ABSTRACT
This is a sociolinguistic study that investigates how multilingual subtitles in Korean TV shows represent linguistic and cultural ideologies. Subtitles are not only used for translating or supplementing meanings, but they also have various discursive functions, including conveying connotations, exaggerating meanings, and maximizing effects. This study investigates the ways that English is used in Korean subtitles as a mixed form of codes. Particularly, it examines the roles of subtitles and motivations for creating multilingual subtitles in Korean TV shows. This study also discusses the ideological and local cultural dimensions of multilingual subtitling practices in social media. The talk shows “Ssulzun” (“War of Words”) and “Talk to you,” which aired from August 2015 to January 2016, are the subject of this analysis. Taking a social-constructivist perspective that views language ideologies as interpretive frames and posits that language ideologies are multiple (Kroskrity, 2004; Ricento, 2000), this study examines the social functions of subtitles as well as their symbolic meanings. Considering multilingualism as a main ideological construct, this study additionally investigates how Korean and English mixings are created in subtitles. The findings show that, tlinguistic and cultural ideologies are embedded in TV subtitles, and the examples in this study help illustrate the multicultural linguistic landscape of Korea.
