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Humor and Cultural Reference Loss in Subtitling: A Comparative Study of AI versus Human Translation
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Zahra Vahdati   , Hossein Bahri * |
| Kharazmi University |
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Abstract: (766 Views) |
| This study explores the challenges of translating humor and cultural references in the Persian subtitles of The Golden Girls, Season 5, Episode 24. The primary objective is to identify and analyze the translation strategies used in semiprofessional Persian subtitles and to compare them with AI-generated translations, to determine whether the loss of comedic tone, dilution of culture-specific elements, and difficulty conveying sarcasm persist or manifest differently within subtitling constraints when using AI tools. The analysis reveals common human strategies like adaptation, omission, and domestication used to address these challenges. Our findings indicate that while AI translations may achieve greater literal accuracy and consistency, they often exhibit a more pronounced failure in replicating comedic timing, recognizing nuanced sarcasm, and making contextually appropriate cultural substitutions, instead defaulting to overly literal or culturally neutral renderings that further diminish the source text's humor and cultural specificity. The paper proposes solutions, including cultural adaptation, creative clarification, and hybrid human-AI workflows to improve viewer understanding. The findings underscore the critical balance between staying faithful to the source and ensuring accessibility for the target audience in audiovisual translation, highlighting the continued irreplaceable role of human cultural and comedic intuition. |
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| Keywords: Humor Translation, Cultural References, Audiovisual translation, Subtitling Constraints, The Golden Girls |
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Type of Study: Research |
Subject:
Special
Received: 2026/02/7 | Accepted: 2026/02/10 | Published: 2025/09/22
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