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Translation Studies

A Review and Reflection of Holmes and Toury’s Descriptive Translation Studies 曾雁湖 Zeng Yanhu 202020080590

Abstract

Descriptive translation studies transcends the traditional view of translation and enables people to have a more comprehensive and objective understanding of translation, so that translation theory can serve translation practice more effectively. Description is a theoretical supplement to the norm, and the unity of opposites constitutes the overall framework of translation theory. Scholars represented by James Holmes introduced the concept of "independent discipline" into the field of translation studies, and the birth and development of the school of translation studies promoted the establishment of the discipline of translation studies and the development of translation theory studies. This paper mainly introduces the representatives of the school of translation culture and the main points of their theoretical views in order to understand and explore the development and trend of western translation theories.

Key Words

Descriptive Translation Studies; Holmes; Toury

题目

福尔摩斯和图里的描述性翻译研究的回顾与反思

摘要

描述性翻译研究超越了传统的翻译观，使人们对翻译有了更全面和客观的理解，从而翻译理论可以更有效地为翻译实践服务。 描述是对规范的理论补充，对立统一构成了翻译理论的整体框架。 以詹姆斯•霍尔姆斯（James Holmes）为代表的学者将“独立学科”的概念引入了翻译研究领域，翻译学派的诞生和发展促进了翻译学学科的建立和翻译理论学的发展。 本文主要介绍翻译文化流派的代表及其理论观点的要点，以理解和探索西方翻译理论的发展和趋势。

关键词

描述性翻译研究；霍尔姆斯；图里

1 Description Translation Studies (DTS)

DTS is also known as the polysystem approach, the manipulation school, the Leuven axis of Tel Aviv, the descriptive, empirical or systematic school, or the low country group, which corresponds to the descriptive, empirical, interdisciplinary, goal-oriented Translation research methods, with special attention to its role in cultural history. This method was first developed in the early 1970s, gained momentum in the 1980s, and flourished in the 1990s, still inspiring some researchers to seek "in-depth research as a translation of cultural and historical phenomena," Explore its context and constraints, and look for reasons that explain why there is something" (Hermans 1999: 5). Although usually equivalent to the study of literary translation, especially in its early stages, translation studies have been extended to several directions, including technical translation, audiovisual translation, or interpretation.DTS is said to have emerged in the 1980s due to the contribution of a group of scholars of Manipulation School. The idea of describing translation studies originated in the 1950s. John McFarlane(1953) and James Holmes(1972) proposed a translation research map that shocked the translation research community in his thesis of "The Name and Reality of Translation Studies", and established the role of "descriptive" research in translation research. Central position. After Gideon Toury published the book "Descriptive Translation Studies and Others", which systematically outlines the methodology and research focus and framework of translation research, descriptive translation research has gradually begun to regulate the position of translation research for a long time. The "scramble for power" and "description" of sex studies have become a new trend in translation studies.

1.1Descriptive translation definition

According to existing definitions, descriptive translation is “the use of descriptions to translate terms or phrases in the source, rather than direct translation” (Darwish 2010, p.142). However, there are other ways to look at descriptive translation; for example, some sources define the term from the perspective of social function (Darwish, 2010). As Bao Bao explained, descriptive translation can be considered as a tool "used to faithfully present the values, hegemonic views or ideological positions of the target text participants" (Baby, 2009, p. 201). Therefore, it can be assumed that Descriptive Translation can be seen from both the linguistic and the sociological aspects (Bazzi 2009). It is remarkable that in the course of the search for the definition of Descriptive Translation, some scholars even doubted that the given study can actually be related to the discipline of translation in general (Bazzi 2009). For example, Gutt often criticized the idea of relating the Descriptive Translation to Translation Studies, arguing that the given branch of translation should, in fact, be named as interpretive (Bazzi 2009, p. 199). Pym (2010) broadly defines the aim of Descriptive Translation Studies (henceforth DTS): ‘to describe what translations actually are, rather than simply prescribing how they should be’. Less prescriptive than its predecessors, DTS sought to establish probable expectations of translation behaviour by handling the practice as 'an empirical discipline with a hierarchical organisation and a structured research program’ (Cheung 2013). The concept was propounded by Gideon Toury from the 1970s onwards (Naudé 2012), and it was characteristic of the mood of that time, where ideas that challenged established conventions of translation came to prominence. There was a sense that previous theories lacked a certain sensitivity to, and awareness of, the socio-cultural conditions under which the process of translation occurs (Bassnett McGuire 1991; Bassett 2012) and that greater significance should be attached to these issues. Descriptive translation studies are mainly proposed for traditional translation studies that emphasize the equivalence relationship between the original text and the target text, while ignoring the relationship between the target text and the target language reader and the target language culture (He Yuanjian, Wei Zhiqiang, 1998: 17-28 ) The theoretical research of descriptive translation studies is to establish a reference system of principles for explaining and predicting the translation process and the structure and function of the translated text (quoted from Zhang Xiaobo 2001). The descriptive translation studies framework proposed by Holmes provided the correct development direction for translation studies, made translation studies pay more attention to descriptiveness, and laid the ideological foundation for the later descriptive translation school.

2 The Prospects of Translation Theory

<The Future of Transla- tion Theory: A Handful of Theses> is not an ordinary paper. Holmes lists the urgent problems in future translation research, such as: creating a synthesis One of the main obstacles to sexual translation theory is the lack of effective communication between scholars in different fields, especially linguistics and literary schools; some researchers are accustomed to regard personal or national or a certain stage of norms as the general rules of translation; 5. Linguistic translation theory seems to have entered a dead end since the decade. Researchers are stuck at the word, phrase or sentence level without considering the context at all. To establish a comprehensive translation theory, it is necessary to break through the linguistic research method with sentences as the upper limit. Holmes believes that to create a truly scientific and comprehensive translation theory requires the coordination of textual research, linguistics (especially psycholinguistics and sociolinguistics), literary research, psychology, and sociology. It is necessary to eliminate barriers between countries and languages and promote international academic exchanges. As a translator, Holmes also emphasizes the importance of translators with practical experience participating in the creation of translation theories.

2.1 Benefits of descriptive translation for translation studies discipline

An obvious advantage of describing the contribution of translation to the development of translation research is that describing translation almost obliterates the concept of norms (Medros 1985, p.142). Although the given feature of descriptive translation can also be seen as a major shortcoming, which will be demonstrated later, it is also a huge advancement in the development of translation studies as a discipline (De La Bascia, 2008, p. 245 ). As Kruger explained, descriptive translation provides a prerequisite for shaping the "decision-making process in translation and operational norms in translation" (Kruger 2012, p. 103). Distorting existing translation norms means that translation studies are developing, and the phenomenon of descriptive translation has promoted the progress of the discipline (Koster 2011, p. 21). The fact that descriptive translation is a tool to shape specific translation behavior should also be considered (Flynn and Gambier, 2011, p. 88). In fact, it is wrong to assume that descriptive translation technology is only used for the purpose of conveying specific information to the recipient; as Ravisa explained, descriptive translation research is also a means for trainees to memorize specific translation patterns in translation. To develop the required skills: However, at the same time, translation teachers are independently borrowing insights from corpus-based descriptive translation studies, and in the long run, it seems that they aim to formulate cohesive rules, assuming that if translation trainees insist on descriptiveness What should be done in the translation behavior model revealed by scholars. The given method reflects the fact that descriptive translation allows the study of translation from an empirical perspective. In other words, descriptive translation practice allows translation research to be regarded as a social activity, rather than a process of presenting certain information by using specific means of expression. Therefore, descriptive translation as a discipline can be regarded as a social activity that has a significant impact on the community, and therefore should be encouraged as an additional tool to improve communication among community members (Esfeld 2001, p. 99). At this point, the linguistic meaning of translation is transferred to the background, and its social importance is reflected (Weissbrodt 2008, p. 50).

2.2 Limitations of descriptive translation for translation studies discipline

Needless to say, the descriptive nature of the above translation practice tools can be described as completely unprescriptive elements (Milan & Patna, 2013). There is actually no problem-solving process in the practice of descriptive translation; instead, the situational translation method is used (Kaplan 2010, p. 478). One might say that the given method of handling the translation process allows to avoid so-called “prescriptive intervention” or purism in language (Toury 2013, p. 87). Although descriptive translation does help to eliminate examples of purism, it still lacks norms completely, which has caused confusion about the definition of descriptive translation methods (Tu Li, 2013, p. 88). Another obvious issue of perspective and scope is that supporters of descriptive translation, which is the key to translation studies, must generally acknowledge the boundaries of descriptive translation; a series of studies have pointed out the vagueness of the subject and the impossibility of descriptive translation. A distinction is drawn between objects and objects that exist outside their domain: "The first question itself relates to the scope of research objects within the framework of translation theory: draw a distinction between what is "being" and what is not "being" Clear boundaries?” (Toury 2013, p. 17). Therefore, the ambiguity of explanatory or descriptive translation concepts can be regarded as the basic problem of the discipline (Hatim & Munday, 2004, p. 128). Despite the fact that it seems to allow more choices in translating a particular idea into the target language, once it tries to define its position in the field of translation studies, it can also lead to a series of confusion (Toury 2013, No. 49 page). In other words, descriptive translation is characterized by the lack of specific norms and rules, which is typical for other types of translation (Tu Li, 2013, p. 50). Descriptive translation does not allow the creation of tangible norms. This is a compromise between the rules and characteristics of a language and an absolute necessary condition for any type of translation research. Of course, one might say that “the boundaries between various types of constraints are therefore scattered” (Turi, 2013, p. 54). Therefore, in translation studies, the concept of norms is rather vague. The lack of obvious norms in the field of descriptive translation, which in turn limits the effectiveness of descriptive translation as a translation tool (Tu Li, 2013). Before further discussion, it is necessary to explain that the concepts of "problems" and corresponding "solutions" in the field of translation research are quite loose (Tu Li, 2013). As Tuli explained, the terminology status of the word "problem" is still very unclear when discussing problem-solving models in the field of translation research, especially descriptive translation (Tuli, 2013). Seeing how descriptive translation reduces the vague concept of translation norms into situational translation practice, the problem-solving model becomes more unclear (Christa Fuli, 2003, p. 13). Descriptive translation actually erased the concept of problem-solving and replaced it with the concept of "conditions of existence" (Tu Li, 2013, p. 37). Although this phenomenon can be regarded as another stage of the development of translation research, it still creates a series of obstacles in the definition of norms and standards and the methods to solve specific translation problems (Darwish, 2008, p. 35). Finally, the fact that descriptive translation should be put forward creates a premise for translators to link the text with their own cognitive mechanism. Although it is wrong to deny the fact that the translator’s background knowledge is actively used in the translation process, the details of the translator’s vision must not hinder the provision of correct translation. However, by applying the principle of descriptive translation, it is impossible to have a "correct" translation variant; therefore, the translator may face a very tempting idea, which is to project his own vision into the translation process, thereby making the recipient of the information Observe the information through the translator's visual lens. A series of authoritative sources mentioned the need for translators to avoid filtering information in the source language, emphasized the limitations of cognitive mechanisms, and especially emphasized the limitations of culture (Darwish, 2010, p. 35).

3 James Holmes

James Holmes (1924-1986) is an American Dutch scholar and an outstanding translator of English-Dutch poetry. He has long worked at the University of Amsterdam. His main essays are collected in the collection "Literary Translation and Translation Studies Essays" (1988) compiled for him after his death. His work "The Name and Reality of Translation Studies" (1972) is regarded as the declaration of the establishment of the Translation Studies School and the foundational work of the Translation Studies School. It mainly put forward creative opinions on the name, nature, research field, problem setting and subject scope of translation studies as an independent subject. He also proposed the scope and structure of the new field of translation research, and believed that the research method is a practice based on experience, and the object of research is the translation that appears in a particular culture. He finally thought that "Translation studies" was the most suitable name in the terminology. Theoretical assumptions can start research in the other two fields.

3.1 Holmes’s point of Descritive Translation Studies

Holmes emphasizes the description of the translation process. A significant change in his descriptive translation theory is the change in the nature of the works. Holmes believes that the target of translation is not a specific thing in the objective world referred to by the original text, but the language composition of the original text. Translation language is different from the language in literary works. He borrowed from Roland Barthes's literary classification: 1) Poems, novels, and dramas reflect specific things and phenomena; 2)The literature category describes not the objective world, but the language composition proposed by others, which is a re-evaluation of evaluation (Barthes, 1964: 126) He also borrowed the term "meta-language" and expanded its meaning from referring exclusively to literary criticism to a variety of meta-literary forms, and poetry translation is only one of them. Holmes pointed out that poetry translation has intensified comments and metalanguage in other forms. On the one hand, it is the evaluation and interpretation of a meta-literary to another work, and on the other hand, it forms a new meta-literary collection with its own literary nature. Therefore, this special literary form not only reflects the original text but is also a self-made creation, which has the dual nature of meta-literature and literature. Some-based translation studies focus no longer on issues such as equivalence and referent, but analyze the relationship between the translation as a second work and the original work in the literary standard symbol system of the original text, and only focus on the translation as a new work and the translation. The relationship between cultural standard symbol systems. Compared with traditional translation theory, Holmes's method of describing the translation process shows another change. That is, he strives to seek a better understanding of a certain type of symbol translation by describing various translation methods and their historical use. He divided translation into four categories: 1) Similar forms, although the exact same form is impossible, similar forms are possible; 2) Similar functions, find similar functions in the translation language standards, and create open forms that can produce similar effects; 3) The content is derived, and the original meaning and specific expression form are maintained in the target language; 4) The form is abnormal, and for some special reasons, only the same as the original text is kept as little as possible. Holmes believes that the four types are equally important. Translation is a process in which the translator makes a decision. The translator can make a choice in translation according to the different nature of the four translation methods. Once the initial decision is made, the translation forms its own rules, which can provide the translator with some possible translation methods, while also excluding other translation methods, so the initial decision will determine the next choice. He also believes that translation has no distinction between right and wrong, only differences. These differences derive from the translator’s poetic level on the one hand, and on the other hand, the translator’s initial choice and the relationship between the two languages. The same source text has as many translations as there are translators.

