Mediation of Emotions Expressed Through Non-Verbal Signs in Audio Description of the Film Murina [Moray Eel]

Abstract

Audio description (AD) is a special form of interlinguistic translation whereby the visual part of an audiovisual message is transposed into corresponding auditive information so as to be accessible to visually impaired individuals. Following the introductory remarks on the availability of media where information is conveyed (i) visually, an overview of basic features of audio description and ways in which it uses an auditory channel to represent emotions transformed into signs of another semiotic system is given. The audiovisual text to be analysed is the live action film Murina [Moray Eel], whose content is the source of linguistic expressions of different emotions. Film sequences containing elements of emotionally intoned communication expressed through non-verbal behaviour, in particular those containing examples of AD, are excerpted. Considering that non-verbal communication can be used to express an array of emotions and that some emotions are connected to certain kinesic behaviours, the film’s verbal expression is linked to the way in which a particular emotion is marked, thereby compensating for the multidimensionality of the original live action film. The analysis of verbal expressions and emotional states and reactions should determine what linguistic means are used to represent emotions of film characters in AD text. In conclusion, represented strategies and techniques used to describe non-verbal behaviour as expressions of individual emotions are listed.