the translation combines inverted complex word order.

3.2.2 Compare the stylistic characteristics of the lyrics in terms of translation

We chose the “strange” combination to compare the translation because it is a combination with impressive colors. The result is as follows:

Table 3.3: Statistical table of results comparing lyrical style characteristics with translation methods

Strange combinations of translations	Quantity	Ratio
The original lyrics have "strange" combinations, the translated lyrics retain the "strange" combinations.	119/323	36.84%
The original lyrics have "strange" combinations, the translated lyrics do not retain the "strange" combinations.	204/323	63.15%
The original lyrics have no "strange" combinations, the translated lyrics have "strange" combinations.	173

Table 3.3 shows that the strange combinations retained in the translation account for 36.84%, the strange combinations not retained account for 63.15%.

3.3.2.1 Strange combinations retained in the translation: 36.84% of strange combinations are retained in the translation but are expressed in different forms (the original has a combination of words using personification, the translation has a combination of translated words also using personification, or the original has a combination of words using personification, the translation has a combination of translated words using metaphors, comparisons...)

+ The original lyrics use personification, the translated lyrics retain personification.

Original:

“How can I keep searching whendark clouds hide the day”

(Green Fields – Author: The Brothers Four)

Translation:

“I love that couple likewind love clouds sky”

(Green Fields - Translator: Le Huu Ha)

+ The original lyrics use metaphors, the translated lyrics use personification.

Original:

“Youhold me in your eyesin your own special way” 

(How I love you – Author: Engelbert Humperdinck)

Translation:

“Your eyesso passionatelull your soulthis afternoon"

(Love is still passionate - Translator: Khuc Lan)

+ The original lyrics use contrast, the translated lyrics use personification.

Original:

“When I wassmall, and christmas trees weretall”

(First of May – Author:Bee Gees)

Translation:

"The evening falls on the street,Christmas has come with the wind”

(Christmas Memories – Translator: Khuc Lan)

3.3.2.2 Unusual combinations are not retained in the translation, 63.15% of the combinations are not retained in the translation. For example, the original lyrics use personification, the translated lyrics do not use any of these.

Original:

“Yes it's gonna be cool lone summer”

(Sealed with a kiss – Author:Latest News)

Translation:

“My life in the years will pass,what to worry about later”

(Love in life - Translator: Truong Ky)

3.3.3.3 Unusual combinations appear in the translation. For example, the original lyrics do not use personification, the translated lyrics do:

Original:

“We go to a party and everyone turns to see
(Wonderful tonight – Author:Eric Clapton)

Translation:

“I went to the dinner party,all eyes on you my love 

(Wonderful Night – Translator: Chu Minh Ki)

CHAPTER 4: COMPARE ENGLISH LYRICS WITH THEIR VIETNAMESE TRANSLATIONS PHONETICALLY (RHYME)

We selected 46 original songs and 46 translated songs - fully translated versions with the same number of verses and sections as the original - to compare the lyrical characteristics in terms of phonetics (rhyme).

4.1 The effect of rhyme in original lyrics and translated lyrics

Rhymes in original and translated lyrics have the functions of linking lines, marking pauses in lines, adding musicality to a song, and influencing the melody of a song.

4.2 Survey and description of rhymes in original lyrics and translated lyrics

The results of the rhyme statistics in the 46 original songs and 46 translated songs are as follows:

Table 4.2: Statistical table of rhyme patterns based on harmony level

Song	Perfect rhyme/main rhyme	Perfect rhyme/imperfect rhyme	Spelling rhyme/forced rhyme	Total
Original	261	66	1	328
Translation	157	67	25	249

Table 4.3: Statistical table of rhyme data by number of syllables

Song	Simple rhyme	Double rhyme	Total
Original	311	17	328
Translation	249	-	249

4.2.1 Rhyme in original lyrics

4.2.1.1 Rhyme according to the level of harmony

From the 328 rhyme pairs in the original listed in Table 4.2, we counted the types of rhymes, including: perfect rhymes (moon/soon), imperfect rhymes (name/change) and spelling rhymes (hear/bear).

4.2.1.2 Rhyme based on number of syllables

From 328 rhyme pairs in the songs listed in Table 4.2, we relied on the number of syllables to examine the types of rhymes, including: single rhymes (run/sun), double rhymes (curtain/certain)

4.2.2 Rhyme in translated lyrics

From 249 rhyme pairs in the translation listed in Table 4.2, we rely on the level of harmony to examine the types of rhymes, including: main rhyme (sau/dau), common rhyme (hang/dang) and pressed rhyme (van/con).