4 Gideon Toury

Gideon Toury is a professor at Tel Aviv University in Israel and a world-renowned translation theorist. He developed the polysystem theory proposed by Evan Zohar, a famous scholar of the Tel Aviv school. In the book "Descriptive Translation Studies and Others", Tury systematically explained the theoretical framework and methodological basis of Descriptive Translation Studies. Tury believes that the descriptive translation theory focuses on examining the degree of absorption of the target language text in the target language culture, and uses inductive and statistical methods to compare and analyze case texts, and summarize the empirical variables or empirical norms governing translation behavior, and then formulate interpretations. The law of the internal relationship of these variables. (2001: 15-16) Gideon Toury is considered a pioneer of Descriptive Translation Studies, and the theories exposed in his 3 major books on the theme (Translational Norms and Literary Translation into Hebrew, In Search of a Theory of Translation and Descriptive Translation Studies and Beyond) show his innovative perspective on translation studies. He established a groundbreaking approach based on the analysis of tendencies in the translation process that doesn’t involve strict rules. Translation science has the role of describing and highlighting tendencies, in order to provide practical guidelines for translators. Gideon Toury has given a significant contribution to translation studies. He formulated groundbreaking theories and succeeded in providing practical guidelines to language professionals, without imposing rigid rules on the translation process. He elaborated the concepts of source-oriented and target-oriented, defined two different strategies to apply when translating a text into a new language. Having worked as a translator himself, he was fully aware of the difficulties experienced by translators and enriched translation studies with his perspective. Tury’s descriptive translation studies are based on norms and guided by rules. Its purpose is to analyze the general rules governing translation behavior by comparing the source and target texts. This is fundamentally different from the past process-based and application-oriented translation studies. Traditional translation is based on the abstract identity of the effect of "equal", while Turry's theory is based on the difference. "Each language system and textual tradition, whether in structure or usage guidelines, is different from others. Different types". If it is said that being fully accepted by the target culture is one pole, and being completely consistent with the original text is the other pole, then Tury believes that translation should always be between the two poles. No translation can be fully accepted by the target culture, because the translation always brings new information and unfamiliar forms to the system; no translation always brings new forms to the system; no translation is completely the same as the original Consistent, because cultural norms always shift the structure of the original text. It is never possible for any specific translation to take into account the two extremes and achieve two abstract ideal criteria. Tury believes that the translation itself does not have "inherent" identity. The translation is always affected by various social and literary factors, and thus has multiple identities. The translation is always affected by various social and literary factors. Influence, thus having multiple identities, depends on the factors affecting translation in a particular period. Turi successfully made translation theory break through the framework of "faithful original text" and the theoretical model of a purely unified relationship between the original text and the target text, making translation a relative concept. Correspondingly, the role of translation theory has also changed. Instead of seeking a theoretical system for evaluating translations, it has instead focused on establishing a model that interprets and determines the process of translation. Tury's theory introduces cultural-historical factors and calls them "translation criteria". Translation criterion is the center of Tury's theory, which affects every stage of the translation process and plays a coordinating role between two equal potentials. Therefore, it is not enough to study a single text. It is necessary to study the translations of different historical periods to discern general trends. Turui distinguishes the following three translation criteria: Elementary criteria: factors that determine the choice of translation and translation strategies in the entire multi-system Starting criterion: the translator’s personal preference, whether it is the original version or the retranslated text, or an attitude of choosing to be in the middle Operation criterion: Refers to the criterion that influences the translation decision in the actual translation process. Tury pointed out that "translation" is any expression in the target language that is manifested as translation or considered to be translation. Describe the discovery process of Translation Studies (DTS). He believes that this process follows the following sequence: 1) Select those target language texts that the target language culture considers to be "translation", but do not involve their corresponding original texts, and only study their acceptance as target language texts in the "destination" system. 2) Describe these texts, study these texts and their counterparts in the source language system or original text through the translation phenomenon constituted by the constituent elements of these texts, and find solutions to translation problems. 3) Identify and describe the relationship between each pair of research objects, focusing on discovering the changes and transformations that occur. 4) Finally, by thinking about the function of translation equivalence-the concept of relations, we set out to apply these relations to the overall concept of translation. It is the last two that constitute the ultimate goal after DTS's systematic research and interpretation. Tury believes that only after the essential concept of translation is determined, can it be possible to reconstruct the consideration and decision process involved in the translation process, as well as the constraints actually accepted by the translator. Contributions and achievements of descriptive translation to translation studies: As a representative of descriptive translation studies, the theory and methodological framework of descriptive translation studies proposed by Turi has an immeasurable impact on translation studies. Gentzler believes that Tury's theory has the following contributions to translation studies: First, abandon the "one-to-one" correspondence between the source target text in the normative translation study, and eliminate the possibility of the source target text being literary/language equivalence; Second, introduce the literary tendencies existing in the target language cultural system into the research on the production of translation works; Third, it breaks the concept that people have a fixed understanding of the source language information and translation expression; Fourth, place the source text and the target text in the symbolic network interwoven between the source and target cultures. (Gentzler, 2004: 131) However, descriptive translation studies, as the mainstay of current international translation studies, have contributed far more to translation studies than those listed above. Insufficiency of Toury's theory: Some scholars have pointed out the inadequacies of Toury's theory. Munday pointed out that the meaning of "norms" used by Turui is vague, and these norms have the tendency to act and the function of regulation, which is contrary to the original intention of descriptive analysis. Tury’s view ignores factors such as ideology and politics. In addition, the "rules" that Turui wants to summarize from the case analysis seem to be some habitual beliefs or even beliefs that do not need to be proven in translation behavior, and to what extent these abstract and quasi-scientific rules can be applied to translation practice. Not without controversy. (2002: 113-117) Venuti believes that Tury’s "scientific" descriptive translation studies model aims to extract "value free" norms and rules for translation behavior, and the field of translation studies must involve the social and cultural system Value orientation. In Venuti's view, although norms are initially only in the linguistic/literary sense, they also involve values and beliefs that serve specific social groups and are therefore ideologically binding.

4.1 Source-oriented and target-oriented

In his 1980 essay In Search of a Theory of Translation, Toury gives a remarkable contribution to translation studies identifying two translation strategies: ‘source-oriented’ and ‘target-oriented’. A source-oriented translation involves a formal approach aimed at reproducing forms and structures of the source language. According to Toury, this strategy is difficult to apply because of the differences between language structures. While a target-oriented translation aims at adapting the text to the structures and cultural context of the target language. Hence, Toury formulated two principles that define two approaches to translation: acceptability and adequacy. An ‘acceptable’ translation has to comply with the rules and structures of the target language. The primary goal is to convey the meaning of the source text, increasing readability and adapting texts to the language structures of the receiving culture. On the other hand, an ‘adequate’ translation stays true to the source language and complies with the structures of the original text. This means that the result doesn’t conceal its nature of translation. A translation aiming at full adequacy is unacceptable due to the fact that it doesn't take into account the demands of the target reader. Choosing between the two approaches is not an easy task. Everything depends on the kind of translation required and its purpose. But, regardless of a target-oriented or source-oriented approach, the purpose of a translation is to convey the meaning of the original.

4.2 Translation and postulates

In Descriptive Translation Studies and Beyond (1995), another masterpiece in the field of translation studies, Toury exposes a normative theory for translation critics. A theory that is not meant as a set of rigid rules for translators and critics but as a series of tendencies that could be observed in the translation process. According to Toury, critics should research those tendencies in order to describe the translation process, which means offering practical guidelines to translators. A normative approach with rigid rules wouldn’t provide translators with a single clue on how to translate texts. Toury acknowledges a set of necessary requirements or postulates that a text has to comply with so that it could be called ‘translation’: The source text postulate: there has to be a source text; The transfer postulate: the translated text has to be generated from a “transfer” process; The relationship postulate: there has to be a relationship or similarity between the original text and translated text.

4.3 The value of Toury’s contribution

Toury has succeeded in giving practical advice to translators, identifying two possible strategies and approaches, providing professionals with a starting point to reflect upon when translating a text. Thinking of the purpose of translation and its potential readers can help with the choice of the best strategy. By the way, one should always keep in mind that the primary goal of a translated text is to convey the message of the original. An example of acceptability as an adaptation to the target culture is represented by transcreation. The word transcreation is a blend of ‘translation’ and ‘creation’, suggesting the use of a creative approach in translation. In fact, it seeks to perform all the necessary adjustments to make a campaign work in all target markets while staying legal to the original creative intent of the campaign. Transcreation is the creative adaptation of marketing sales and advertising copy in the target language. It involves changing both the words and meaning of the source text while keeping its attitude and the desired persuasive effect. Transcreation focuses on transferring brands and messages from one culture to another and represents a striking example of how changing the language and structure of the source text helps in delivering a message. Toury’s theories gave a new impulse to translation studies. New principles have been elaborated since then. For instance, Venuti distinguished between two strategies: domesticating and foreignizing. Nida elaborated the concepts of formal equivalence and dynamic equivalence. Toury’s perspective established an alternative approach to translation studies, starting from merely theoretical concepts and leading to a direct observation of the translation process to finally provide professionals with practical guidelines to follow.

Conclusion

Translation description promotes the study of translator's subjectivity. Any translation is a process of understanding, selection and re-creation. The translator will inevitably show his artistic creativity and individual characteristics in this process. Therefore, the exertion of the translator's subjectivity is an unavoidable problem in translation activities. However, the core of traditional translation theory is the issue of translation standards, and this attention to standards determines the normative characteristics of traditional translation theories. Norms are to use ideals to restrain practice, and to use principles and standards to guide practice. It focuses on issues such as "how the translation should be carried out" and "what principles should be followed in the translation", rather than "how the translator translates". This normative feature is fundamentally excluded from the study of translator's subjectivity. Translation studies have been unable to get rid of the defects of one-sidedness and subjectivity for a long time, and thus cannot see the full picture of translation activities, and cannot conduct in-depth and systematic research on translation studies. In 1990, Susan Bassnett and André Lefebvre co-authored "Translation, History and Culture", which raised the issue of the "cultural turn" in translation studies, which made cultural factors affect translation And the relationship between the two has been extensively studied. From the perspective of the nature of research, the "cultural turn" is actually the descriptive turn of translation studies, and constitutes an important part of the latter. In the process of descriptive research on translation, people discovered the distance between translation practice and the various translation standards proposed by normative research, and realized that “absolute equivalence” in translation cannot be achieved because of the translator’s Work is always uninterrupted by the purpose of translation, aesthetic preferences and cultural factors. Therefore, translation activities are affected and restricted by the subjectivity of the translator. To describe the translation and describe the translation, it is necessary to discuss this long-neglected Translation phenomenon. After decades of development, descriptive translation studies prove their own values and become a new starting point and a new pillar of translation research, leading to a deeper and wider level of translation research. It is noteworthy that the descriptive translation study is a deviation and rebel from some degree of normative translation research, but it is not in the state that one mountain cannot accommodate two tigers. We should recognize the great contribution of descriptive translation studies to the translational research objectively, while we should also recognize the great results of the translation research agency under the guidance of normative translation research. There is no contradiction between the descriptive translation study and the normative translation study, as Lin Kennan pointed out. We need to combine two so that translation studies can reveal the entire translation.

References

Toury, Gideon.Descriptive Translation Studies and Beyond[M].Shanghai:Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press, 2004.

Gentzler, Edwin.Comtemporary Translation Theories[M].Shang-hai:Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press, 2004.

Foreignizing Tanslation and National Culture Development 邓锦霞 Deng Jinxia 202020080599

Abstract

In the context of economic and social globalization, human civilization in the 20th century is developing towards diversification. In the process of multicultural exchanges, the impact of translation on local national culture has become a new topic of discussion. Foreignizing translation takes the source language as its destination and can retain the cultural characteristics of the source language to the greatest extent, which has gradually attracted the attention of contemporary translators. The diversity of national culture is the prerequisite for the existence of foreignizing translation, and the development and application of foreignizing translation also have different effects on the source language culture and target language culture. This chapter discusses the relationship between foreignizing translation and national culture from three perspectives: the necessity of foreignizing translation, the influence of foreignizing translation on national culture and the restrications on foreignizing translation.

Key words

foreignizing translation; national culture

题目

异化翻译与民族文化发展

摘要

在经济与社会全球化发展的背景下，20世纪的人类文明正在向多元化发展。在多元文化交流的过程中，翻译作品对本土民族文化的影响成为新的讨论话题。异化翻译以源语言为归宿，能够最大限度地保留源语言文化特色，逐渐受到当代翻译家的重视。民族文化的多样性是异化翻译存在的前提，而异化翻译在发展和运用中也分别对源语文化和目的语文化造成了不同的影响。本章从异化翻译的必要性，异化翻译对民族文化的影响以及异化翻译的限制条件三个角度出发，讨论异化翻译与民族文化发展的关系。

关键词

异化翻译：民族文化

1.Introduction

The debate between domesticating translation and foreignizing translation has a long history. When contemporary translators choose translation strategies, domesticating translation is the dominant one, for the translated text will be more easily accepted by the target language readers. Although this may attract more target language readers, in the translation process of "domestication", we allow the source language culture to adapt to the target language culture, and even replace the source language culture with the target one. Such translations cannot truly achieve the purpose of cross-cultural communication and dissemination. As far as the quality of cultural production and transformation is concerned, this is likely to cause the development of the homogeneity of the cultures of various ethnic groups, and this does not conform to the general trend of cultural globalization, and is not conducive to maintaining the cultural uniqueness of various ethnic groups. A typical domesticated translation in Chinese-English translation is David Hawkes's translation of "red" in The Dream of the Red Chamber. Considering the different understanding of red in Chinese and Western cultures, he translated "怡红公子" as "green boy". Although this translation is conducive to the understanding of western readers, it also loses the cultural connotation of Chinese red. In the context of Chinese culture, "red" mostly symbolizes auspiciousness and joy. With such kind of domesticating translation, western readers can never really understand the real Chinese culture. Compared with domesticated translation, source-oriented foreignizing translation has better retention of the original text in terms of language and culture.

2.The Evolution of Foreignizing Translation

2.1. The Evolution of Western Foreignizing Translation

The concept of foreignization translation in the West can be traced back to the word-for-word translation discussed by Cicero, Horace and St.Jerome in ancient Rome, which is the embryonic form of literal translation. The most famous translator in the early Middle Ages, Manlius Boethius, had a rich view of literal translation as (1) Content and style are hostile to each other, either paying attention to style or preserving content, neither can be achieved. (2) Translation is centered on objective things, and translators should give up subjective judgments. During the Renaissance, the famous German poet and translator Sebastian Brant substituted the concept of literal translation into poetry translation and proposed a verbatim translation method. In modern times, the dispute between literal translation and free translation has evolved into a dispute between the Old School and the New School. Bachet de Meziriae puts forward three principles that translators must follow: (1) Do not stuff the original text with private goods (2) Do not add or delete the original text (3) Do not make changes that are detrimental to the original intent. Translation critic Daniel Huet believes that the best translation method is for the translator to follow the original author's meaning ; if possible, follow his words closely, and finally reproduce his character as much as possible. Charles Batteux believes that the first translation rule is to preserve the original word order as much as possible.

From a diachronic point of view, the concept of literal translation has become deeper and more specific, and its connotation has become more and more abundant. However, the concept of literal translation in this period still remained at the level of language meaning, content and formal style. The development in culture, poetics, society, ethics and ideology has gradually extended and developed literal translation, which is the basis of Western foreignizing translation ideas.

Friedrich Schleiermacher put forward two very different translation methods in his famous speech entitled "On Different Translation Methods": the translator should either keep the original author as still as possible and make the reader close to the original author; or let the reader as much as possible stay still and make the original author approach the reader. He advocated that the first translation method, the foreignizing translation method, is the real translation method, allowing readers to appreciate foreign customs and respecting language and cultural differences.

Walter Benjamin's thought of foreignization is reflected in his view of language. He believes that all languages convey themselves in themselves, so language itself is translation. Benjamin emphasized the directness of language and intended to subvert the bourgeois instrumental language view. The translation goal of pure language makes Benjamin tend to use the foreignizing translation method, retaining the language form of the original text, that is, the difference in the way of meaning. In other words, Benjamin's foreignizing translation method is not to translate the meaning of the original text, but to convey the language expression of the original text to the target language. It is to achieve the ultimate goal of pure language human salvation.

Antoine Berman puts forward the concept of "translation ethics" in the book "The Test of Difference" in response to the traditional translation thought centered on "the transmission of meaning" that has long dominated the western translation world. The translation ethics advocated by Berman is to respect the original work and respect the language and cultural differences in the original work. To this end, he advocates foreignizing translation, implements foreignizing translation through the translation strategy of translated text, enriches himself through the introduction of "others", in order to achieve his goal of translation ethics.

