Readers’ Emotional Effects

The third difference is the readers’ effects in different versions of Disney and original

author. As mentioned above, the original version of Winnie-the-Pooh is a story about author’s

son and their British living surrounding. The location of the story is near a forest. That is the

reason why the other main characters are animals including bear, bunny, pig, owl, kangaroo

and so on. Certainly, business is not the main concern of the original author. Creating a

British children literature satisfies the readers’ curiosity and fantastic image that may be a

probable purpose of original author. For translators, creating the same affect in the reader is

the main criteria of translation in terms of Nida’s equivalent theories. On the other hand, the

Disney version of Winnie-the-Pooh, the global commercial purpose is the main issue to be

concerned for the company. The commercial factor may include the colorful finely books,

interesting recreated characters, and the new plots that related to each child that are all for

selling the books. There are four administrative criterion of the Disney Company including

satisfying everyone’s dream, the faith of serving the public, containing adventure in products,

and practicing for recreating (Bill Capodagli and Lynn Jackson 7-11). From the case of

Disney Company, it takes a good advantage of the four principles to be a typical example in

business concerns.

For selling storybooks, it turns into the business concern instead of the value of the

literature field. Consequently, all the controlling power comes back to the privilege of the

business concerns. Thus, ideology of the popularity, economical consideration, and social

status are the three essential factors for patrons, which also construct the powerful position for

patronage. The ideology of popularity will limit a translation works such as choosing the

theme, forming its unique way of expression, and determining the relationship between

literary and other systems. The Disney Company transforms the original text into a new text

that is a representative implication for meeting the public flavor. In fact, the readers in Taiwan

are familiar with the text of Disney version not the original version because the commercial

company owns a convenient outlet such as the movies and the secondary products for the

people. Economical purpose, the patronages will ensure authors’ livelihoods if writers follow

the same standing with the patronages. In the past, the allowance given to the authors were

sponsored from the government, publishers, bookmen, or certain organizations. Nowadays, all

of the patronages turn into being the copyrights or translation fees. Other people with

specialties such as critics or teachers get their salaries from the patronages as well such as the

newspaper publishers. Munday also gave us some ideas that these so-called beneficial people

had to satisfy the demand of the patronages (128-129). The literary system is under the

control of various patronages. These roles of patronages could be the same publishers or

certain organizations when each of the three factors of the source is singular. In this system,

patronages try to keep the stability in the social system. Economy concern factor, is

independent from the others, and the sales number for the bestselling novels may be highly

appreciated on value of literature. From the example of Disney version and the original

version, we may regard original version as a kind of children literature but the Disney version

is a kind of commercialized production since their different purposes of writing and target

readers.

In the system, the activities and literary products both cannot react against the specific

cultural structure. In this situation, there are some other literary works that exist in the social

system, but they are treated as heterodoxy and it is hard to be published in the official system.

From Lefevere’s point of view, the rewriters had to get the involvement in the model settled

by the patronage and the rewriters were forced to follow the ideology of these patronages to

obtain the patronage’s acceptance (17). André Lefevere emphasizes that these limitations are

conditional, not essential. Individuals have the right to accept or violate these limitations. In

addition, translators can decide to postpone the power of these limitations or stir up others to

against these limitations. They can control the flavor of the translated works besides the

influence of literary or political factor. Herman also indicated that the meaning of translation

represents the imported products coming from other system, writing and refraction and

translation will influence the development of literature, and rewrite and the descriptive

translation are tools for the population that enter into the world of foreign works(127-131).

The flow chart below can illustrate the relationship between the patronage and the translator:

Fig. 1 The Forming of Patronage Power

From figure 1, we can see that the patronage and the translators are against each other,

but they both have the power to override the target version. The authority of Patronage comes

from the translation methods and strategies. In addition, they own specific knowledge as their

private property. Besides, they act like arbitrary rulers and have the privilege to change the

source version. Furthermore, they exercise talents to translate a children’s works. The

translator has the power to master the languages, but the patronage does not have it. The

translator has creativity, but the patronage may not have. The translator has the power to

master translation like God, just trace back to the ancient time of Bible, the myth says people

believed in God and speaks in the same language worldwide. However, they try to build a

tower that goes straight to where God live. The action upset God, so God confused humanity's

language. Nonetheless, the translator performs as the bridge between languages, so they are

the impression of God. In the modern generation, the globalization may be a new power to

control the different relationship among the patrons, writers, readers, and economy concern.

