Hogwarts, Muggles and Quidditch: A Study of the Translation of Names in J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter Books

The aim of this C-essay is to discuss the translation of some of the names in J.K. Rowling’s immensely popular Harry Potter books and look at how the translation agrees with and/or deviates from the original. Special focus is put on features such as alliterations, allusions and imaginative inventions, which are characteristic of J.K Rowling’s style and may be particularly tricky and challenging when translating.A comparison is made between the names in the original texts and the translated texts. The names are divided into different categories, such as names of characters, places etc. I argue that the translator uses different strategies when translating different types of names. Focus is on the Swedish translation, but Norwegian examples are included too.

English product names and descriptions in two Swedish supermarkets : A quantitative and qualitative analysis

This study aimed to investigate what proportion of two household staples, soap and crispbread products, in two Swedish supermarkets had English product names or descriptions, and attempted a qualitative analysis of the English language used. Out of the Swedish brands, 54-62% of the soap products had names and/or product descriptions containing English, compared to 13-15% of the crispbread; these differences were in line with previous research, suggesting English is used more to market certain product groups than other ones. Earlier studies have also proposed that English could be considered an ‘elite’ language in Sweden, and it might thus be more commonly found on more exclusive/expensive products, or in the supermarket primarily aiming at higher-income customers. However, the differences between the two supermarkets, and between the more and less expensive products, were not great enough for any firm conclusions. When products had a mixture of languages on the label, English was most often used for product names or part of names, not so often for product descriptions. Further studies with a larger amount of data would be required for more reliable conclusions, especially for the qualitative analyses. It would also be interesting to investigate customers’ attitudes towards the use of English on product labels.

From Pettson and Findus to Festus and Mercury...and Back Again: A Comparison of Four Translations of Sven Nordqvist's Picture Books

In order to examine how children's literature might be translated, two different English translations of two Swedish picture books have been analyzed. The original Swedish books are Rävjakten and Pannkakstårtan by Sven Nordqvist. Rävjakten was translated as The Fox Hunt in 1988 and as The Fox Hunt in 2000. Pannkakstårtan was translated as Pancake Pie in 1985 and as The Birthday Cake in 1999. Literary translation in general, specific translation issues for children's literature, and trends in international English style have been considered. Analysis of the four texts has been made, with consideration given to the following areas: changes in illustrations, layout, or format; text changes; lexical choices; and retention, deletion, or modification of names and culturally specific references. The analysis revealed that the following tendencies were true for the later translations: foreignization of the text, word-for-word translation of the text, and a neutral international English variety.

La carne recordada : un análisis de la atemporalidad mítica y la subversión religiosa en Pedro Páramo

The aim of the present study is to analyze the representation of the mythic timelessness and the religious subversion in the novel Pedro Páramo (1953) by the Mexican writer Juan Rulfo. The novel is analyzed from a narratological perspective based on the concept of focalization proposed by the French theoretician Gérard Genette. According to Genette it is possible to identify different levels of focalization depending on the position of the narrative voices.The key question in this investigation is if any salvation is possible in the universe of Pedro Páramo and how the mythic timelessness and the religious subversion are represented in the textual intentionality through the narrative voices. The main conclusion is that there is no possible salvation in the fictional universe of Pedro Páramo. The collective sin is so vast that the intermediation between God and the inhabitants of Comala does not work anymore. Thus, the only possible ”salvation” consists in the separation of the soul from the body the people of Comala experience after death. In Pedro Páramo the dead body is liberated from remorses, but - contrary to the Catholic concepts - becomes a conscious materia sentenced to remember eternally.Keywords: Juan Rulfo, Pedro Páramo, narratological analysis, Gérard Genette, textual intentionality, focalization, mythic timelessness, religious subversion, narrative voices.