Although the idea of foreignizing translation has existed for a long time, the concept and terminology of "foreignizing translation" have not been promoted to the agenda of translation studies until 1995, when Lawrence Venuti published his famous book "The Invisibility of the Translator-A History of Translation". Venuti’s concept of foreignizing translation puts traditional literal translation on the local cultural and political agenda, and links translation with culture, political ethics, and ideology. Its rich connotations can be summarized in the following five points: differences in material selection, language Differences with culture, readers and translation ethics. The core of Venuti's foreignizing translation is to practice differentiated ethical propositions to resist the mainstream values of the target language culture, thereby highlighting the language and cultural differences of foreign languages. In other words, Venuti’s translation ethics emphasizes the absorption and acceptance of the “other” as the “other”. On the one hand, it respects the language and cultural differences of the foreign other, and on the other hand, it can be used to challenge the mainstream values of the target language.

3.Discussion

The necessity of foreignizing translation comes from the diversity of national culture. If the world culture is homogenized, the concept of foreignizing translation will no longer exist. It can be said that foreignizing translation is proposed based on the development needs of national culture. After the foreignization translation was proposed, it had different influences on the source country and target language. However, not all foreignized translation works can cause the above-mentioned effects. Translators still need to follow certain restrictions when performing foreignizing translations in order to achieve the greatest effect of foreignized translation.

3.1. The Necessity of Foreignizing Translation

Translation circles have different definitions of foreignizing translation, but generally believe that foreignizing translation is a translation strategy that preserves the characteristics of the source language, which will help readers get closer to the author. Although the background and purpose of different theorists’ perspectives on foreignizing translation are different, we should uphold the attitude of foreignizing translation as a translation strategy, and treat the role of foreignizing translation in the development of national culture objectively.

3.1.1. The Need of National Language Development

As the carrier of culture, language has never been self-sufficient and isolated from external factors. On the contrary, it is an open system with strong tolerance and attractiveness. With the deepening of exchanges among countries and ethnic groups, various languages are now enriched in varying degrees. The foreignizing translation played a very important role in this process. The change of language is firstly reflected at the lexical level. Some vocabulary did not exist in the target country, but through the translator's foreignizing translation, a large number of words with foreign cultural customs were gradually accepted by people. And it can be widely disseminated and used in popular culture. For example: "honeymoon" (蜜月), this word had no corresponding expression in Chinese at the time, and its meaning (the first month of the wedding) did not exist in Chinese at that time. It was Lin Shu's method of alienation. The two parts of the compound word are translated and arranged together according to their literal meanings (honey "蜜", moon "月") to form the word "蜜月". This undoubtedly injected fresh blood into Chinese at that time and developed modern Chinese. There are also many other words, such as "咖啡（coffee）", "丁克（DINK）", and "可乐（cola）", which have been understood and accepted by Chinese readers. Words such as "Jiaozi(饺子）", "tofu（豆腐）", "Kungfu（功夫）" originated from Chinese have also entered the English thesaurus and have become part of the English family. The inclusiveness of language is evident. Once these foreign words are accepted by the society，they are established by convention and become new members when they are added to the traditional language and culture. As a result, they will inevitably enrich the way of language expression, promote language proximity and communication, and enhance the vitality of language. In a sense, the process of language development is also a process of language alienation. The alienation of language is the general trend, and it cannot be blocked by manpower. The translator's use of foreignizing method actually follows the universal law of language development.

The influence of foreignizing translation is not limited to the lexical level, but also to the syntactic level (Wang Kefei, 2002:458). When Liang Qichao investigated the translation of Buddhist scriptures, he discussed a dozen of foriegnizing translation of syntaxes. Facts have proved that the foreignized syntax of these Buddhist translations took root in Chinese with the widespread spread of Buddhism and became the origin of the Chinese vernacular. Modern Chinese is also influenced by Western languages, and the frequency and scope of passive voice use have expanded. Passive form was used as early as in ancient Chinese, but it is rare, and it is generally used to express misfortune or unpleasant experience. Affected by the translation of Western languages, the passive form in modern Chinese can also express pleasant things. It means that the syntax of source language in foreignizing translation can be accepted as a part of the target language.

It can be seen that the use of foreignization translation method can enrich and expand the vocabulary and syntax of the target language, which is beneficial to the maturity and perfection of the target language. Around the 19th century, when German romantic writers and translators were translating foreign works, they paid great attention to absorbing some vocabulary and special expressions from foreign literary works to enrich the German language. In their view, the development of German is not yet perfect, and it is necessary to enrich and expand the German language through translation. Under the guidance of this kind of thinking, they showed great importance to the language form of the original text.

In China, Mr. Lu Xun has always advocated foreignization translation for the purpose of importing new expressions to develop vernacular Chinese. "Chinese are too imprecise...To solve this problem, I thought I had to endure a little bitterness one after another and put in strange, ancient, foreign syntax. Then we could take it as ourselves." (Chen Fukang, 1992:298). In the fifteen or sixteen years after the May Fourth Movement, many writers and translators consciously adopted the foreignization translation method under the advocacy of Lu Xun, Qu Qiubai and others. Their works not only absorbed a large number of Western vocabulary, but also used some syntactic structures of Western languages, which gradually overcomed the lack of vocabulary and thin sentence structure of ancient Chinese, and promoted the final development and maturity of the vernacular.

3.1.2. The Need of National Culture Communication

Each country and nation has its own unique culture, which all have contributed to the development of world civilization. The prosperity and development of world culture depends more on the further development of these cultures in their own fields rather than extinction. The existence of translation problems actually defaults to the existence of cultural diversity. If there is only one language and one culture in the world, there will naturally be no translation problems.

Lu Xun advocated foreignizing translation, believing that it can import new content and new expressions. The French philosopher Derrida believes that "translation is to play with similarities and differences in endless analysis." Through translation, we can achieve a deeper and more accurate understanding of the differences between cultures and the specific expressions of various ethnic languages.

In the process of cultural input, foreignizing translation is essential if we want to understand the most authentic and essential source language culture. Correct cultural cognition is a prerequisite for cultural exchange. For example, most Westerners believe in Christianity, and they believe that God is the only savior of the world. Westerners' ideology, value system, religious beliefs, ethics, and even behaviors and behaviors are all derived from Christian culture. As the carrier of culture, language is also influenced by religious culture. For this kind of proverb, if you blindly adopt the domestication translation method, translate "God help those who help themselves" as "自助者天助", and translate "The mills of God grind slowly but sure" as "天网恢恢 疏而不漏". Then, for most Chinese readers, they may never understand the true religious culture of the West.

Goethe pointed out that everything has a beginning, and readers will eventually become accustomed to it. In short, readers' approval should be viewed from the perspective of development, not confined to temporary choices. This is the only way to multiculturalism. When the phrase "Praise is not pudding" is translated into "赞美不能当饭吃", it is certainly conducive to readers' understanding. But the cultural connotation of pudding for Westerners is completely concealed. The translation of "赞美不能当布丁吃" highlights the importance of pudding in the translation. Another example is the proverb "Unkissed, unkind". If it is translated as "不作揖，不友善" by using domesticating translation method, although such a translation fully conforms to the thinking and habits of the Chinese people, it also causes a lack of the original culture. Therefore, using foreignizing translation method, "不亲吻，不友善" can make readers understand the difference between Western etiquette and Chinese, and will not cause obstacles in cultural exchanges.

3.2. The Influence of Foreignizing Translation on National Culture

The influence of foreignizing translation on national culture is reflected in two aspects: for the target language culture, foreignizing translation helps to avoid national cultural centralism and promotes the development of national culture; for source language culture, foreignizing translation is beneficial to cultivate national culture Self-confidence, and enhance the influence of national culture.

3.2.1. Influence on Target-Language Culture

Foreignizing translation can promote national culture development of the target language country, and avoid the stalemate caused by cultural centralism. Any kind of culture needs to absorb the essence of heterogeneous culture to enrich and perfect its own culture. For example, the Chinese took advantage of the "Western Learning to the East" at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. In the "May Fourth" New Culture Movement, the Chinese completed their own "literary revolution" and created their own new literary system from scratch. This is also a process in which Chinese intellectuals actively learn from the West. When people talk about the prosperous times in Chinese history, they are often used to both the Han and Tang dynasties. In fact, if the prosperity of literary works, the Han Dynasty is much worse than the Tang Dynasty. The cultural policy of the Han Dynasty was to "reject a hundred schools of thought and respect Confucianism." However, it was different in the Tang Dynasty. The Tang Dynasty was arguably the most open society in Chinese history. As "almost free from the restriction of the orthodox thought of "fixed to one statue" in the Han Dynasty, it formed a broad mind capable of accommodating cultural forms of different ideological and ideological backgrounds. Therefore, "the cultural and artistic life of the society of the Tang Dynasty, in terms of content and genre The above all presents unprecedented brilliant colors" (Du Daoming, 2000: 9).

In addition, there have been several large-scale cultural reference booms in European history. For example, Greece learned from Egypt, Rome learned from Greece, Arabia referred to the Roman Empire, medieval Europe imitated Arabia, and Renaissance Europe imitated the Byzantine Empire. Almost every craze prompted a culture to flourish and at the same time promoted the progress of European civilization. It can be seen that both Chinese and foreign history tell us a truth: a culture can only achieve great development if it has an open spirit and can recognize and respect differences. Just as Liang Qichao said: "The richer the culture of a nation, the stronger its growth ability, this theorem is also" (Wang Kefei, 1997: 27). In short, the greater the openness of the culture, the more vigorous the development, the stronger the absorption, and the more prosperous the foreignizing of translation; on the contrary, a culture that is self-proclaimed will stubbornly restrain foreignization.

But foreignizing translation will also have a negative impact on the target language country. When colonialism prevailed, the cultural output of imperialist countries mainly adopted foreignizing translation strategies, which invisibly formed cultural colonization of "weaker culture" countries. In Modern China, Chinese once had the idea of admiring and fawning on foreign culture, and lost confidence in the local culture. To make foreignizing translation a boost to the development of national culture, it is necessary to enhance cultural self-confidence and develop and progress on the basis of local culture for target-language countries.

3.2.2. Influence on Source-Language Culture

For source-language countries, foreignizing translation is a manifestation of cultural self-confidence and helps to promote national culture to the world. For example, in the 1830s, the Czech translator John Bowring (John Bowring) in order to realize the cultural rejuvenation of his own nation, on the one hand he used the strategy of foreignization to translate European documents and introduce Western culture to his own people. But on the other hand, he brought the little-known Czech culture to the world of Western civilization through foreignizing translation. His efforts have contributed to the cultural development and revival of the nation (Wang Dalai et al., 2002: 105).

The opposite of "Western learning to the east" is "East learning to the west", which mainly talks about the influence of Chinese culture (or "Oriental Culture") on the West, especially Europe and the United States, but it is far inferior to the former. Loud and remarkable. This is mainly due to the influence of "Western Centrism" or "Western Superiority". Today, the Chinese people know more about the West than the West people know about China, and many excellent Chinese works are unknown in the West. In fact, China, with its long history and glorious heritage, has always had an influence that cannot be ignored in the world. Whether it’s the Travels of Marco Polo written by the 13th-century Italian traveler Marco Polo, or the History of Chinese Culture written by Matteo Ricci, a Catholic Jesuit in the 17th century "; Whether it is the "China fever" that prevailed in the UK in the 17th and 18th centuries, or the "Sinology fever" that once swept France, they all confirm that Chinese culture has profoundly influenced the development of civilization in Europe and the entire world.

Therefore, in order to make the broad and profound Chinese culture understood by the world, when translating Chinese literary works into foreign languages, foreignization translation methods should also be adopted. For example, when Pound translated ancient Chinese poems, he followed the linguistic habit of the original language, "copying Chinese syntax" and "English to the point where it is impossible to read" (Zhao Yiheng, 1985: 256-257). The cultural impact of these translations is far Exceed the accuracy of its own translation. These translated poems brought Chinese poems to the West. "Before Pound, China had no literature commensurate with its name that was popular in English-speaking countries... Pound was the inventor of Chinese poetry, and his translations can make us more profound. Comprehend the true spirit of Chinese poetry" (Xie Qian, 2001: 74-79).

Similarly, the influence of foreignizing translation on the source language country needs to be viewed dialectically. For some "weaker cultures", excessive foreignizing translation will also make translation obscure and difficult to be accepted by the target-language country, which loses the basic function of translation. For cultural output, foreignizing translation should be used while ensuring the basic function of translation.

3.3. Restrications on Foreignizing Translation

Foreignizing translation is born in response to the diversity of national culture, and has a positive influence on national culture development. But not all foreignizing translation works have had a positive influence. This is mainly due to the translator's wrong use of foreignizing strategies and the wrong estimation of readers' expectations.

3.3.1. Appropriate Degree of Foreignizing Translation

Lu Xun’s pursuit of literal translation was ridiculed by Liang Shiqiu and others at the time. Liang Shiqiu said that reading some of Lu Xun’s translations is "just like looking at a map, you have to stretch your fingers to find clues in the syntax." He called this translation "hard translation" ". This view is actually biased. Hard translation does not mean dead translation. Lu Xun said: "Any translation must take both sides into consideration, one of course strives to be easy to understand, and the other preserves the beauty of the original." It can be seen that he insists on the translation method of faithfulness and smoothness under the premise of emphasizing faith first.

This also brings us some enlightenment for using foreignization translation strategies. As translation methods and strategies, foreignization and domestication are not alternatives. We emphasize the importance of foreignization translation, but we do not completely deny the meaning of domestication. In the case of mainly foreignizing translation, domestication translation is also necessary in some cases. In the translation of some brand names, domesticated translation has become the main translation method due to the type of audience and the occasion. For example, Revelon translates to Revlon and Lamer translates to the mystery of the sea blue. These translations meet the aesthetic expectations of Chinese women and are conducive to the sale of goods. To master the degree of translation can make foreignized translation play its due role, otherwise it will make the translated text obscure and difficult to understand and worthless to read. For example, the English proverb “New brooms sweep clean” is difficult for readers of the target language to understand its meaning. In fact, this proverb means that a person will often do a better job just after taking office. Fortunately, there is a similar proverb in Chinese, "Three fires when a new official takes office", which expresses a similar meaning. In this case, domestication is indeed a good choice.

3.3.2. Satisfaction to Readers' Expectations

In order for foreignizing translation to be accepted, in addition to the quality of the translation itself, some social and cultural conditions need to be considered. Schleiermacher proposed two social and cultural conditions for the acceptance and recognition of "alienation" translation: "First, foreign works are highly recognized and popular with the public of the targeted language; second, the target language has certain tolerance and adaptability (for foreign language)."

For readers in the target language country, the foreignizaing translation of popular works in the source language country is more likely to have a positive impact. Take China as an example. The closure of the Qing Dynasty has made many foreigners have a stereotype of Chinese culture. Even in the early stage of reforming and opening up in China, some foreigners still think that China is a backward image with braids and are not interested in Chinese culture. Therefore, when Hawkes translated "A Dream of Red Mansions", he mainly used domesticating translation. With the deepening of globalization and the rise of China, Chinese culture has begun to occupy an important position in the world. Foreigners are becoming more and more enthusiastic about Chinese culture, and they are more willing to read and understand Chinese literary works. Under such background, Yang Xianyi, a famous Chinese translator,’s foreignizing translation of "A Dream of Red Mansions" has also been accepted by more and more foreigners. Therefore, when using foreignizing strategies, the influence of the source language country's culture in the target language country should be considered.

These two points are actually put forward from the reader's perspective. When choosing a source language work, the translator should consider the reader’s cognitive and aesthetic expectations. "Different readers have different aesthetic tastes, and their emphasis on each function of translation is different" (Gu Zhengkun 1994: 66). The choice of translation strategy for the translated version also depends on the translator's expectations of different readers. However, unlike domesticating translation, foreignizing translation should not be too accommodating to readers. Instead, it should bring new things to readers and innovate on the basis of fully considering the expectations of target language readers. Jiang Binfang pointed out, "The purpose of translation is to translate all foreign things, plots, and unique sentence structures that we do not have. This is to innovate for our readers."

