MODALITY IN THE VIETNAMESE LAW ON ENTERPRISES: HOW “ĐƯỢC” AND “BỊ” ARE TRANSLATED INTO ENGLISH
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.63506/jilc.1001.398Keywords:
Modality; legal discourse; Vietnamese modal verbs; modal translationAbstract
This article examines how the Vietnamese modal verbs được and bị in the 2020 Law on Enterprises are translated into English through the lens of modality theory. Using a Vietnamese–English parallel corpus drawn from the statute and its official English version (from Thư viện Pháp luật), the study applies descriptive and contrastive methods, combined with frequency analysis. The results show that both verbs are frequent and play a key role in expressing rights and obligations: được appears 337 times and is typically translated as shall (as well as may and will), while bị appears 170 times, but only 46 instances involve modal use. These modal uses are mainly rendered as shall, with context sometimes favoring may, will, or can. The study highlights the importance of these modal verbs and the challenges of achieving precise English equivalence and recommends expanding the corpus to include a wider range of legal texts.
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