Den ofrånkomliga nationalismen

The necessary nationalism This article deals with the role of fictional narratives, especially the modern novel, in the formation of national identities. Naguib Mafouz’s Cairo trilogy is referred to as an example of how literature may both serve as the mirror image of national identities and as an agency in their formation. The sense of community attachment to a modern state is ”thinner” than to a family or traditional village and/or tribe, though no less vital. Drawing on Norbert Elias’s concept of ”survival unit,” Benedict Anderson’s ”imagined communities” and recent studies in the field of comparative literature by Gregory Jusdanis and Azade Seyhan, this article argues for the necessity of the nation – in spite of its unfavourable chauvinistic reputation. This contention is discussed in relation to recent literary developments in Turkey and recent debates on nationhood in a Swedish context.

Publikdragande namn eller aktivistermed drag i? : Om symboliskt kapital som maktresurs i den globala rättviserörelsens lokala organiseringsarbete

Crowd-pulling names or energetic activists? On symbolic capital as a power resource in the local organizational work within the global justice movement The article explores the global emergence of local Social Forums by means of an ethnographic study of the organization of the Stockholm Social Forum. In international academic debate, the forums are often discussed as a “globalization from below” and a new deliberative democratic process. However, empirical research on the organizational process, and its power relations, has been very limited. The theoretical concept symbolic capital (Bourdieu) and concepts from conversation analysis (CA) are used to analyze how power in terms of priority of interpretation is constructed in conversations between activists with differing political backgrounds. A detailed empirical analysis is based on the case of an internal discussion about inviting keynote speakers to the local forum. The results show how transnational networks and specific knowledge about the global social forum process became symbolic capital in the organizational process. Holders of this specific form of symbolic capital gained priority of interpretation in the internal discussions. This had an impact on the practical outcome of the organizational process in terms of the symbolic framing of the Social Forum. It is argued that the social forum process produces specific forms of cultural distinctions, social hierarchies and patterns of exclusion.

Hanteringen när medarbetares privata problem inverkar negativt på arbetsplatsen : En studie ur ett ledarskapsperspektiv

Uppsatsens syfte var att undersöka hur ledare hanterar situationer där medarbetares privata problem inverkar negativt på arbetet för både arbetsgivare och övriga medarbetare. För att få svar på det har vi inspirerats av vinjettstudie som utgår från diskussioner av fiktiva fall. Vi har genomfört studien med fyra enskilda semistrukturerade intervjuer och en fokusgruppsintervju där vi först introducerade respondenterna med vinjetterna. Deltagarna till undersökningen valdes ut genom ett subjektivt urval där vi riktade in oss på ledare, angående vilken organisation de tillhörde var av mindre vikt. I teoridelen introducerades teorierna ledarskap, medarbetarskap, individen i gruppen, ekonomi, hälsa, lagar, organisationskultur och föreskrifter samt försäkringskassans roll. Resultatet analyserades sedan mot teorierna och vi kan konstatera att respondenterna generellt menade att det var viktigt att prioritera kommunikation och relationer. Betydelsefullt var att relationerna etablerades innan problemen uppstår eftersom det anses vara svårt att skapa relationer i konfliktfyllda lägen. Tiden har betydelse vid hantering av problem av den orsaken att gränsen för vad som är acceptabelt förflyttas med tidens gång. Beroende på problem varierade graden av toleransnivå hos chefer och övriga medarbetare i vår undersökning. Resultatet visade att gränsen för privatlivets påverkan på arbetslivet går när arbetet blir misskött och när kunder och andra medarbetare påverkas. Utifrån ett genusperspektiv ansåg intervjupersonerna att det saknade betydelse om chefen var en man eller kvinna när det handlade om att hantera problem som uppkom, det ansågs vara personligt.

Att iscensätta apokalypsen : zombiemetaforer i den samtida katastrofberedskapen

Enacting the apocalypse: zombie metaphors in contemporary disaster preparedness Since the turn of the millennium, enactment of possible emergencies and catastrophes has become a most common way of producing knowledge about events yet to occur. Preparedness exercises are frequently performed by public authorities at local and regional levels. Collaborative approaches among relevant actors are enhanced and evaluated through simulated accidents and acts of terror as well as school shootings and epidemic outbreaks. Due to the incalculability of many modern threats, enactment is employed as a method for rendering potential future events available as empirical phenomena. However, sometimes these potential futures are represented in ways that correspond only to imagined and fictional worlds. The aim of this article is to explore the enactment of unreal possibilities in contemporary preparedness exercises. The empirical material employed for this purpose consists of crisis plans and exercise guides used in public and official institutions in the United States as well as qualitative interviews with municipal safety coordinators in Sweden.