A Comparative Study of Chinese Versions of Uncle Tom’s Cabin: From the Perspective of Hermeneutics 管钦清 Guan Qinqing

ABSTRACT

Hermeneutics is a discipline that studies understanding and interpretation, and its development is inseparable from translation. Both literary translation and non-literary translation are inseparable from the understanding and interpretation of the original text. The nature of translation determines that the relationship between hermeneutic theory and translation studies is extremely close. This article is guided by Gadamer's hermeneutics. Based on the core concepts of historical understanding, prejudice, and fusion of horizons, this article will discuss how these related factors, such as historical ideology, translator's attitude, language fusion, cultural filtering, and translator's subjectivity, work and embody in the Chinese versions of Uncle Tom's cabin. This article first explains Gadamer's hermeneutics. Then the author and translator of Uncle Tom’s Cabin are introduced. Under the guidance of the above theory, the different translation strategies adopted by different Chinese versions and their reasons are analyzed from different perspectives. Through the above analysis, I draw some inspiration from it: the existence of multiple translation versions and the retranslation of literary works are reasonable. Translation works from different historical contexts can reflect the spirit of a particular era. And hermeneutics can provide reasonable explanations for some translation phenomena that are influenced and determined by the context of social culture and history, and it is very suitable for studying translation works that appeared in different periods.

摘 要

解释学是一门研究理解和解释的学科，其发展与翻译密不可分。无论是文学翻译还是非文学翻译，都离不开原文的理解和解释，翻译的这种性质决定了解释学理论与翻译研究之间的关系是极其密 切的。本文主要是从伽达默尔的解释学角度出发，根据理解的历史性、偏见和视域融合这几个核心概念，论述历史意识形态、译者态度、语言融合、文化过滤以及译者主体性等相关因素在斯托夫 人的Uncle Tom’s Cabin中译本中的体现及作用。本文首先对伽达默尔的解释学进行了阐述。随后介绍了Uncle Tom’s Cabin的原文作者以及译者，并在以上理论基础的指导下，从不同的角度对 译本所采取的不同的翻译策略及其原因进行了分析。通过以上分析，笔者从中得出启示：多个译本同时存在以及文学名著重译现象的存在是合理的。产生于不同历史环境的译作，能够反映特定的 时代精神。而解释学能为一些由社会文化历史语境影响和决定的翻译现象提供合理的解释，并且十分适用于研究不同时期出现的译作。

Introduction

Uncle Tom’s Cabin is a novel against slavery published by American writer Harriet Beecher Stowe in 1852. The novel's views on African-Americans and American slavery have had far-reaching influences, and to some extent intensified local conflicts that led to the American Civil War. The novel was the best-selling novel of the 19th century (and the second best-selling book, second only to the best-selling book, the Bible), and was considered a major reason for the rise of abolitionism in the 1850s. In the first year of its publication, it sold 300,000 copies in the United States. The impact of Uncle Tom’s Cabin on American society was so great that during the early days of the Civil War, when Lincoln met Mrs. Stowe, he said, "You are the little woman who caused a great war."

The influence of Uncle Tom’s Cabin on the Chinese translation industry is self-evident. As the first American novel was translated into Chinese, this novel first appeared in China in the form of classical Chinese in 1901. Its name was《黑奴吁天录》 and translated by translators Lin Shu and Wei Yi. After the publication of《黑奴吁天录》, it caused a strong response from readers and caused a certain impact on the consciousness of Chinese readers. The second version of Uncle Tom’s Cabin in China was translated by Mr. Huang Jizhong, entitled 《汤姆大伯的小屋》 and published in 1982. A major feature of Huang Jizhong's Uncle Tom's Cabin was its fidelity to the original text. The translation was very popular once it was launched. 59,000 copies were printed in the first edition, and another 30,000 copies were soon printed, all sold out. These two translation works had different production time and different translation methods, but they both enduring have many readers. Why can a foreign novel be retranslated many times in China, and all kinds of completely different translation works can enjoy their respective reputations, and have been sought after by readers of different times? Why these two very different translation methods so successful? The above issues aroused my attention.

Hermeneutics is a philosophical theory that explains and understands text. For the first time in the 20th century, translation theorist George Steiner put translation into hermeneutics and pointed out that language is constantly changing. With the continuous development of hermeneutics, the German philosopher Gadamer established a systematic philosophical hermeneutics and put forward the three principles of "history of understanding", "fusion of horizons", and "history of effects" in his works. These three principles can be used to explain many translation phenomena and translation theories in the history of Chinese and foreign translation, and have high reference value. In view of this, the author decided to use Gadamer's hermeneutics as a theoretical guide. Focusing on the analysis of the two versions of Uncle Tom's Cabin, I will research and discuss the issues raised above, and draw inspiration from them to provide a way for literary translation.

1.Literature Review

This chapter will give a brief introduction to hermeneutics from three aspects: the development of hermeneutics, Gadamer's Philosophical Hermeneutics, and Hermeneutics' Guide to Translation Studies.

1.1. Development of Hermeneutics

Hermeneutics has a profound historical origin and is an ancient and well-established science. Traditional hermeneutics is not a specific philosophical school, but a philosophical theory of meaning, understanding, and interpretation. Its history can be traced back to ancient Greece. The term Hemeneutics is the name of Hemes, the messenger of the Greek gods. He accepted the will of Zeus and explained it to human beings, and also passed on the human claims to Zeus and the gods. The core of hermeneutics is the "interpretation" of problem. The academic community generally believes that hermeneutics can be divided into three stages: classical hermeneutics, modern hermeneutics and philosophical hermeneutics（郑立平，易新奇，2015：101-104）.

The core of classical hermeneutics is theological hermeneutics, which mainly involves the translation and understanding of the Bible. As a translator, the interpreter must explain the ambiguous and vague words that appear in the Bible. Therefore, classical hermeneutics is mainly a technique to convert hidden divinity into a language understandable to ordinary people, which mainly serves the spread of religion and promotes the promotion of the Bible and its teachings. With the continuous secularization of religious classics, hermeneutics has evolved from a single interpretation of the Bible into an interpretation of classic literary works. After the introduction of literary research, it gradually became a research method that pursued objectivity and tried to get rid of subjective will. Both F. Schleier-macher and W. Dilthey were deeply influenced by this methodological consciousness, and continuously promoted the development of hermeneutics, making hermeneutics a subject of interpretive methods. Modern hermeneutics began at the end of the 19th century, and its representative was Dilthey. Dilthey put forward the hermeneutics of "historical rational critique", concerned about how the hermeneutics in a specific historical context can objectively understand other historical performances. Hermeneutics is no longer considered as an inquiry into the author's psychological intentions, but rather as an interpretation of the world of existence shown in the text.

Philosophical hermeneutics, represented by German philosophers Heidegger and Gadamer, is a fundamental change in hermeneutics. They changed the ontology of philosophical hermeneutics, so they are called philosophical hermeneutics. “Unlike previous practical philosophy, this type of hermeneutics as a dual task of theory and practice lies in restoring Aristotle's concept of practical wisdom” (洪汉鼎，2010:459).And this article uses Gadamer's philosophical hermeneutics as a theoretical guide to analyze the translation.

1.2. Gadamer's Philosophical Hermeneutics

Gadamer always believed that the term "Hermeneutics" came from Hermes "Hermes", one of the twelve main gods of ancient Greece, so he believed that the interpretation must include the acceptance and performance of the recipient, that is, understanding and explaining. On the basis of inheriting Heidegger's thought, Gadamer deepened his thought of understanding. He further developed hermeneutics into philosophical hermeneutics, and pushed hermeneutics to prosperity. Gadamer opposed the hermeneutics that stood before him in an objective position. He believed that understanding is not an act of reproduction, but should be an act of creation. He believed that the author's "intent" does not exist, and the search for the author's "intent" is also futile.

As mentioned earlier, Gadamer's hermeneutics has three main principles: historicity of understanding, fusion of horizons, and history of effects. From the "historicity of understanding", Gadamer believed that understanding is historical, and the history of understanding constitutes the bias of understanding, which determines the creativity and generation of understanding. Gadamer believed that the historicity of understanding will inevitably lead to prejudice, but the existence of such prejudice is reasonable. The second is the principle of horizon fusion. Gadamer believed that understanding is the way of existence of history, so both the subject and the object of understanding are the existence of history, and both have their own horizons. In the process of understanding, the translator should be as close as possible to the original horizon of the original author to achieve a fusion of horizons. The last principle is effect history. The effect history principle emphasizes understanding the work from the effect history of the work, which closely links history with the present and fully affirms the significance of ancient texts to contemporary society. Understanding Gadamer's history of effects helps us understand the need to retranslate a classic. These three principles of Gadamer provided an important theoretical basis for us to understand and explain some long-running issues in translation theory and translation practice.

1.3. Hermeneutics' Guide to Translation Studies

As mentioned earlier, literary translation and hermeneutical theory are inseparable. Essentially, literary translation is an art of understanding and expressing meaning. It is a process of re-creation through interpretation. At present, hermeneutics is recognized as a valid theory for translation studies. Translation studies based on hermeneutics have broken the traditional inherent understanding of traditional translation theory on some issues, and raised questions and challenges to traditional translation theory. Among them, the guidance of hermeneutics on translation studies is mainly reflected in the following aspects.

First: the historical nature of understanding explained the misreading phenomenon. The historical nature of understanding means that the specific historical environment, historical status, and historical conditions of the translator are different from the object of understanding. Readers always have historical prejudice in the process of understanding the original text, because they cannot transcend historical space and time to objectively understand the original text. Hermeneutics' re-understanding and definition of this prejudice also provides a philosophical basis for the translator's subjectivity and the rationality of creative treason in the field of translation studies. Gadamer believed that there is no so-called normative interpretation of a text（章启群，2002:77）. And this prejudice is a positive factor formed in history and tradition. Scholars should treat this existence correctly and should not regard it as a part that should be eliminated.

Second: The principle of fusion of horizons explains the phenomenon of cultural filtering. The principle of horizon fusion theoretically confirms the historical roots of cultural filtering phenomenon in translation and the inevitable existence of cultural filtering phenomenon. Although the translator should strive to approach the original vision of the original author and understand the author's original intention, in fact, the translator always inevitably brings the world he is familiar with into the strange world of the original text.

Third：The principle of effective history explains the multiple translation versions of famous works. Gadamer believed that the text is open and its meaning is never endless. The text goes beyond the historical era in which it was created. This provides the possibility for people of different ages to understand the same text differently. Human beings are constantly developing. In the process of development, they constantly surpass themselves, renew their history, and rethink themselves and their culture. This provides a reasonable explanation for the phenomenon of retranslation of famous works.

2.A Brief Introduction of the Original Author and Two Translators

This chapter will give a brief introduction to the original author and two translators to strengthen your understanding of the background of the original text and the two translation versions.

2.1. Harriet Beecher Stowe

Harriet Beecher Stowe is an American writer. She was born on June 14, 1811 in a well-known pastor family in North America, and died in 1896. The American Civil War was fought in the 1860s. But since the 1920s, the issue of abolition of slaves has become a central issue in American progressive opinion. At that time, many famous American writers were on the side of abolishing slaves, calling for the liberation of slaves. Mrs. Stowe was one of the most outstanding among these slave writers.

Mrs. Stowe has been influenced by theology since she was a child, and she has spent her entire life in a religious atmosphere. When Mrs. Stowe was fourteen, their entire family has moved to Boston and has moved to Cincinnati a few years later. At the time, the outskirts of Cincinnati were dotted with large serf farms. It was one of the centers of the abolitionist movement in North America then, and heated speeches against slavery were often heard in urban areas. Mrs. Stowe had fugitive slaves in her home, which gave her the opportunity to hear the tragic experience of fugitive slaves. After that, Mrs. Stowe got another chance to visit several plantations in Maysville, Kentucky with her friends, and witnessed the tragic situation of slaves. Those plantations were the prototype of the Shelby plantation in Uncle Tom's Cabin. This novel extensively describes the brutal oppression and exploitation of slaves by slave owners throughout the southern United States, and portrays the cruelty of slaves in various forms. The novel also describes different types of slave images. Once Uncle Tom's cabin came out, it attracted great attention and response at home and abroad. When the former President of the United States Lincoln met Mrs. Stowe, he jokingly called her “a little woman who brought a war". This joke also fully reflects the huge influence of Uncle Tom's cabin.

2.2. Lin Shu

Lin Shu, a famous writer and translator in modern China, has made outstanding contributions to the translation of Chinese literature. Lin Shu had a profound and solid knowledge of ancient writing. But he did not understand foreign languages, and his translations were all done in cooperation with others. In cooperation with others, Lin Shu has translated 246 works involving 107 writers in 11 countries, and made indelible contributions to the introduction of Western literature. Uncle Tom's Cabin was Lin Shu's second translation work, and it was also a popular work translated at the peak of his translation career. This translation work can reflect Lin Shu's translation technique and his characteristics.

At that time, China was facing aggression by the Allied Forces of the Eight Kingdoms, and the Qing government signed the Peace Protocol of 1901. In this context, Lin Shu's enthusiasm for anti-imperialist and national salvation was stirred. He wanted to translate some works that can open up people's wisdom and inspire them. So Lin Shu and Wei Yi co-translated Mrs. Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin. Both of them had a strong sense of political mission in translating this work. After the publication of 《黑奴吁天录》, it caused a great response among the readers at that time. Translator Lin Shu ’s anti-imperialist thoughts in his translation work resonate emotionally with readers, directly stimulating readers’ anti-imperialist consciousness. In the treatment of the original works, Lin Shu made conscious cuts. Most of the unfaithful parts of his translations have adopted translation strategies of amplification and omission. From the perspective of traditional linguistic translation theories, Lin Shu may not be a successful translator. But from the perspective of hermeneutics and culture, the existence of Lin Shu's translation method is reasonable.《黑奴吁天录》was Lin Shu's representative translation, which can fully reflect Lin Shu's translation style. Far from Lin Shu's translation style was Huang Jizhong's Unc《汤姆大伯的小屋》，and I will elaborate on the translator Huang Jizhong below.

2.3. Huang Jizhong

Huang Jizhong was born on September 28, 1923 in a literary family in Ji'an, Jiangxi. He lost his father in his early years, and he followed his grandfather studying in Shanghai since childhood. He is good at Chinese and English and loves literary translation. In addition to teaching related courses, he has devoted himself to the translation of famous books for many years. As early as 1956, Huang Jizhong accepted the invitation of Shanghai Literature and Art Publishing House to translate Uncle Tom's Cabin. His original plan was to complete the translation work in two years, but due to external shocks, it could not be published as scheduled. Later, this novel was retranslated in 1982 and published by Shanghai Translation Publishing House. Once this edition of Uncle Tom's Cabin was published, it was warmly welcomed by readers. A major feature of Huang Jizhong's《汤姆大伯的小屋》 was its faithfulness to the original text, and another feature was the use of translation method of foreignization. The translation style of Uncle Tom's Cabin in Huang Jizhong's version was very different from Lin Shu's version, which was of great research value. Therefore, I chose the translated versions of Huang Jizhong and Lin Shu for comparative research.

3. A Comparison of Two Chinese Versions from Gadamer's Hermeneutics

The professor of Poetics and Comparative Literature Gideon Toury once said that translation is inevitably involves at least two languages and two cultural traditions (Toury, 2001:56). Professor Chen Hongwei of China also said that translation involves not only language conversion, but also cultural translation（陈宏薇，2004：24）. Therefore, in the following chapter, the two translation works will be analyzed from a cultural and linguistic perspective.