4.3 Comparisonrhymein original lyrics with translation

4.3.1 About form

Table 4.4: Comparison table of rhymes in the original with the translation in terms of form

Rhyme classification features	Specific types of rhymes	English songs	Vietnamese translation
Harmony function	Perfect rhyme (main rhyme)	+	+
	Imperfect rhyme (common rhyme)	+	+
	Spelling (forced rhyme)	+	+
Number of syllables (length)	Simple rhyme	+	+

Table 4.4 shows that in terms of form, the rhymes in the original and the translation are similar in their harmonic function, both having the following types of rhymes: main rhymes - perfect rhymes; common rhymes - imperfect rhymes, forced rhymes - orthographic rhymes, but the difference is that the rhymes in the original include both single and double rhymes, while the rhymes in the translation are only single rhymes.

4.3.2 About translation

Rhyme on translation	Quantity (bag)	Ratio
The original lyrics rhyme, the translated lyrics retain the rhyme	205/328	62.50%
The original lyrics rhyme, the translated lyrics do not retain the rhyme.	123/328	37.50%
The original lyrics do not rhyme, the translated lyrics do rhyme.	44

 

4.3.2.1 Rhymes retained in the translation: 62.50% of rhyme pairs are retained in the translation but are presented in different forms (the original has perfect rhyme/main rhyme pairs, the translation also has perfect rhyme/main rhyme pairs, or the original has perfect rhyme/main rhyme pairs, the translation has perfect rhyme/main rhyme pairs but in different positions in the sentence...)

+ The original has perfect rhyme/key rhyme, the translation also retains perfect rhyme/key rhyme. For example:

Original:

“I couldn't hope to say how Ifeel
The joy in my heart no words can reveal”

(Over and over – Author: Nana Mouskouri)

Translation:

“How can I say all my feelings?love
Humble dream with you by my sideme”

(Passionate Love – Translator: Anh Bang)

+ The original has perfect rhyme/main rhyme, the translation also retains perfect rhyme/main rhyme (but in a different position in the verse). For example:

Original:

“Once upon a time, there was a tavern

Where we used to raise a glass ortwo
Remember how we laughed away the hours
Think of all the great things we wouldby?”

(Those were the days – Author: Mary Hopkins)

Translation:

“The day we fell in love, we took each other to the barThis

Then invite each other to drink a few glasses of winefull
Laughing out loud like firecrackers, seemingly never knowing sadness
I dream of tomorrow, dream of happy days”.

(Remembering the time we were in love - Translator:Pham Duy)

+ The original has perfect rhyme/main rhyme, the translation retains imperfect rhyme/common rhyme

Example 96:

Original:

“I never dare to reach for themoon
I never thought I'd know heaven sosoon”

(Over and over – Author: Nana Mouskouri)

Translation:

“I do not dream of a life in the palaceconstant
I am not greedy for the blessings in heaven.way”

(Passionate Love – Translator: Anh Bang)

4.3.2.2 Rhymes not retained in translation

The original has perfect rhyme/key rhyme, the translation has no rhyme. For example:

Original:

“You don't have to say you love me just be close athand
You don't have to stay forever I will understand”

(You don't have to say you love me – Author: Dusty Springfield)

Translation:

“And I don't need to say I love you, just want you now.
And you don't need to say you love me, just believe, believe”

(No need to say I love you – Translator: Pham Duy)

4.3.2.3 Additional rhymes appearing in the translation

For example:

Original:

“Someday we'll meet again, my love
Someday whenever the spring break through”

(Somewhere my love – Author: Connie Francis)

Translation:

Lover! We still love each othermuch 
And following Spring into love, loveLove 

(Oh my love Lara – Translator: Pham Duy)

4.3.3 Comments

Rhyme in songs is governed by the language type. Rhyme in the original is all rhyme of words with lexical meaning (for example:two/do; feel/reveal; moon/soon; hand/understand). The rhyme in a translation can also be the rhyme of the word that has a lexical meaning (for examplehere/full; forever. However, the rhyme in the translated lyrics is rhymed in the second syllable of the compound word - an element that creates reduplicated words (e.g. rhyming pairrapidsthenrapidsin the wordbumpy,canalin the worddrifting) or as an element that makes up a compound word (for example a rhyming pairconstanthave wordsconstantin the phraseconstant,wayin the phraseheaven,rhyming coupletlaugh/lifehave wordslaughin the phraselaughter,lifein the phraselove life).

We see that the rhymes in the original song and the translation have not only a sound relationship but also a semantic relationship.