L'Homme sous le masque : Une étude du personnage principal dans Le Fantôme de l'Opéra

L’objet de la présente étude est le personnage principal dans l’oeuvre Le Fantôme de l’Opéra de Gaston Leroux. Le but de cette analyse littéraire est de mettre en évidence l'ambiguïté et la complexité psychologique et morale de ce personnage.L’analyse est basée sur les théories de Vincent Jouve à propos de la perception du personnage romanesque. Le résultat de l'analyse montre que l'ambiguïté du personnage principal peut être déduite de ce que Jouve appelle le « système de la sympathie » constitué de trois codes : le code narratif, le code affectif et le code culturel.

Thick viewing : empirical examples of condensed moments of narrative impact in fiction film developing theoretical concepts for intensified engagements

Abstract  In a case study about viewing habits in a Swedish audience I sampled 309 questionnaires; interviews with five focus group were conducted together with ten in-depth individual interviews discussing altogether fifteen favorite films exploring specific scenes of idiosyncratic relevance.  The outcome supports claims about viewers as active and playful (cf. Höijer 1998, Frampton 2006, Hoover 2006, Plantinga 2009). In line with mediatization theory I also argue that spiritual meaning making takes place through mediated experiences and I support theories about fiction films as important sources for moral and spiritual reflection (Partridge 2004, Zillman 2005, Lynch 2007, Plantinga 2009). What Hjarvard calls the soft side of mediatization processes (2008) is illustrated showing adults experiencing enchantment through favorite films (Jerslev 2006, Partridge 2008, Klinger 2008, Oliver & Hartmann 2010).  Vernacular meaning making embedded in everyday life and spectators dealing with fiction narratives such as Gladiator, Amelie from Montmartre or Avatar highlights the need for a more nuanced understanding of elevated cinematic experiences. The reported impact of specific movies is analyzed through theories where cognition and affect are central aspects of spectators’ engagements with a film (Tan 1996, Caroll 1999, Grodal 2009). Crucially important are theories of meaning-making where viewers’ detailed interpretation of specific scenes are embedded in high-level meaning-making where world view issues and spectators’ moral frameworks are activated (Zillman 2005, Andersson & Andersson 2005, Frampton 2006, Lynch 2007, Avila 2007, Axelson 2008, Plantinga 2009).  Also results from a growing body of empirical oriented research in film studies are relevant with an interest in what happens with the flesh and blood spectator exposed to filmic narratives (Jerslev 2006, Klinger 2008, Barker 2009, Suckfüll 2010, Oliver & Hartmann 2010). Analyzing the qualitative results of my case study, I want to challenge the claim that the viewer has to suspend higher order reflective cognitive structures in order to experience suture (Butler & Palesh 2004). What I find in my empirical examples is responses related to spectators’ highest levels of mental activity, all anchored in the sensual-emotional apparatus (Grodal 2009). My outcome is in line with a growing number of empirical case studies which support conclusions that both thinking and behavior are affected by film watching (Marsh 2007, Sückfull 2010, Oliver & Hartmann 2010, Axelson forthcoming). The presentation contributes to a development of concepts which combines aesthetic, affective and cognitive components in an investigation of spectator’s moves from emotional evaluation of intra-text narration to extra-textual assessments, testing the narrative for larger significance in idiosyncratic ways (Bordwell & Thompson 1997, Marsh 2007, Johnston 2007, Bruun Vaage 2009, Axelson 2011). There are a several profitable concepts suggested to embrace the complex interplay between affects, cognition and emotions when individuals respond to fictional narratives. Robert K. Johnston label it “deepening gaze” (2007: 307) and “transformative viewing” (2007: 305). Philosopher Mitch Avila proposes “high cognition” (2007: 228) and Casper Thybjerg ”higher meaning” (2008: 60). Torben Grodal talks about “feelings of deep meaning” (Grodal 2009: 149). With a nod to Clifford Geertz, Craig Detweiler adopts “thick description” (2007: 47) as do Kutter Callaway altering it to ”thick interpretations” (Callaway 2013: 203).  Frampton states it in a paradox; ”affective intelligence” (Frampton 2006: 166). As a result of the empirical investigation, inspired by Geertz, Detweiler & Callaway, I advocate thick viewing for capturing the viewing process of these specific moments of film experience when profound and intensified emotional interpretations take place. The author As a sociologist of religion, Tomas Axelsons research deals with people’s use of mediated narratives to make sense of reality in a society characterized by individualization, mediatization and pluralized world views.  He explores uses of fiction film as a resource in every day life and he is currently finishing his three year project funded by the Swedish Research Council: Spectator engagement in film and utopian self-reflexivity. Moving Images and Moved Minds. http://www.du.se/sv/AVM/Personal/Tomas-Axelson Bibliography Axelson, T. (Forthcoming 2014). Den rörliga bildens förmåga att beröra.[1] Stockholm: Liber Axelson, T. (In peer review). Vernacular Meaning Making. Examples of narrative impact in fiction film questioning the ’banal’ notion in mediatization theory. Nordicom Review. Nordicom Göteborg. Axelson, T. (2011). Människans behov av fiktion. Den rörliga bildens förmåga att beröra människan på djupet.[2]Kulturella perspektiv. Volume 2. Article retrieved from www.kultmed.umu.se/digitalAssets/74/74304_axelson-22011.pdf Axelson, Tomas (2010) “Narration, Visualization and Mind. Movies in everyday life as a resource for utopian self-reflection.” Paper presentation at CMRC, 7th Conference of Media, Religion & Culture in Toronto, Canada 9 – 13th August 2010. Axelson, Tomas (2008) Movies and Meaning. Studying Audience, Favourite Films and Existential Matters. Particip@tions : Journal of Audience and Reception Studies. Volume 5, (1). Doctoral dissertation summary. ACTA UNIVERSITATIS UPSALIENSIS. Article retrieved from http://www.participations.org/Volume%205/Issue%201%20-%20special/5_01_axelson.htm  [1] English translation: Moving Images and Moved Minds. [2] English translation: Our need for fiction. Deeply Moved by Moving Images. Cultural Perspectives.