3.1. Comparative Analysis from a Linguistic Perspective

The two translators use different languages because they are in different eras. Lin Shu used classical Chinese, while Huang Jizhong used vernacular Chinese. Then they must have many differences in translation. Next, under the guidance of hermeneutics, we will analyze the differences between the two translation works from a linguistic perspective in three aspects.

3.1.1. Contrastive Discourse Analysis

Since the two translators come from different historical times, the translation methods adopted by the two translators are also different. In terms of translation methods, Lin Shu adopted intercompilation while Huang Jizhong adopted complete translation. Examples are as follows:

1. “Here the door opened, and a small quadroon boy, between four and five years of age, entered the room. There was something in his appearance remarkably beautiful and engaging. His black hair, fine as floss silk, hung in glossy curls about his round, dimpled face, while a pair of large dark eyes, full of fire and softness, looked out from beneath the rich, long lashes, as he peered curiously into the apartment. A gay robe of scarlet and yellow plaid, carefully made and neatly fitted, set off to advantage the dark and rich style of his beauty; and a certain comic air of assurance, blended with bashfulness, showed that he had been not unused to being petted and noticed by his master.”(Stowe, 2011:3)

林译：语至此，门辟，陡入一稚子，约四五岁，貌绝慧黠，雏发未燥，笑处辄动微涡，两目精光耿然。见海留，意殊骇。海留见其服饰之善，心知此奴必为主人主妇所厚昵者。(林纾&魏易，1981：4)

黄译：正在这当儿，房门开了。一个四、五岁左右的第二代混血男孩走了进来。这孩子相貌长得分外清秀，特别逗人喜爱。圆圆的脸蛋上有一对酒窝，头上覆盖着一圈圈光滑、鬈曲、细如绢丝的黑头发；一双又大又黑、柔和而炯炯有光的眼睛，从两道浓浓的长睫毛下面好奇地向屋内张望着。他身穿一件黄格子花呢的罩衫；手工精制，剪裁合身，越发衬托出这孩子黝黑、浓郁的俊秀劲儿；那种悠然自得、滑稽有趣而又略带羞涩的神态，表明他惯常得到东家的青睐和宠爱。（黄继忠，1993:3）

This paragraph comes from the first chapter of Uncle Tom’s Cabin, where the original book vividly describes the cute image of the son of the slave Eliza who owned by Shelby. Comparing the two translations, Lin Shu's translation is in classical Chinese, and in his character description, Lin Shu used a compilation method，omitting many details. However, Huang Jizhong's translation is in vernacular form, and every detail of the original text has been translated in detail by Huang Jizhong. The original text of this paragraph consists of 122 words. Lin Shu's translation is only 62 words, while Huang Jizhong's translation is as many as 183 words. Before the New Culture Movement in the late Qing Dynasty, vernacular Chinese were not welcomed by literati and intellectuals, let alone let them write or translate in vernacular Chinese. The specific society in which Lin Shu lived formed his inherent horizon, which also determined his choice to translate in classical Chinese. In the era of Huang Jizhong, vernacular Chinese have been popular throughout the country, and have become popular in all classes. Therefore, Huang Jizhong must also translate in vernacular texts. According to hermeneutics, translating a work is a process in which the translator brings his own specific horizon into the historical horizon of the text. It is not a process of letting the interpreter abandon his own horizon, nor is it a horizon replacement. In this example, two translators both are in their own specific field of horizon and try to merge with the field of horizon of the original author, resulting in different translated texts. Gadamer's view of the fusion of the two horizons, to a certain extent, shows the essence of translation, especially literary translation. (谢天振，2000：204) "Fusion of Horizons " overcomes the time gap and historical gap between the text and the interpreter, and the infinite process of understanding and discovery of text meaning is also achieved through " Fusion of Horizons ".

3.1.2. Contrastive Study of Lexicon

Literary translation is an aesthetic re-creation process that is completed through interpretation, that is, the process of including the translator's acceptance and release of information. Lin Shu was proficient in Chinese, and he regarded translation as a creative process. Therefore, in the process of releasing the information, he incorporated his own opinions and adopted the translation strategies of amplification and revision. However, Huang Jizhong's horizon is different from Lin Shu's, so his method of receiving and releasing information was also different. For examples:

2. “I’m sorry to say that I am,” said Mr. Shelby. “I’ve agreed to sell Tom” (Stowe, 2011:44)

林译：解而培忸怩久之，曰：“吾已署券卖汤姆矣！” (林纾&魏易，1981：14)

黄译：“很抱歉，”谢尔贝先生答道，“我已经答应把汤姆卖给他了。” （黄继忠，1993:30）

This example is from Chapter 5 of the original text. In this case, Lin Shu added the word "忸怩久之", showing Shelby's entangled heart and the fear of her wife's blame. Looking back at the original text, there is no word in the original text that can express the meaning of "忸怩". However, Huang Jizhong was faithful to the original text here, and didn’t add or subtract words from the original text. In Gadamer's hermeneutic theory, there is the concept of "pre-understanding". Pre-understanding refers to the fact that people are influenced by the specific historical environment, historical conditions, historical status, etc. they are in when they understand texts or recognize things. People always carry certain subjective consciousness elements such as emotion, knowledge, and will when they observe and recognize external things. The word "忸怩" added by Lin Shu here embodies the concept of "pre-understanding"，and shows that Lin Shu brought his emotions into his translation work.It's“Rather, we stand always within tradition, and this is no objectifying process, ie we do not conceive of what tradition says as something other, something alien. It is always part of us, a model or exemplar, a recognition of ourselves which our later historical judgment would hardly see as a kind of knowledge, but as the simplest preservation of tradition.” (Gadamer H, 1999:250) Gadamer believes that every interpretation is based on a pre-existing basis. In order to understand something, we must first have it. We cannot understand something that is not part of our overall world. Our understanding of things is based on our own existing knowledge system. That is, we rely on our existing knowledge and experience to understand and explain phenomena and things. Therefore, translators must have their own "pre-understanding" in the process of understanding and translating the source text.

3. But real gentlemen, such as I hopes you’ll be, never let fall no words that isn’t respectful to their parents. (Stowe, 2011:132)

林译:盖极望吾小主为一代伟人,万勿肆口出言,以逢二亲之怒。(林纾&魏易，1981：45)

黄译:我希望你将来做个正人君子,而一个正人君子是决不会说一句不尊敬父母的话的。（黄继忠，1993:94）

When Uncle Tom said goodbye to his little master George, he expressed his expectations for the little master ---- be a real gentleman. Lin Shu translated this as "一代伟人", thereby expressing his strong desire to change the status quo. Huang Jizhong translated it as "正人君子". "正人君子" used to refer to people with good conduct. It was the ultimate goal of ancient China and had a profound influence in Chinese history. Lin Yupeng, a translator born after the two translators, translated this as "真正的绅士". It can be seen from this that translators in different eras are very different in the translation of the same word due to the influence of the era at that time. In addition, there are some examples in the text, such as "married" and "my wife" were translated by two translators as "出阁", "结婚" and "吾妻", "内人" respectively. These are the two concepts of hermeneutics---"effective history" and "pre-understanding". The so-called effect history means that history produces effects by restricting our historical understanding. Here, the translation of the same text by the two translators is consistent with their own social and historical environment. The social environment and social development of the era in which the two translators lived both affected and restricted the two translators' understanding of the original text. During the translation process, the translator will let his pre-understanding and experience come into play, thus forming different understanding and expression of the same text. Because of this, there will be different versions of the same literary work in the same era, and different versions of the same literary work will appear in different times. Therefore, the co-existence of the two versions of Uncle Tom's cabin in completely different styles is reasonable from the point of view of Gadamer's hermeneutics. Similarly, the retranslation of other literary texts and the existence of multiple versions of translation works are also reasonable.

3.1.3. Contrastive Study of Syntax

4.“But why, of all others, choose these?” said Mrs. Shelby. “Why sell them, of all on the place, if you must sell at all.” (Stowe, 2011:44)

林译：爱密柳曰：“君既欲卖，胡不再谋，而必卖此二人？尔知汤姆为极忠挚义之人,小海雷又意里赛独子，尔何忍心鬻此二人？纵为势所迫，亦何必属之此伧？” (林纾&魏易，1981：14)

黄译：“可是为什么偏偏要挑这两个呢？”谢尔贝太太问道：“即使非买不可，在园上这么些黑人，为什么一定要卖他们呢？” （黄继忠，1993:30）

In this example, Lin Shu added “尔知汤姆为极忠挚义之人，小海雷又意里赛独子，尔何忍心鬻此二人？纵为势所迫，亦何必属之此伧？” to express the anger of Shelby's wife and her extreme disapproval of Shelby's behavior. On the whole, Lin Shu adopted the strategy of free translation here, while Huang Jizhong's translation was quite consistent with the original text, using the strategy of literal translation.

According to Gadamer's hermeneutics, as special readers, translators selectively accept textual information due to historical factors of their own understanding ，and incorporate their own aesthetic concepts into their translation works. Therefore, their translation methods will also be different. The interpretation of artistic works is closely related to the translator's understanding and expression of the source text in the translation process. “Translation is a dynamic process from understanding to expression, and the master of this process is the translator.” ( 柳晓辉, 2010: 125 )Translators cross the barriers of different languages and cultures and build a bridge between the source language and the target text. However, as Gadamer emphasizes, the text is open to all ages and enters into the field of meaning of the understander, so the translator's interpretation will inevitably conflict with the objective existence. To this end, translators must play an active and subjective role and adopt different strategies for selection and adaptation. Here, Lin Shu integrated his own aesthetic concepts into his translation work and exerted his own subjectivity, thus forming a different translation version from Huang Jizhong. This also further reveals that the interpretation of text in the translation process from the perspective of hermeneutics can reveal the process and mechanism of translator's understanding of text in translation activities.

5. …and the arrangements of the house, and the general air of the housekeeping, indicated easy, and even opulent circumstances. (Stowe, 2011: 2)

林纾：其一人文秀，家亦少康，名解而培。(林纾&魏易，1981：3)

黄继忠：跟他一起谈话的那位谢尔贝先生倒是个绅士模样的人；屋子里的陈设和气派都说明此人家道小康，甚至可以说得上颇为富裕。（黄继忠，1993:1）

This example comes from the first chapter of the novel. At the beginning of the article, the author introduces the characters of the novel. Comparing the translations of the two translators, we can see that Lin Shu's translation should be more concise and refined. The original author's description of the environment has been deleted in Lin Shu's translation. It may be that the translator believed that this was not important for the development of the novel. This long sentence of the original text was simplified by Lin Shu to four words "家亦少康", while the translation version of Huang Jizhong almost matched the original content. In the translation of this sentence, the translation methods adopted by the two translators are also completely different.

In the field of translation, people often liken translators to shackled dancers. This metaphor vividly describes that while the translator is restricted by the original author and the original text during the translation process, he must use his subjective initiative to reshape the work. Traditional translation theory values the author and the original text, treats the original as authority, and treats "faithfulness" as the highest standard of translation. Hermeneutics redefines the "prejudice" caused by the historicity of understanding, and provides an effective basis for the translator's subjectivity and the rationality of creative treason in the field of translation studies. In the above two examples, the two translators, while being influenced by the historical society in which they are located, also gave full play to their subjectivity, especially Lin Shu. This also tells us that the translator's subjectivity plays an important role in literary translation.

3.2. Comparative Analysis from A Cultural Perspective

British anthropologist Taylor believes that culture is "a complex whole including knowledge, beliefs, arts, morals, laws, customs, and other abilities and habits learned by people as members of society".(Hebding&Glick,1992：37) Language is the carrier of culture. A text is generated from a specific cultural context, and it must also include the characteristics of the culture. When translators translate one text into another language，the translator must bring the characteristics of his own culture when reading and interpreting the source text because the translator's language and culture are different from the original author's culture.

3.2.1. Analysis from A Religious Perspective

A major feature of Uncle Tom’s Cabin is that it contains a lot of religious elements. In translating this religious content, the two translators took radically different approaches. That is, Lin Shu's selective translation of religious content, most of which is carried over or not translated directly. However, Huang Jizhong conveyed the Western religious intentions to his readers at that time. For example:

6. “…, but I didn’t think any Christian legislature would pass it！” (Stowe, 2011: 95)

林纾：吾思文明之国，法当不如此。 (林纾&魏易，1981：34)

黄继忠：但是我相信任何一个基督教国家的立法机关都不会通过这种法令的。（黄继忠，1993:72）

In the above example, "Christian" is an exact word for Christ. In the translations of the two translators, Lin Shu chose to omit it, while Huang Jizhong chose the method of literal translation. This was not only related to the era in which the two lived, but the play of the two translators ’subjectivity also played a great role. In the era which Lin Shu was, although Christianity had begun to spread on the land of China, the public acceptance rate was still low. Therefore, Lin Shu omitted the relevant words or used some words with Chinese culture to replace them. By the time Huang Jizhong was in, people's acceptance of these words had greatly increased. Therefore, it is appropriate to choose the method of literal translation.

This difference stems from the historical environment and historical status of the two translators being different from the object of understanding, which is the historicity of understanding. Translators and readers will always incorporate what belongs to their time in the process of understanding the original text, and that is what we called historicity. The purpose of translation is not limited to conveying the original intention of the original author, which reasonably explains the "misreading" phenomenon in translation. Lin Shu's downplay of religious content in the original work is an interesting phenomenon of "misreading". This "misreading" also gives us a good explanation of why the same religious content can be understood and interpreted in two different ways.

7.There were others，which made incessant mention of “Jordan’s bank”,and “Canaan’s field”, and the “New Jerusalem”. (Stowe, 2011: 46) In the above example, there are many religious words, such as "Jordan ’s bank", "Canaan ’s field", and "New Jerusalem". Lin Shu chose to omit them, while Huang Jizhong chose to translate them literally, translating them into “约旦河岸”、“迦南战场”and“新耶路撒冷”. These words are all from Bible and contain a wealth of referential meanings. The development of Christianity in China in the two eras was different, which was the key reason for the difference in translation between the two translators. Lin Shu's translation version is related to his era, and is closely connected with his own translation purpose. The different translation versions of the two translators are in line with their own horizons and knowledge structure, and they can also meet the readers' expectations. The different treatment methods for the religious content appearing in the original text fully reflect the translator's subjectivity and creativity. Both translators have contributed wonderful translation versions to readers of different eras.

From a perspective fusion perspective, Gadamer believes that "the horizon is the area of view, and this area encompasses everything that can be seen from a certain standpoint." Understanding is to place yourself in the traditional process, to make the past and the present continually merge. The so-called translation is that in a cross-cultural historical context, a historic translator blends his horizon with the horizon of the original text to form a new horizon, and the process of re-fixing the new horizon to form a new text with language symbols infiltrating the target language culture. (朱健平，2006:69-74)The main body of understanding (translator or reader) and the author of the original text have their own unique horizons. When the original works cross different nationalities, languages, and eras, and enter a completely strange social and cultural context, translators can only play creatively to make his own views closing to the horizon and historical environment of the original author. However, no matter how hard the translator tries to enter the thoughts and feelings of the original author or imagine himself as the original author, he cannot completely get rid of the original vision, nor can he really enter the author's vision. Therefore, the translator has to form a new horizon between the horizon of the strange original author and the horizon of his own. Creative treason is a necessity in understanding. The generation of meaning requires creative thinking and moderate treason under normative constraints.

