Translating Lucy

An analysis of cinematic strategies to the empowerment of a female character in C. S. Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia

Abstract

Since the beginning of the cinema industry, literature has been influencing movies both in direct and indirect forms. Intersemiotic translation is the main tool on that process once it involves transferring meaning from a system of signs to another. It generally consists of the translation of written media into an audiovisual text (JACOBSON, 1969), taking into consideration all the different specifications and characteristics of each support. Under the perspective of Translation Studies, this article aims to reflect upon the intersemiotic translation of the character Lucy Pevensie, from the literary work “The Chronicles of Narnia: The lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe” to the cinematic narrative released in 2005, directed by Andrew  Adamson and produced by Walden Media. For that, the presence of feminist aspects in both written and filmic depiction of the character are analyzed.   The results show that being produced in different cultural moments, book and film bring different perspectives on feminism, as the film intends to update the literary work by recovering similar meanings though different narrative audiovisual strategies.