Clean Code vs Dirty Code : Ett fältexperiment för att förklara hur Clean Code påverkar kodförståelse

Stora och komplexa kodbaser med bristfällig kodförståelse är ett problem som blir allt vanligare bland företag idag. Bristfällig kodförståelse resulterar i längre tidsåtgång vid underhåll och modifiering av koden, vilket för ett företag leder till ökade kostnader. Clean Code anses enligt somliga vara lösningen på detta problem. Clean Code är en samling riktlinjer och principer för hur man skriver kod som är enkel att förstå och underhålla. Ett kunskapsglapp identifierades vad gäller empirisk data som undersöker Clean Codes påverkan på kodförståelse. Studiens frågeställning var: Hur påverkas förståelsen vid modifiering av kod som är refaktoriserad enligt Clean Code principerna för namngivning och att skriva funktioner? För att undersöka hur Clean Code påverkar kodförståelsen utfördes ett fältexperiment tillsammans med företaget CGM Lab Scandinavia i Borlänge, där data om tidsåtgång och upplevd förståelse hos testdeltagare samlades in och analyserades. Studiens resultat visar ingen tydlig förbättring eller försämring av kodförståelsen då endast den upplevda kodförståelsen verkar påverkas. Alla testdeltagare föredrar Clean Code framför Dirty Code även om tidsåtgången inte påverkas. Detta leder fram till slutsatsen att Clean Codes effekter kanske inte är omedelbara då utvecklare inte hunnit anpassa sig till Clean Code, och därför inte kan utnyttja det till fullo. Studien ger en fingervisning om Clean Codes potential att förbättra kodförståelsen.