3.2.2. Analysis from Cultural Image

Gadamer pointed out in Truth and Method that understanding is not a process of reproduction, but a process of creation. It can also be said that as long as people are thinking, different understandings will arise. For some cultural images in the original work, the translations of the two translators are also different. For example：

8. As a fire in her bones, the thought of the pursuer urged her on.（Stowe, 2011:73）

林译：而意里赛此时，心绪兔起鹘。（林纾&魏易，1981：25）

黄译：一想起后面的追兵，她就五内如焚。急着想向前逃命。（黄继忠，1993：49）

The word "fire" was used to describe Eliza's internal fear and anxiety while she was trying to save her son when the disaster came. Here, Lin Shu replaced “fire” with two animals, rabbit and falcon. In traditional Chinese culture, rabbits are docile and fragile, just like Eliza; and falcons are agile and fierce birds, just like black slave traders. Huang Jizhong translated “fire” into “五内如焚”, which vividly reproduced Eliza's anxious heart at the time. Lin Shu used domestication here, while Huang Jizhong used alienation.

In the above example, the horizon of the two translators and the original author merged in different forms, thus forming two different translation versions. While the translator strives to get closer to the original author's horizon, the two translators also strive to integrate with the horizon of the readers of their time, so they adopted a more acceptable expression for the target reader of the time. The language used in China in Lin Shu ’s time was classical Chinese, and the expression was more obscure, so Lin Shu replaced “fire” with two animals to reflect the characters in the text. In the era of Huang Jizhong, literature has further developed, and the official language used in China has also become vernacular, so he used the four-word "五内如焚" to translate. The reason why two different translation methods can be accepted by the target readers of the era is that the translator tried hard to integrate with the reader's horizon.

From the perspective of hermeneutics, the text is only a semi-finished product, which is in the process of understanding. The meaning of the text and the translator's understanding are in a constantly changing process, and they are constantly evolving. Understanding is not a one-time act, but an endless process of integration between the "Horizon" of original text and the translator’s "Horizon". Each understanding is a process of generating textual meaning. The possibilities of textual meaning are endless, and textual meaning is a source of endless meaning.

9. The married couple were enjoying their honeymoon.（Stowe, 2011:215）

林译：彼夫妇在蜜月期内，……（蜜月者，西人娶妇时，即挟其妇游历，经月而归）。(林纾&魏易，1981:75)

黄译：正值新婚夫妇在……欢度蜜月，……（黄继忠，1993：143）

A text is generated from a specific cultural context, and it must also include the characteristics of the culture（李磊，2008）.In the above example, Lin Shu used the method of literal translation and annotation when translating the word "honeymoon", so that the readers at the time could understand it. At that time, there was little cultural exchange between China and the West, so if Lin Shu used the literal translation method, it may cause readers to be unable to understand the word. Here Lin Shu adopted the method of annotation to translate the word, which is also a reflection of his efforts to integrate with the reader's horizon. Huang Jizhong directly adopted the literal translation method to convey the original imagery. Both the original text and the translated text exist in their respective historical conditions and horizons. Even if the translator tries his best to enter the world of the meaning of the original text and try to understand the intention of the original author, it will inevitably impose her own ideas and purposes. Coupled with the different historical environments of the two translators, the translation strategies used by them are certainly different.

From the perspective of hermeneutics, literary translation is actually a process of interaction between text and readers. Because readers of different times are constrained by their own experience, intelligence, and aesthetic tastes, they have different expectations and evaluations of the translated text. The Reception Aesthetic theory pays much attention to the reader and emphasis on the uncertainty of the text, which have brought about a diversity of values and an open way of thinking. (邹广胜，2001，（4）：2) . Understanding of the text is inseparable from the initiative of the reader. The translated text must also exist in the creativity and participation of readers. Readers of different ages have different understandings of the same cultural image. Therefore, in the process of translation, the translator should not only merge with the horizon of the original text, but also the horizon of the readers that the translation work is aimed at. Only in this way, the works translated by the translator can be understood by the readers of the time, and can be admired by the readers. The majority of our translators can draw enlightenment: when translating, while observing the principles of "faithfulness, elegance, and elegance", we must also take into account the reader's understanding.

Conclusion

In the above, under the guidance of hermeneutics, we have conducted a comparative analysis of the two Chinese versions. Through the above analysis, the three major concepts contained in hermeneutics—historicity of understanding, fusion of horizons, and effective history have brought us some inspirations: 1.The existence of multiple translations is reasonable. Translation is a special interpretative act, which is based on the translator's own understanding, so it will inevitably carry the personal trace of the translator. Based on their different experiences and views, translators make different interpretations of the same text in the process of translating, resulting in different translation works. 2. Creative treason is inevitable. A correct understanding of "creative treason" will help translators to bravely accept the challenges and find the correct solutions when facing translation difficulties caused by cultural differences between China and the West. 3. The changes of translation works can reflect social change. On the whole, hermeneutics can effectively explain some translation phenomena and provide a new perspective for translation studies.

Bibliography

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Translation Criticism

Contrast between literal translation and free translation 刘艺 Liu Yi

Abstract

The discussion of literal paraphrase has been present throughout the development of translation theory. However, the ongoing debate between literal and paraphrase is not always at the same level and about the same translation issues. Literal translation and paraphrase can be regarded as both translation methods and translation strategies, and the discussion of literal translation and paraphrase first requires a conceptual analysis of the two terms and a clarification of the scope of the discussion. The theories of literal and free translation in Chinese and Western translation studies can be examined from the meta-theoretical level, which not only enables a rational understanding of the debate between literal and free translation, but also enables a better understanding of the relationship between translation theory, practice and their historical contexts. In this paper, we first analyze the concepts of literal translation and free translation, and then Throughout the thesis, we have introduced the application of literal translation and free translation and used some examples to show their application in proverb and idiom. At last, we will analyze the relation between literal translation and free translation.

Keywords

free translation, literal translation, application.

摘要

在翻译理论的发展过程中，关于字面转述的讨论一直存在。然而，直译与意译的持续争论并不总是在同一层面上，关于同一翻译问题。直译和意译都可以看作是翻译方法和翻译策略，讨论直译和意译，首先要对这两个术语进行概念分析，明确讨论范围。中西方翻译研究中的直译和意译理论可以从元理论层面进行考察，这不仅可以理性地认识直译和意译的争论，而且可以更好地理解翻译理论、实践及其历史背景之间的关系。本文首先分析了直译和意译的概念，然后在论文中通篇介绍了直译和意译的应用，并用一些例子来说明它们在谚语和成语中的应用。最后，我们将分析两者之间的关系。

关键词

直译，意译，应用。

I. Introduction

In intercultural communication, translation plays a very important role. Translation is the process of replacing chapters of material in one language (source language) with chapters of material in another language (target language), How to effectively translate between English and Chinese? The two languages have both commonalities and differences, as they belong to different language families: English is an Indo-European language, while Chinese belongs to the Sino-Tibetan language family. However, there are some common points between the two languages, such as the same subject-predicate word order and the same verb-object word order. In order to realize the interchangeability of the two languages, we have to make use of some translation methods, such as literal translation and paraphrase translation.

The essence of translation is the conversion of information from one language to another or to several languages. In the translation process, translation is influenced by many factors, including contextual and cultural factors. Among translation strategies, literal and paraphrase are the most popular. Both literal and paraphrased translations have their own applications and cannot be generalized. Translators need to make good use of both literal and paraphrase translations in order to produce good translations. Literal translation and paraphrase are important translation strategies, and they are related, complementary and inseparable.

II. Sources of Literal and free Translation

In the West, during the Roman era, literal translation was used to translate Greek into Latin. Later, Cicero advocated paraphrasing to preserve the overall style and power of the language (Tan Zaixi, 2009:19). After that, people used these two translation methods to translate, literal translation and paraphrase translation. In China, as early as the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the famous Buddhist scripture translator Zhi Qian put forward the idea of "not emphasizing the wording, but keeping the original meaning" as a method of literal translation.

"In his disciple Zhi Qian, he opposed such a literal translation from a stylistic point of view, and advocated a free translation. His disciple Zhi Qian, on the other hand, opposed such literal translation from a stylistic point of view and advocated free translation. During the Eastern Jin Dynasty, the commentator of Buddhist scriptures translation, Dao An, advocated literal translation of every word of the scriptures, without any addition or deletion to the original text. Kumarajiva, as the representative of the School of Free Translation of Buddhist Scriptures, proposed the method of free translation as "faith-based," "Tao practicing and compounding," and "making quality rather than wild". In his evaluation of his translation, Liang Qichao said: "All translations by Xuanzang, for the original, either add or subtract, in order to achieve the purpose." In the 1930s, both Lu Xun and Qu Qiu Bai advocated literal translation, Zhao Jing Shen favored free translation, and Lin Yutang advocated the integration of literal and free translation.

III. Definition of Two Translation

3.1 Definition of Literal Translation

Literal translation refers to a method to render of text from one language to another by following closely the form of the source language. Definitely different from mechanical translation (word for word translation), literal translation shall provide fluent and accurate translation that is easily comprehended by the readers of the target language. "The so-called literal translation is a translation method or translated text that keeps the content and form of the original text" (Feng Qinghua, 2002:37). There are a lot of differences between English and Chinese, but there are some commonalities between the two, which is the basis and reason for the existence of literal translation.

Mr. Mao Dun once explained and emphasized that literal translation is not a dead translation of "word for word, not one more, not one less" [3]. The real intention of literal translation is not to distort the creative purpose of the original work, but to express the spirit of the original work.

You can also say that it refers to translate a sentence originally, keeping the original forms, including construction of sentences, meaning of the original words, and metaphor of the original and so on. It can not only reproduce the meaning and frame of language, but also keep its vivid image figure of speech and novel and unique expressive ways so that readers can comprehend the origin’s literal grace.

For example: The winter morning was clear as crystal. The sunrise burned red in a pure sky, the shadow on the rim of the woodland were darkly blue, and beyond the white and scintillating fields patches of far off for forest hung like smoke. Literal translation: 冬天的早晨水晶般明澈。纯净的东边天上朝日烧的通红，林子边上的影子时暗蓝色，隔着那耀眼的白茫茫的天野远处的森林像挂在半空中的烟云。 This translation keeps the original form and meaning totally. It comes out the author’s writing style and transfer the source language to target language perfectly.

3.2 Definition of Free Translation

Free translation is a method to deliver the intended meaning of the source text without paying attention to details such as syntax, style and so on of the original text. Free translation is suitable in case the translation is difficult to be understood or accepted by the readers or the translation seems not as attractive or powerful as the original text by approach of literal translation. It can also means a method of making the target text smooth and perfect .On the basis of them, places of word and constructions of sentence have to be almost changed to suit real meanings of original text.

In general, a paraphrase is a translation that is consistent with the original text in terms of content, but changes in form. In short, the translation should be faithful to the basic content of the original text, while the form of expression should be original. In the history of Chinese translation, the definition of free translation is also divided. For example, Fu Lei believed that a paraphrase should, to the maximum extent possible, maintain the syntax of the original sentence, not that the grammar of the original sentence can be completely thrown away. It is not that the grammar of the original sentence can be left out completely. Eskridge once said that a translator cannot arbitrarily add or delete sentences from the original in order to achieve the standard of "up" translation, but that the original should be taken into consideration. According to Qian Gechuan, although the translations use paraphrase and change form, they should still be faithful to the original.

For example: It’s an ill wind that blows nobody good. Free translation: 对于某些人有害的事可能对于另外一些人有好处。 In this translation, we can see that there is no word in Chinese that equivalence to the word “wind” in English. So we use free translation which not only keeps the original meaning but also makes source language to target language comprehensively. However, free translation does not mean to neglect or add the original. When to use free translation, translator must know both source language and target language very well, including the cultural background, the equivalence words and make the translation fluent and comprehensible. Free translation is a flexible translation skill. Once literal translation can not express the original well, it’s time to use free translation.

IV. The different applications of literal and free translation

4.1 The application of literal translation

Firstly, if it is possible to translate literally, translate it word-for-word. The advantage of literal translation is to keep the liveliness of the text which has rhetoric in it. Let’s take two sentences below as examples:

(1) For my father know and I know that if you only dig enough, a pasture can be made free. Literal translation: 因为我父亲知道，我也知道，只要挖到一定程度，早晚可以在这里劈出个牧场的。 Free translation: 因为我父亲知道，我也知道，功到自然成。

(2) But I hated Sakamoto, and I had a feeling he’d surely lead us both to our ancestors. Literal translation: 但是我恨坂本，并预感到他肯定领着咱们去见祖先。 Free translation: 但是我恨坂本，并预感到他肯定会领着咱们去送死。

For the first one, we can see the free translation expressed the general meaning of the original sentences with the metaphors. It’s better and comprehensive. But for the second one, though free translations make sentences more fluent, literal translations are closer to the original and express author’s emotion much lively. Because the differences of two languages, sometimes it is difficult to retain the intrinsical thoughts and style of the source language. Secondly, some sentences are hard to translate literally in some circumstances, especially the different expression of metaphors, proverbs and idioms. To people in English speaking countries, they are hard to understand some old sayings in Chinese and literal translation is unacceptable in this situation. They can’t get the original meaning accurately. For example:

(1) Our son must go to school. He must break out of the pot that holds us in. Literal translation: 我们的儿子一定得进学校，他一定得打破这个把我们关在里面的罐子。 Free translation: 我们的儿子一定要上学，一定要出人头地。

(2) Their legs moved a little jerkily, like well-made wooden dolls, and they carried pillars of blank fear about them. Literal translation: 他们的腿轻轻痉挛地移动着，像做得很好的木偶一样，他们随身携带者黑色的恐怖柱子。 Free translation: 他们每向前迈进一步，腿就抖动一下，好似精致的木偶一样，他们身上带着一股阴沉的杀气。

In these sentences, literal translation is improper. We cannot use literal translation if the presentation of the version does not conform to that of the source language. “Break out the pot that holds us in” is an English idiom. When we translate it to Chinese, we have an idiom “出人头地” that has the similar meaning. Generally speaking, literal translation is the basic technique in translation practice. It can keep the original form, including sentences’ structure and the original expression. But sometimes it needs some necessary changes to make the ways of expression be consistent between source language and target language.

4.2 The application of free translation

First of all, we use free translation when it’s difficult to translate them literally; especially there are differences on the ways of expression between the two languages. Moreover, in some sentences, though literal translation can make it understandable, it cannot express the profound meaning smoothly. Under this circumstance, free translation can help us get a better result. For example:

(1) It is an ill bird that fouls its own nest. Literal translation: 弄脏自己巢的鸟的确是一只坏鸟。 Free translation: 家丑不可外扬。

(2) Cast pearls before swine. Literal translation: 把珍珠扔到猪前面。 Free translation: 对牛弹琴。

Free translation should be fluent and natural. It can express the general idea without paying much attention to the details; especially in the translation in idioms or proverbs. Secondly, never add our own emotion to the translation. A successful translation must be objective and clearly. Free translation gives the translators more freedom to express source language and readers can get the original meaning comprehensively. Once the translators add their own emotions to it, the two version’s readers would have different feelings on the same task. Finally, free translation is a flexible and technical skill. The translators must learn abundant knowledge and possess the general knowledge of both the two countries as much as possible. More extensive knowledge translators have, more completely they can comprehend the meaning of the original task.

4.3 The comparison of applications of literal and free translation

4.3.1 What are the advantages of literal translation? Generally speaking, the use of rhetoric in a text makes it more vivid and lively, and through literal translation, the rhetoric of the original text is preserved and the target language is similar to the original text. In contrast, free translation only reflects the general idea of the original text, and the original rhetoric disappears through the original translator's ingenuity and processing. So, in general, literal translation is a good choice. For example,

For Maria, this is a great success in her life, just as the brave winning over a great battle against the gigantic man in the black forests.

