He’s fond of telling people that he’s
fluent in more than six millions forms of communication — but what part do
C3P0’s abilities as a translator play in the wider Star Wars narrative?
Here’s your opportunity to find out — and
to explore some other key characters and themes from TV, books, films and
comics. The Popular
Culture Lecture Series launches in February at The University of
Nottingham, and aims to explore the diverse facets and features of popular
culture. Speakers come from across the
University’s faculties, and include experts in science and medicine, arts and
social sciences.
The first lecture — ‘It’s a trope! Star Wars and/in translation’ — takes
place on Wednesday 4 February on University Park. Translation expert Dr
Pierre-Alexis Mével will discuss the role that translation and translators
play in narratives involving linguistic and cultural diversity.
Future lectures in the weekly series will
examine vegan ethics in Doctor Who;
how politics is represented in popular fiction; zombie genomics; and how
blockbusters like The Hunger Games
are digitally promoted. The series will run throughout the spring term — visit
the series web page for a full programme.
Mathieu Donner,
postgraduate researcher and teaching fellow in the School of English, Faculty of Arts, has
organised the lecture series. He said: “Popular culture is what we live by, breathe in, and — often literally —
consume every single day, from our phones to the radios of our cars, from the
circus to the stage, the street or the big screen.
“These lectures offer
the chance to explore a new perspective or angle from your favourite novel, TV
series, movie or comic book with experts from across the University. I’d
encourage anyone with an interest in popular culture to come along. Everyone is
welcome.”
Dr Mével gave some more detail on what
he’ll cover in his lecture.
“I‘ll discuss alien languages in Star Wars and other sic-fi and fantasy
films and TV shows — how they were created, how they work, how characters use
them to communicate, both with other characters and with the audience, and
whether they are actually all that alien. So we’ll look at how the foreign is
created through language, accents, and other idiosyncrasies.
“I’ll look more closely at C-3PO, the droid
whose job it is to provide translation services in Star Wars. His function often places him at the heart of the
narrative, makes him very influential, but also gives him a testimonial role.
Is he a mindless machine that was programmed to know a lot of different
languages, or is there more to his character?”
All talks will take place in lecture
theatre B13 in the Physics Building on University Park — building 22 on the campus
map. They start at 5.30pm, are free, and open to staff, students and the
general public. For more info on the lectures visit the Popular
Culture Lecture Series web page or the Facebook page.
Some of the lectures — including the first,
‘It’s a trope! Star Wars and/in translation’
— will be live tweeted. Follow the @UoNresearch
account on Twitter for more information, follow the lectures and share your
thoughts.
—Ends—
Our academics can now be interviewed for broadcast
via our Media Hub, which offers a Globelynx fixed camera and ISDN line
facilities at University Park campus. For further information please contact a
member of the Communications team on +44 (0)115 951 5798, email mediahub@nottingham.ac.uk or see
the Globelynx website for how
to register for this service.
For up to the minute media alerts, follow
us on Twitter
Notes to editors: The University of Nottingham has 43,000
students and is ‘the nearest Britain has to a truly global university, with
campuses in China and Malaysia modelled on a
headquarters that is among the most attractive in Britain’ (Times Good
University Guide 2014). It is also the most popular university in the UK
among graduate
employers, in the top 10 for student
experience according to the Times Higher Education and winner of ‘Research Project of the Year’ at the THE Awards 2014. It
is ranked in the world’s top one per cent of universities by the QS World
University Rankings.
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