CONCLUDE

Thesis "Case studyfromEnglish pop music 1980-2000 with Vietnamese translation (love theme)”is a pioneering work for the study of lyrics from the perspective of comparative linguistics in Vietnam. By using the comparative method, the thesis has clarified the proposed research purpose of finding similarities and differences between the original lyrics and the translation in terms of semantics, pragmatics, style and phonetics. The thesis has mentioned new theoretical issues that previous theses have never mentioned such as the theory of rhyme in English, the theory of translation - translation strategies and the theory of song translation. The thesis has obtained the following results:

1. Regarding semantic and pragmatic characteristics,The thesis has shown that the original version of the personal pronouns translated into the translation are mainly the temporary personal pronouns, nouns, combined personal pronouns and finally the specialized personal pronouns. At the same time, the thesis has clarified the semantic and pragmatic characteristics of the temporary personal pronouns (anh, em), nouns (người yêu ngày xua...) and combined personal pronouns (doi ta...) in the Vietnamese translation. The thesis has clearly shown that the content of the original version is mainly translated into the translation using the informational translation strategy (92.45% of the total number of reserved lyrics) and clarified how the informational translation strategy (pragmatic translation) in translating lyrics has aimed at the goal of communicating with music listeners. Then, the thesis applies the results of semantic comparison to classify the translations and we can conclude that the translators who translated English songs from 1980-2000 into Vietnamese followed the main trend of close translation, then literal translation and finally distant translation.

2.About specialpointwindway, the thesis has clarified the stylistic characteristics of the word combinations in the original and the translation. In terms of form, the style of the word combinations is similar in that they all invert nouns, invert adjectives, use word repetition, use colloquial words and shorten the subject; the difference is that the original combines verb inversion, adverb inversion, and shortened words, while the translation combines inverted word order. In terms of translation, 36.84% of the translated lyrics retain strange combinations similar to the original but are expressed in different forms (the original has word combinations using personification, the translation has word combinations translated also using personification, or the original has word combinations using personification, the translation has word combinations translated using metaphors, comparisons, etc.). The "strange" combinations retained in the translation are mainly those appearing in the lyrics that are related to the semantic content of the original. In addition, 63.15% of the translated lyrics did not retain the “strange” combinations. The “strange” combinations that were not retained in the translation were mainly those that appeared in the lyrics that had no semantic relation to the original.

3. About specialphonetic point, the thesis has surveyed, described, and compared the phonetic characteristics (rhyme) of the lyrics in the original and the translation. In terms of form, the rhymes in the original lyrics and the rhymes in the translated lyrics are similar in that they both have types of perfect rhymes/main rhymes, imperfect rhymes/common rhymes, spelling rhymes/forced rhymes. The rhymes in the original lyrics are different from the rhymes in the translated lyrics in length. The rhymes in the original lyrics have single rhymes-rhymes of one-syllable words and double rhymes-rhymes of two-syllable words, while the rhymes in the translated lyrics are only rhymes of one syllable. In terms of translation, the translated lyrics have retained many rhyme pairs. The fact that rhymes are retained in the translation in large numbers (over 62%) shows that the translators of the songs pay great attention to conveying rhymes in the translation. Rhymes increase the power of expressing the meaning of the words, increasing the artistic value of the song and the translation.

4. New discoveries: The thesis also has new findings about the original lyrics and the translated lyrics as follows: First, the lyric units (including the title) are mainly translated using the announcement translation strategy. Second, the style of the lyrics is characterized by many "strange" combinations, especially in the translated lyrics. Third, the rhymes in the original and translated lyrics are not only related to each other in terms of phonetics but also related in terms of meaning (near-synonyms, synonyms, antonyms).

5. Some suggestions:From the comparison results, the thesis also makes some recommendations as follows:

Firstly, when translating artistic texts, especially lyric units, translators should apply the informational translation strategy. This translation strategy, in addition to ensuring the original meaning, also has the function of influencing music listeners, conveying cultural messages and artistic features of the translation.

Second, use songs as a tool to support foreign language teaching (phonetics, grammar and translation). Use songs with many rhymes to teach phonetics and English listening skills because listeners will remember pronunciation and vocabulary more easily. Use songs with many “strange” combinations to teach English cultural elements (related to Vietnamese culture) because cultural elements are most clearly expressed through the linguistic material of the song. Use original songs and translations (songs with many semantic reservations in the translation) to teach translation strategies.

6. Some issues that need further study:Due to the limited scope of the thesis, in the process of comparing English pop music lyrics with Vietnamese translations, we found that there are still some issues that need to be further studied:

Firstly, issues related to lyrics are still open such as comparative studies of symbols in English - Vietnamese lyrics, research on lyrics from a cognitive perspective, and understanding the path from poetry to lyrics.

Second, the thesis studies the comparison of lyrics in terms of pragmatic semantics, but we have only mentioned the semantics preserved in the translation. The remaining open issue is the study of the style chain in translation when translators translate English songs into Vietnamese translations.