Literal translation:在玛丽亚看来, 这是她一生中最了不起的成功, 这种成功就好像她英勇无畏地战胜了黑暗森林中的巨人。

Free translation:在玛丽亚看来, 这是她一生中最了不起的成功。 In this sentence, the literal translation only reflects the main idea of the original, which is too simple and bland, and the metaphorical rhetoric and description of the character's psychological state are lost. The literal translation, however, is much clearer and more vivid than the free translation, which is more vivid and natural. Due to language differences, it is sometimes difficult to retain the ideas and style of the original text in the translation process. The advantage of literal translation is precisely this: it can keep the ideas and style of the original text.

4.3.2 A literal translation is not the same as a word-for-word translation.

What is word-for-word translation? --When translating, every word in the source language is considered, and every word in the target language is translated one by one.Usually, the target reader does not know what the translated text is really saying, and this is also a word-for-word translation. For example,

John had to face the music after his father came back for he had broken his father’s expensive vase. Literal translation :在他的爸爸回来后, 约翰不得不面对音乐, 因为他打碎了爸爸的昂贵的花瓶。

The translation of these two sentences is clearly not in line with the Chinese way of expressing oneself; it is word-for-word, sentence-for-sentence, and overly rigid. It does not conform to the way the target language is expressed, and the meaning it is intended to convey is ambiguous, making it difficult for the target reader to understand what the translator is trying to say. A word-for-sentence translation is a substandard translation, as it confuses the target audience. A literal translation retains the style, rhetoric, and structure of the original text, while at the same time making the necessary adjustments to make it smooth, clear, and acceptable to the target language. After reading, the target language reader can have almost the same feeling as the source language reader. Some people make the mistake of thinking that a translation that keeps the structure and form of the original text exactly the same is a literal translation, confusing the concepts of literal and word-for-word translation. In the end, literal translation is not a word-for-word translation; it is an acceptable and flexible translation.

4.3.3 Some sentences should not be directly translated Some source sentences are difficult to translate. Some sentences do not fit the way the target language is expressed after literal translation. Different countries have different cultures, different customs, different rhetoric and different ways of expressing the same idea, and different idioms. In China, people usually use some idioms to describe an event or a person, and this is also the case in foreign countries. In the eyes of Westerners, Chinese idioms are very difficult to understand. In these cases, the result of a literal translation would be unacceptable. When the target language readers read such a translation, they cannot know the exact meaning of the source language, because the message in the target language is ambiguous. For example, if:

The bastard finally kicked the bucket in an accident. Literal translation:那个坏蛋最后踢了木桶在一场交通意外中。 Free translation:那个坏蛋最后在一场交通意外中丧命。

4.3.4. The literal translation of this sentence is nonsensical, even absurd; but with a paraphrase, the translation becomes clearer and more acceptable to the target audience, and is culturally appropriate. But under what circumstances should a literal translation be done? How to use literal translation correctly? When the expression of the source language is not the same as that of the target language, literal translation should not be done. As a translator, you should pay attention to the following aspects:

Firstly, to understand the culture of the source and target language, to acquire as much extensive knowledge as possible, and to become more familiar with the issues talked about in the source language, otherwise the translation work cannot be carried out. We often have the experience that we do not know or do not understand something, even after it is explained to us, because we do not have the appropriate knowledge. Therefore, a professional translator must have some knowledge of the relevant discipline or specialty. If a translator does not know the material he wants to translate and the content of the knowledge of the relevant discipline involved, his translation will be unqualified.

Secondly, it is very important to understand the information in the source language correctly and thoroughly. The translator should not only know the apparent meaning of the text, but also read through the original text to thoroughly understand the idea and meaning of the original text. If a translator only knows the literal meaning of the original text, and translates literally, then his translation will not be successful. The target language reader will be confused when reading such a translation, and will have a different feeling between the intended message of the original text and the translation, or even a misunderstanding.

Third, translation is not the same as reading. When reading, it doesn't matter how we understand or whether we can understand or misunderstand, because the reader's level is limited. Reading is only a sense of self. But a translation can affect other people. Therefore, translators should have a thorough understanding of the information in the source language and repeat the information correctly. Fourth, improve the acceptability of the translation. From the above, we know that the translation should be consistent with the expression of the target language, so that it can be easily accepted by the target language readers. In fact, it is not difficult to preserve the style of the source language; the real difficulty is to translate the source language into a language that is consistent with the mode of expression of the target language.

Literal translation is a basic skill necessary for translation work. It preserves the form of the source language, including the sentence structure and diction. Sometimes, it makes necessary changes to the source language to make it closer to the expression of the target language and to make the translation more acceptable. But literal translation is not a panacea. Translators should expand their knowledge and practice extensively. After all, practice is an important aspect of translation work.

4.4 The application of literal translation and free translation in idiom

Idiom is also a kind of saying. Idiom is an expression, word, or phrase that has a figurative meaning that is comprehended in regard to a common use of that expression that is separate from the literal meaning of definition of the words of which it is made. Idioms are numerous and they occur frequently in all languages.

The formation of idiom accords with the formation of culture. It is to say that the culture give birth to the idiom. Thousands of years ago, people draw lessons and experience from their daily life and then write down to tell their generations what they have gotten. As a result, most of idioms mirror almost everything related to the life. They contain experience and philosophy. We should know the basic structure of the sentences well, rather than the face value of words. Only in that way you would know what shouldn’t be reserved and what can be ignored.

Every country has its own unique culture. We know most idioms are produced by farmers, hunters, and fishermen and came from daily life. So they often use much different imagery in the idioms. England is an island and fishery country so a great number of English idioms relate to fish and sea. On the contrary, China has been an agricultural country with a very large agricultural population. As a result, we have a great many Chinese idioms that contain farming experience, especially we use animals to signify person. When we translate the idioms, in some circumstance we can translate them literally; but under most circumstance, in order to make readers understand, we take free translation.

These imageries should be translated freely. For example:

(1) Teach fish to swim. Free translation: 班门弄斧。

(2) Beat the dog before the lion. Free translation: 杀鸡儆猴。

(3) One must howl with the wolves. Free translation: 入乡随俗。

(4) Love me, love my dog. Free translation: 爱屋及乌。

(5) Put the cart before the horse. Free translation: 本末倒置。 5 The relationship of These imageries can be translated literally.

For example:

(1) The style is the man. Literal translation: 文如其人。

(2) To be on thin ice. Literal translation: 如履薄冰。

(3) Hasty makes waste. Literal translation: 欲速则不达。

(4) Fish in troubled water. Literal translation: 浑水摸鱼。

(5) Business is business. Literal translation: 公事公办。

(6) Honey sweet words. Literal translation: 甜言蜜语。

(7) A gentleman’s agreement. Literal translation: 君子协定。

4.5The application of literal translation and free translation in proverb

Proverb is a kind of sayings. It prevails in the community with concise words. Most proverbs reflect the practical experience of working people's life and are generally passed down orally. (http://baike.baidu.com/view/23790.htm，2010) It is mostly spoken in the colloquial form of phrases or rhymes easy to understand. And proverbs are to some extent similar to idioms, twisters, common sayings, and aphorism. Readers can enrich themselves with plentiful interesting information of other cultures by familiarizing themselves with proverbs. Thus, the function of proverb translation is not only to absorb and introduce the vivid expressions, but also to enrich the readers with the culture of other nations and learn their basic philosophy of life or world.

In order to understand the features of proverb translation, let’s take some examples:

(1) One boy is a boy, two boys half a boy, three boys no boy. Literal translation: 一个男孩是男孩，两个男孩抵半个，三个男孩什么都不是。 Free translation: 一个和尚挑水吃，两个和尚抬水吃，三个和尚没水吃。

(2) One picture is worth a thousand words. Literal translation: 一张图胜过千言万语。 Free translation: 百闻不如一见。

(3) Where there’s a will, there’s a way. Literal translation: 有一种意愿，就有一种方法。 Free translation: 有志者事竟成。

(4) A new broom sweeps clean. Literal translation: 新扫帚能打扫干净。 Free translation: 新官上任三把火。

(5) The same knife cuts bread and fingers. Literal translation: 同一把刀可以切面包也会割到手指。 Free translation: 水能载舟，亦能覆舟。

(6) The pot calls the kettle black. Literal translation: 锅笑壶黑。 Free translation: 五十步笑百步。 From these examples, when the metaphors are different, free translation could help us understand the source language better. However, in some circumstance, Chinese proverbs have the same meaning, expression ways and metaphors using, taking literal translation is easier and convenient. For example:

(1) Books are ships that pass though the vast sea of time. Literal translation: 时光好比汪洋，书籍好比航船。

(2) Hedges have eyes, walls have ears. Literal translation: 隔篱有眼，隔墙有耳。

(3) Out of sight, out of mind. Literal translation: 眼不见为净。

(4) Like father, like son. Literal translation: 有其父必有其子。

(5) Well begun, half done. Literal translation: 好的开始是成功的一半。

V. The relation between literal and free translation

Because of the different metaphors and imageries using between English and Chinese, once we cannot translate literally, we should make some changes. Such as “dog” signifies good things in English but just on the contrary in Chinese. So sometime we choose free translation to make the sentence perfect. (1). Both literal and literal translations are intended to be accurate, both figurative and spiritual reproductions of the original meaning of the work, and there is no good or bad in either. "Among wolves one must howl" can be literally translated as "你在狼群中必须得嗥", or it can be translated as "入乡随俗". Nevertheless, we must note the difference between these two translation strategies. Literal translation has a higher requirement for "faithfulness to the original", and is usually used for scientific, legal, and other texts, because it must be precise and not misleading to the reader. In addition, literal translation can also be used to translate general everyday language. In contrast, free translation is more abstract and is generally used to translate poetry, prose and other literary works, expressing the main connotation of the original work with divergent thinking to increase its beauty and artistry. (2) Literal translation and free translation are not mutually exclusive, but complementary and inseparable.

VI. Conclusion

Throughout the thesis, we have introduced the definition of literal translation and free translation and used some examples to show their application in proverb and idiom. According to the analysis, we know literal translation and free translation are two basic methods in translation practice. Literal translation emphasizes both the form and meaning of the text, while free translation lays stress on the conveying of the spirit of the text. However, literal translation is different from word-to-word translation or dead translation, which converts words out of the text simply. Free translation, on the other hand, translating the text in a flexible way does not means to translate random but reasonable. Both of the two methods have their own beauty. Literal translation can keep the original expressing style and meaning of the text and achieve formal equivalence between Chinese and English. And it can be more directly in the expression. But not all sentences can be translated literally. In some circumstance, especially the poetry, proverb and idiom, literal translation shows its limitation. So we use free translation. The beauty of free translation lies in its freedom of the forms. It does not pay so much attention on details of the source language and it demands the translators to handle target language culture and customs and readers of target language could accept the translation easily and clearly. It can be used when literal translation cannot be taken. Translators should remember not to add their own emotion in their translation task, for that will make the readers have the different feeling in two languages versions then the translation is not appropriate. And free translation is not uncontrolled translation, it also require the correctness. Literal translation and free translation are two main forms of translation. They are not repulsive but complementary. In practice, we should not stick to one of the methods. We can translate the texts neatly and take the right method which is more suitable for the practical situation. Every country has its own history, culture and customs. Those aspects could be reflected by their language expressing. A good translator should have more extensive knowledge and apply these two methods flexibility, experientially and properly. We must accumulate knowledge of different nations in our daily life, read more books and practice as much as possible.

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Cultural Differences

Cultural Differences On English Interpretation And The Coping Strategies 马娟 Ma Juan

Abstract

English interpretation as a cross-cultural social activity refers to the cultural differences between English and Chinese. Because of cultural differences in these asapects such as historical background , customs, religion and the way of thinking, English interpretation is necessary to take all of these influences into consideration and the interpreter must have a penetrating mind of the cultural differences.When the interpreter does English interpretation, he must know the coping strategies to grapple with these problems caused by cultural differnences so as to transmit the proper,correct and decent information to the target audiences.

Key words

Cultural differences; English interpratation; Coping strategies;

Polysystem Theory and Cultural Turn 吴琪 Wu Qi

Abstract

Even Zohar took the lead in putting forward polysystem theory, which was further developed in the descriptive translation studies put forward by his student Gideon Toury. On this basis, Susan Bassnett and André Lefevere first put forward the concept of cultural turn. Now, the issue of cultural factors in translation studies has received considerable scholarly attention. This paper sorts out several reasons why translation studies turn from linguistic studies to cultural studies bascically in chronological order. By revealing the role of cultural factors in translation, their influence on translation strategies and translation studies are objectively analyzed. Finally, it looks forward to how translators can better spread Chinese culture with the help of the cultural turn that has not disappeared.

Key words

Polysystem theory, Cultural turn, Translation studies

摘要

伊文·佐哈尔率先提出了多元系统理论，并在他的学生吉迪恩·图里提出的描述性翻译研究中得到进一步发展。在此基础上，苏珊·巴斯内特和安德烈·勒弗维尔首次提出了文化转向的概念。目前，翻译研究中的文化因素问题已经引起了学术界的广泛关注。本文基本按时间顺序梳理了翻译研究从语言学研究转向文化研究的几个原因。通过揭示文化因素在翻译中的作用，客观地分析了文化因素对翻译策略和翻译研究的影响。最后，展望了译者如何借助尚未消失的文化转向之风更好地传播中国文化。

关键字

多元系统理论，文化转向，翻译研究

1. Introduction

The overall structure of the study takes the form of five chapters. Chapter I will systematically contextualize the research by introducing the historical background and ideological resources of polysystem theory；Chapter II will deal with the research carried out mainly by Zohar and Toury to develop polysystem theory and its application in translation practice; Chapter III will review the studies related to cultural turn; Chapter IV will clarify advantages and disadvantages of scholars’views on the role of cultural issues in translation studies；Chapter V will give a brief look forward to future research trends.

2. Development of polysystem theory

2. 1 Research Background

2. 1. 1 Historical Background

The representatives of Polysystem theory are Israelite scholars Zohar and Toury. Israel is an emerging country established after World War II. and there are almost no native cultures and literary works. The development of its own culture can only rely on absorbing the excellent cultures of other countries. In this context, Zohar can only focus on translated works.

2. 1. 2 Influence of ideological sources

Russian formalism prevailed in the 1920s, and the goal of Russian formalism theory was to improve the status of literature in society. Formalist scholars believed that "literary works should be regarded as a part of the whole literary system instead of being an independent research object", and they also put forward the concepts of "defamiliarization" and "literariness", aiming at establishing a research field for literature and distinguishing it from other disciplines. Zohar studied Russian formalism and Czech structuralism for many years, on the basis of which, in the 1970s, he put forward a new Polysystem theory to guide translation studies. Polysystem theory was proposed by Itamar Even Zohar.

2. 2 From Linguistic-centered to Cultural-centered

Chomsky put forward transformational generative grammar in the mid-late 1950s, which deeply influenced a group of linguists and translators and changed the position of structural linguistics established by Saussure. In the 1960s and 1970s, the Science of Translation, also known as the Linguistic Approach, emerged with Nida, Jacobson, Newmark, and so on as its representatives. They maintained that translation studies were regarded as a subsidiary discipline of linguistics. They also proposed that the task of translation was to achieve functional equivalence, that is, translating should consist in reproducing in the receptor language the closest natural equivalent of the source language message first in terms of meaning and secondly in terms of style. Gradually, translation studies were restricted to the micro-linguistic level, with emphasis on the text, and the subjective initiative of translation was ignored. Translation studies focused on discussing the differences and discovering the laws between languages, then, a set of mechanical rules that could guide translation were summarized, translation studies were treated as a "science" with a complete theoretical system. This also formed a mindset, which narrowed the translator's eyes to the information level of the original text, ignoring the influence of wider culture and these factors on the generation and acceptance of the translation.