In 2003, the Big Read held to vote for the most popular book countrywide in the United

Kingdom. Firstly, there was about one hundred and forty thousand people voting for their

beloved books and this vote brought the original 100-book shortlist. Further, there was a

second vote to cut down the list to 21 titles. (Brown 44) This competition lasted for more than

half a year from April to December, for a total of seven hundred and fifty thousand votes in

the overall campaign. (“Tolkien Wins UK Big Read”) It is glad to see that Winnie-the-Pooh

took the seventh place. (BBC Online) This result can tell why the book is translated into all

major European, and a number of other languages. In 2000, it had been translated into

thirty-three languages (Finch, 19). By recent count in 2005, which was Pooh’s 80^th

anniversary, the BBC NEWS stated that the story “has been translated into more than forty

languages” (“Pooh celebrates”). In the following year, the Mickey News indicated, “the

entertainment and products of Pooh can be found in more than 38 countries for books and

videos translated in 29 languages” (“Pooh's 80th celebrations”). The quality of the translated

works may be different, but the success of the book was justified. Ann Thwaite, the author of

the biography of A. A. Milne, found one possible reason for the success:

“It was apparently not only the child’s but the adult’s book as well. It seemed Milne’s

books always had the double ability to open up the future for the child looking forward

(filling in obscure pieces of the puzzling jigsaw that is life), and the lost past for the

adult looking back.” (262)

Milne’s story strikes a chord in most readers who are longing for a break in the real world.

Thousands of readers thought themselves as the bear of very little brain¹⁰ while they were

reading the story. Once Pooh did something brave or wise, it would cheer readers and

encourage them. Thwaite made some comment on it: The story creates a godlike figure in

Christopher Robin who represents the god of love—all these themes, together with an

underlying “emotion”—which appeals to readers of all ages who are looking for a world which

has the identity of both the Golden Age and the childhood (248). In addition, Reid made some

statement for it: This is a book that suits all ages (64).

Each famous writer’s success of his works involves the factors that make them successful

and outstanding. As for the storybook Winnie-the-Pooh of Milne for children, one of the most

obvious reasons for the book’s amazing success is the simple fact that Milne is a skilled

playwright. The whole story is the context of a well-organized structure with interesting

characters and plots. The author, Milne, takes great care in arranging the complicated,

interlaced plot of his plays. Once, W. A. Darlington, a theatre critic, indicated that Milne had

invented a new form of humor and a kind of dialogue that is good enough to compare with

Oscar Wilde, as remarkable, pleasant, graceful, and funny. (Thwaite 164-167). Humphrey

Carpenter, who remarked for outputting biographies, pointed out that Milne’s humor is based

10 Pooh, bear called himself as “a bear of very little brain” for times. (Milne 45, 67, 90, 121, 124, 130)

on logic as a mathematician and he elaborated as follow: “each humorous situation in the Pooh

books is consolidated by the logical pursuit of an idea to the point of absurdity” (248). Milne

enjoyed his task of creating a Pooh world settled in a real place called Ashdown Forest as it is

linguistic, geographic, chronological, or historical nature. This faithful attention to all aspects

of plot and setting communicates with the readers throughout the whole book. Keep the

enthusiastic impression of the author’s imagination at an earlier stage of the history. This is

also the reason that makes the fantastic works popularized all over the world. The Disney

version of Winnie-the-Pooh also follows the same steps to produce a new successful children

literature for children, and develop other related products for the world.

The concluding chapter discussed the possible solutions to tackle such a troublesome

mission. The study takes a closer look at the study of Milne’s Winnie-the-Pooh. It may suffice

to state that Winnie-the-Pooh is truly a classic children literature that suits all ages, a well-told,

simple story in a comprehensive emotional setting. It successfully merges the natural elements

in the forest with the legend depth and grants a vivid life to the characters in the story whether

in the Disney version or original version. Those successful children’s trade book provides great

enjoyment for children worldwide.