Maria Alcantara
Translation Essay
ENG 2400 Professor Scanlan
March 30, 2022
New Boy portrayed on film
Introduction: New Boy written by Roddy Doyle, is a short story that envelops the reader into a third person character and leads them to experience how it feels to be an outsider “The New Boy”, the reader experiences this feeling through the Protagonist ‘s mind, in this case Joseph. This short story not only focuses on the idea of bullying and the idea of being an outsider, but also on the idea of forgiveness. As the story goes on Joseph overcomes bullying, and to a certain extent forgives his classmates, showing his pure heart.
Paragraph 1: Summary of story, and Linda Cahir’s Type of Translation.
Based on a short story by Roddy Doyle, and film by Steph Green, the “New Boy” captures the experience of being the new boy through the eyes of a young boy named Joseph. A Nine-year-old African boy who had a rough start, after leaving his country for a better life in Ireland. But under those circumstances and as the new boy in his class, Joseph becomes an easy target, after all, he is an outsider, which makes him an easy target for the class bullies. Joseph’s mind travels back to his nonchalant past and his happy old school days. As the story goes on, we get to see Joseph’s behavior change towards his classmates Christian Kelly and Hazel O’Hara. As a result, the story and film share the same tale, This is considered a traditional translation. Which maintains the overall traits of the written work. However, some details might be changed.
Paragraph 2: (Five part reading tool) – Setting and Character (beginning scene.)
The film portrays Joseph’s prior school years in Africa and his new school in Ireland, showing the differences between schooling in different parts of the world from his point of view. I’ll discuss the difference between the setting and the characters in the story and film. I will talk about the flashbacks he gets at the beginning of the story where he thinks about his school back home and connects it to his new school in Ireland. Furthermore, I’ll detail the difference between his professors, classroom environment and more. Through this Joseph lets the reader experience what it feels like to be an outsider through his eyes.
Paragraph 3: (Two film concepts) – Non diegetic and mise en scene (milk scene.)
Then I will go into depth and explain how the non-diegetic sound is being used in the milk scene. When Joseph goes to the backyard different sounds go on, especially when the milk gets thrown at him and hits the wall. This makes the film more intense and dramatic. After this, I’ll proceed to talk about the mise en scene of the film and explain the similarities and differences that the story and film have.
Paragraph 4: (Exchange concept) – do you think there is justice or forgiveness in this story? Should Joseph forgive the boys at the end of the story? (Ending scene)
Lastly, I will discuss the last scene where Joseph and the boys get in trouble. Here I will discuss if there is any type of justice or forgiveness from Joseph’s side toward the boys, after what they did to him. I’ll discuss the ending scene giving my thoughts on if I believe Joseph should forgive the boys or not.
Conclusion: New Boy is a story that lets the reader experience what it feels like to be an outsider through his eyes. As readers we experience, and feel all the emotions, and thoughts that go through Joseph’s head. Making it easier for us to understand why he acts and does the things he does.
