The translation of inscriptions in Watchmen

Abstract

This paper deals with the translation of the inscriptions in four Brazilian editions of Watchmen, the classic comic book by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons.  The original comic was released in the USA in 1986-1987 as a 12-issue miniseries by DC Comics, and not long after was collected on a single book. Today it has the status of a graphic novel. Inscriptions are here considered as the verbal signs written on objects, such as signs, newspaper, letters and notes, labels, and so on. The fundamental inscriptions, the ones which play a part in the progress of the diegesis, are always translated. On the other hand, the contextual inscriptions, which tell the reader about the social, cultural or geographic context, can receive one of the following strategies: translation, translation with footnote, cultural adaptation, left untranslated, deleted, or a mix of some of the above. The analyses of the 6-issues miniseries published by Editora Abril (1988), 12-issues also released by Editora Abril (1999), the 4 books by Via Lettera publishing house (2005-2006) and the last Watchmen: Edição Definitiva (2011) by Panini Books has demonstrated that the strategies have shifted from deleting and left untranslated to translation and cultural adaptation.