Kartläggning av tillslagsprecision i fotboll

Syfte Syftet med studien är att analysera tillslagsprecision i fotboll och jämföra eventuella skillnader mellan juniorer och seniorer på både herr- och damsidan. Metod Totalt 30 elitspelare varav 16 herrar och 14 damer utförde tester i tillslagsprecision. De färdigheter som testades var passning och skott. Upplägget var 60 skott (30 stillaliggande och 30 halvvolley) och 80 passningar (20 stillaliggande bästa fot, 20 rullande bästa fot, 20 stillaliggande näst bästa fot och 20 rullande näst bästa fot). Testresultaten analyserades via Excel och Kinovea, där kunde medelvärden och standardavvikelser för varje testperson och testgrupp räknas ut. Resultat Resultatet visar att det endast var signifkant skillnad på ett av sex moment vad gäller tillslagsprecisionen på herrsidan. På damsidan var det ingen signifikant skillnad på något moment. Slutsatser Författarna har i denna studie identifierat en platå mellan spelare i åldrarna 16-18 år och seniorspelare vad gäller tillslagsprecision. Spelare i åldrarna 16-18 är lika bra som seniorspelare på de individuella färdigheterna passning och skott. Denna platå kan vara resultatet av för lite individuell träning, sk isolerad träning vad det gäller tillslagsprecision, på föreningsträningarna. Om föreningstränarna följer den utbildning SvFF ger dem ska endast två minuter per träning gå till varje individuell färdighet (13 st enligt SvFF). Bristen av tid för dessa färdigheter kan vara en avgörande faktor för att utvecklingen av tillslagsprecision står stilla idag.

Vernacular meaning making : Examples of narrative impact in fiction film questioning the 'banal' notion in mediatization of religion theory

The outcome of an audience study supports theories stating that stories are a primary means by which we make sense of our experiences over time. Empirical examples of narrative impact are presented in which specific fiction film scenes condense spectators' lives, identities and beliefs. One conclusion is that spectators test the emotional realism of the narative for greater significance, connecting diegetic fiction experiences with their extra-diegetic world in their quest for meaning, self and identity. The 'banal' notion of the mediatization of religion theory is questioned as unsatisfactory in the theoretical context of individualized meaning-making processes. As a semantically negatively charged concept, it is problematic when analyzing empirical examples of spectators' use of fictional narratives, especially when trying to characterize the idiosyncratic and complex interplay between spectators' fiction emotions and their testing of mediated narratives in an exercise to find moral significance in extra-filmic life. Instead vernacular meaning-making is proposed.

Mémoire de licence Quand un paysage naît, un autre meurt : – Une analyse écocritique du roman Naissance d'un pont

Ce mémoire est constitué par une analyse écocritique du roman Naissance d'un pont, écrit par Maylis de Kerangal. Le but général du mémoire est d'examiner comment ce roman décrit la relation entre l'homme et la nature. Nous examinons surtout les stratégies narratives employées par l'auteure pour transmettre l'image de cette relation et en plus, nous discutons le rôle joué par les différents paysages se retrouvant dans le récit. Finalement, l'analyse comprend aussi une brève réflexion sur la capacité éventuelle du roman d'influencer l'attitude du lecteur envers l'écologie. L'analyse des stratégies narratives se concentre sur le rôle du narrateur, ainsi que sur la présence et la fonction des perspectives éthiques, des noms symboliques et des figures de style. Ces stratégies contribuent à dépeindre une variété d'idées par rapport aux modes de vie de la société humaine, alors que les descriptions des paysages démontrent la relation complexe entre cette société et les paysages naturels et construits respectivement. Naissance d'un pont semble promouvoir une attitude à l'égard de la nature qui est plus humble que celle dominant dans la société moderne. Afin de pouvoir juger la capacité du roman de transmettre ces valeurs au lecteur, il serait pourtant raisonnable de tenir compte de plusieurs facteurs, tels que la complexité du langage et le niveau de crédibilité de l'histoire.