Examining the impact of footnotes and cultural memory references on empathic evocation throughtranslation

Abstract This paper aimed to investigate how footnotes and cultural memory references (CMRs) influence empathic evocation through a questionnaire-based study. To assess the impact, Chinese translations of two English stories by Singaporean writer Alfian Sa’at, namely “Shallow Focus” and “Reunion,” were selected as research materials, and Taiwanese adults were considered the target participants. A recruitment effort that included email distribution and social media advertising resulted in a total of 85 participants, who were randomly assigned to three groups to read three translation versions: translation with footnotes (Group 1), translation with lead-ins on cultural memory (Group 2), and translation with both footnotes and lead-ins on cultural memory (Group 3). A questionnaire was designed based on existing studies to measure the participants’ empathic responses. The results showed that both footnotes and CMRs could promote empathic evocation, with the highest reaction observed in Group 3. Additionally, CMRs could generate greater empathic evocation, possibly because they helped target readers feel a stronger sense of involvement in the stories.