Comparative Distribution of Interpersonal Meaning in Official and Fansub Chinese Subtitles: A Case Study of Zootopia

This paper provides a quantitative assessment of interpersonal meaning in both official and fansub Chinese subtitles for the animated film Zootopia. Using Systemic Functional Linguistics on a parallel corpus of six subtitle versions, we measure the density of key interpersonal resources. Paired tests and mixed-effects models reveal a clear stylistic divergence: fansubs contain higher densities of discourse particles (Hedges’g = 0.41), yielding a more oral, affectively engaged tone in humor and conflict scenes; official subtitles exhibit a substantially higher density of rhythm markers (Hedges’g = -0.74), emphasizing formal consistency and syntactic clarity. Modality markers show no significant difference. We argue these patterns reflect distinct production ecologies—professional standardization versus community-driven adaptation—and challenge single, universal notions of subtitle quality. The findings support a scene-sensitive style prototype and present a reproducible, quantitative method for analyzing interpersonal style in audiovisual translation.