Also, in the 1970s, Zohar put forward Polysystem theory based on Russian formalism, and he thought that the process of studying translation is also the process of studying the target language culture. Polysystem theory studies literature from multiple perspectives, not just in the field of literature, but through the study of other extension factors, it studies literary translation more comprehensively and deeply.

Toury, a student of Zohar, put forward Descriptive Translation Studies (DTS) and translational norms, which provide a more perfect research idea for cultural studies. The International Association for comparative literature held a seminar about polysystem theory which allowed more scholars to study Polysystem theory and descriptive translation(张素文, 2019).

By the mid-1990s, the cultural turn completely broke the situation that translation studies were confined to micro-linguistics. At that time, translators have shifted their focus from the micro-linguistic level to the macro-cultural level. Scholars, such as Susan Bassnett, Lefevere, and Venuti, began to pay attention to other factors outside the source text such as culture, philosophy, politics, poetics, and so on. Thanks to the efforts of these scholars, more intellectuals have been influenced by developments in cultural studies. They believed that because the source text is produced placed in the specific context of the cultural environment, the target text should not be regarded as a simple transformation between languages(曾文雄, 2006). Of course, in the process of translation studies, translators are most concerned about disciplines across the cultural spectrum. The emergence of cultural studies opened a new door for closed translation studies at that time. This new paradigm broadened the scope of translation studies and played a vital role in the construction of translation studies.

2. 3 Representatives of Polysystem Theory

2. 3. 1 Main points of Zohar

In order to better explain the theoretical core of the Polysystem system, I would like to roughly explain several basic concepts of the Polysystem system. First, what is the definition of Polysystem systems? Zohar generalized it as follows: The social symbol system is multiple and dynamic，which is composed of several different systems (such as culture, language, literature, society). Because the various systems interact and connect with each other, the status of each system is not equal，some subsystems are at the center, but some are at the edge. Second, what does the polysystem theory refer to? It points out that in different periods, the culture of a certain society may be superior or inferior to another culture. In different historical contexts, translators will choose different translation strategies. Translators' choice of strategies will change in diverse situations, thus forms a dynamic translation study. Third, how are the levels in the Polysystem system classified? Zohar locates his translation studies in a Polysystem system of literature and classifies them according to the scale of their scopes. For example, the first layer is distinguished by country, the second layer is classified by literary type, the third layer is distinguished by whether it is translation literature, and the fourth layer is classified according to which country the original text comes from. Zohar was the first to uncover the status of translated literature and point out that translation literature can be a major role in the cultural system. For example, the three translation climaxes in Chinese history have functioned as a key element of the formation and development of Chinese culture.

He stated that, in three cases, the system of translated literature will be at the center.

①. When a polysystem has not yet been crystallized, that is to say, when a literature is"young," in the process of being established(Gillespie & Even-Zohar, 1994); Take Israeli literature as an example, Israel was established after the second world war. The original Hebrew cultural tradition is very weak. So it is necessary for this country to introduce advanced literature from western countries and translate classical literature from other countries so that they can provide new thoughts and skills for the local country.

②. When a literature is either“peripheral”(with in a large group of correlated literatures) or “weak,” or both. when a literature is either “peripheral”, it will approach mainstream literature. The best way to approach it is to learn its techniques and skills by translated literature which can provide samples for imitation.

③. When there are turning points, crises, or literary vacuums in a literature. For instance, after WWII, the vibrant American literature in the past two decades end abruptly and experienced a period of stagnation, because the existing literary model can no longer arouse the creative enthusiasm of a new generation of writers.

When it comes to the position of literature, notice that，firstly，the innovation of the “weak” literary system is much lower than that of the center literary system. But we still have to affirm its function to spur it. Second, some literary systems are relatively strong when they are formed, and their own literary systems are often in the central position and are not easily influenced by other systems. Therefore, when the translated literature system is at the marginal position, in most cases, literary translation is required (sometimes even necessary) to use words close to the target language as much as possible, so that the source language culture can be integrated into the target language culture and the target language readers can accept it more easily, which creates contradictions, because, by introducing excellent works from other regions into the target language, It should be aimed at absorbing the high-quality culture of other countries, but if all the cultural features, new ideas, and expressions of the source language are eliminated in translation, then the translated literature will always be in a marginal state. in such a system.

2. 3. 2 Main Points of Toury

Based on Zohar's theory, Toury made the following efforts to establish a generalized and authoritative theory to describe translation. Above all, he proposed that the methodology of translation should be divided into three steps. First, the source text should be evaluated in the target cultural context to analyze its significance and acceptability; Second, the target language should be considered according to the target language environment; Third, a comparative analysis should be made between the source language and the target language, so as to identify the translation transformation between the two texts, and then the translation is constantly improved and perfected. This can be used to explain the factors that influence or determine translation quality; Besides, it is convenient to guide the translation practice of different topics by establishing relevant corpora. With the continuous advancement of translation and the accumulation of a large number of materials, different translation models can be concluded by conclusions, and finally, the universal rules for describing translation can be drawn, which is part of Toury's description translation theory. Moreover, Toury put forward the concept of translation norms, which he thought were generally accepted and used by translators in the process of translation. These norms are social and cultural restrictions on specific times, and people need to comprehend them through the necessary process of education and socialization. This is a powerful regulation，which means once they are established and recognized, translators must strictly abide by them, just like social legal documents. It can be seen that Toury's theory is also based on the specific social and cultural context, and especially pays attention to the descriptive research of translation. His translation research method can be generalized as follow: before the research, a pre-set standard should be established, and then verified step by step in the process of translation research. Finally, the target text and the original text are compared, and the governing standards of the translated works are analyzed. Toury further suggested that translators can classify themselves into different standards, including source language standards, target language standards, and so on.

Toury's theories also attract more and more scholars to study translation from a cultural perspective. Likewise, Andrew Chesterman put forward new translational norms based on those of Toury's. He holds that the most important norm is "expectation norm", that is, readers' expectation of the influence and communication power of translated works, and other norms are restricted by this "expectation". It can be said that these two viewpoints provide the initial inspiration and theoretical basis for "cultural turn”(吴际, 2018).

2. 4 Polysystem Theory’s Influence on Translation Strategy

Zohar discusses the translator's choice of different translation strategies for foreignization and domestication when the translation literature system is at the center or marginal state of the polysystem. Foreignization and domestication were put forward by American translation theorist Lawrence Venuti in 1995 in The Translator's Invisibility. Historically, foreignization and domestication can be regarded as extensions of literal translation and free translation, but they are not completely equivalent terms. The core issue of literal translation and free translation is how to deal with form and meaning from the micro-linguistic level. Domestication refers to the translation strategy of adopting a transparent and fluent style in translation to minimize the strangeness of the original text. Foreignization refers to the translation that deviates from the local mainstream values, preserves the linguistic and cultural differences of the original text, and brings readers into foreign contexts. In other words, foreignization translation requires the translator to be close to the source text and adopt the expressions to convey the original content. It can be seen that literal translation and free translation are mainly limited to the language level, while foreignization and domestication are based on the cultural context. The differences between them are obvious and cannot be confused.

In translation practice, translators often choose the appropriate strategies according to the specific status the target culture places in the multicultural context. If the source text plays a central role in the whole language communication, the translator is more inclined to not be limited by the language model of the target text and can restore the content of the source text to the maximum extent, which can introduce a new language mode from the source text to the target language. If the source text plays a secondary role in the cultural system, usually, the translator will integrate the source text into the target language context to enrich the target language color.

For example, before the May Fourth Movement, translated literature was at the edge of the literary polysystem. Translators tend to adopt domestication translation strategies. Influenced by the Chinese literary tradition, Lin Shu adopted domestication in order to meet the needs of readers. Therefore, his translation works were restricted by the target language, and he translated the western source text into familiar ancient classical Chinese language, so that readers can more accept and recognize this translation activity.

For example:

Source text: I’ll fight for my liberty to the last breath I breathe. You say your fathers did it; if it was right for them. It is right for me(BEECHER & DAVID).

Target text: 盖吾之自由，必与持压力者抵死争之，必胜而后已。该美国之自由，美国同英伦力争而得。今吾之自由，必当力与美人争之(斯托, 林纾, & 魏易, 1981)。

However, situations are not always the same. Liang Shiqiu began to translate Shakespeare's plays in the early 1930s.Here, the number of translated literary texts was in a growth trend. At the time of the translation of A Midsummer Night's Dream, China was eager to rejuvenate the country by absorbing foreign cultures. Translated literature had a higher position in the pluralistic system of Chinese literature. Fang Ping's translation began in the early days of the founding of the People's Republic of China. Literary and artistic creation at this time emphasized the socialist characteristics of literature, and a lot of socialism excellent literature swarmed. Affected by ideology, China was resistant to the literary works of capitalist countries. When translating and researching with a strong color of ideology and class struggle. It can be seen that when Fang Ping translated and introduced A Midsummer Night’s Dream, translated literature was not at the center of the literary polysystem.

According to the polysystem theory, Liang Shiqiu should adopt foreignization and Fang Ping's translation strategy should accept domestication. However, in the practice of translating A Midsummer Night's Dream, this is not the case. Here are examples.

Source text: “By’r lakin, a parlous fear(William).

Liang’s version:天啊， 是可怕的紧。

Fang’s version:我的圣母娘娘,这可不是跟你闹着玩的事啊。

the translation strategy Liang adopted is foreignization, while Fang Ping used the translation strategy of "domestication." The above application gives us inspiration, that is, in specific translation activities, the cultural exchange between the source language and the target language is complicated, which leads to the diverse choices of translation strategies. Therefore, translators can give full play to their subjectivity and choose appropriate translation strategies based on their knowledge and personal understanding. Not strictly abide by a certain theory, because translation is a process of dynamic communication and re-creation, and it is not rigid and static. In the process of translation, only combined with specific cultural context and personal understanding, can translators figure out the best translation strategies and methods. Only by combining scientific theory with translator's subjectivity can we accomplish every translation activity best.

3. Development of Cultural Turn

The view of "cultural turn" was formally put forward by Bassnett and Lefevere in the book Translation, History and Culture： A Sourcebook in the 1990s. The cultural turn mainly depends on the scholars of cultural approach, who actively advocate translators to shift their eyes on translation studies from the text itself to the cultural context outside the text, so as to change the long-standing existence of translation studies as the "vassal" of literature and art, and promote translation studies to become an independent discipline. Among them, Bassnett is one of the leaders, and her works often reveal the importance attached to the cultural background in translation studies(Bassnett, 1995). Translation has indeed become an independent discipline with its own characteristics under the active propaganda of the cultural approach, which has also become the basis of extensive research on cultural turn in translation studies. Bassnett also has a famous metaphor about culture and language, which also expresses her emphasis on culture. She points out that culture is compared to the human body, and language is the heart of this body. Only when the heart and body interact can human vitality continue; Therefore, surgeons can't ignore the whole body that bears the heart when performing the ng surgery on the heart, similarly，it is dangerous for translators to treat the text isolated from culture(Bassnett, 1995).

The concept “cultural turn” was put forward by Bassnett and Lefevere inheriting Zohar's polysystem theory, which has attracted many scholars to discuss the phenomenon of "cultural turn" in translation. This theory examines translation activities from a macro perspective, that is, it puts translation in the context of culture, instead of exploring translation in a vacuum separated from culture and context. Using Zohar's polysystem theory, the cultural school holds that culture has a restrictive effect on translation, and shifts the focus of translation studies from the original to the target text, from the author of the original to the translator of the target text, from the source language culture to the target language culture, and has a deeper understanding of the position and role of the target text. At the same time, it is noteworthy that Jacques Derrida, a famous philosopher, put forward the theory of "deconstructionism", which holds that the meaning of words is not only restrained within the source text but also multiple factors can influence it. He also points out that the original author is not the only creator, which also inspires scholars of cultural school to think about the role of translation and enhances the social status of translated works.

Chinese traditional translation theory is influenced by the thought of cultural turn, and the cultural turn has occurred in history. Xuan Huifang (轩慧芳, 2019)mentioned that the cultural turn of Chinese traditional translation theory can be regarded started from the scientific and technological translation in the late Ming Dynasty. Chinese translators, such as Xu Guangqi, Li Zhizao and Yang Yanjun, were the first to advocate transferring translation from religion to natural science. They also jumped out of the linguistic category of contrast between the source language and target language and directly introduced Chinese traditional translation theory into the social and cultural background concerned by the cultural school. At that time, translation theories began to focus on how to use translation as a tool to stimulate national consciousness. China lagged behind the West in terms of science and technology and ideas. Therefore, the purpose of translation was to absorb the essence of Western culture and arouse the learning enthusiasm of the Chinese. Only by learning the strengths of others can we surpass others. The function of translation is to convey new knowledge and ideas. As to the type of the source text, they tend to choose the technology that is closely related to people's lives and most urgently needed by the country, such as western astronomy, meteorology, machinery and land construction, and other related books. According to Lefevere, translators at that time were sponsors of translation activities, and they regarded translation as a way to maintain feudal autocratic rule, so the scope of attention was very narrow, and the cultural turn at this time was not obvious.

Only later on, especially in the late Qing Dynasty, the feudal rulers adopted a policy of seclusion, which hampered China's progress and its exchanges with the outside world. That state was completely broken by the Opium War, which also crushed the illusion that many people thought the Qing Dynasty was powerful and stimulated many literati to "opening the eyes to observe the world". Many translators have translated a wide range of foreign newspapers, histories, geography, and other books, not just scientific texts. Many defeats pushed more Chinese people to recognize the deficiencies of their own and the strength of the West. Although they were not direct translators, they acted as sponsors, which was the main reason for the abundance of translated works and the rapid development of cultural turn at that time. However, it didn't take long for the Westernization Movement to fail, which inspired some elites to realize that China's backwardness was not in technology at all, but in its feudal autocratic system. The reformists, represented by Kang Youwei and Liang Qichao, have become new sponsors. In this short period of only ten years, a large number of excellent translators have appeared, such as Yan Fu and Lin Shu. Lin Shu, in particular, did not understand any foreign language but translated a lot of works, like la Dame aux Camelias，Uncle Tom's cabin and David Copperfield, etc. Dictated by others, he translated in classical style. Such kind of translation to some extent can be said to be no respect to the original text. This also reflects that the purpose of translation at that time was not to highly restore the thoughts and styles of the original text, but to convey conducive information part of the original text to the target readers. This period was also the development period of the cultural shift of Chinese translation theory.

Developing to the May Fourth Movement, the ideological emancipation of Chinese intellectuals was more extensive. During that period, the translation mainly focuses on how to transform Chinese traditional culture benefiting from western culture and make the Chinese nation rejuvenate. The translation is regarded as an important tool to promote social change. Some scholars believe that the transmission of western new ideas is also to import new expression methods, and at the same time, in order to break the feudal traditional ideas, more intellectuals began to call for the use of vernacular Chinese. For example, Lu Xun and Qu Qiubai, who are well known to us, are representative figures. However, not everyone supports this idea. Mei Guangdi proposes that while introducing western culture, we should also carry forward the traditional culture. Western advanced ideas and technologies are needed to be absorbed, but it does not mean that our own language form, Classical Chinese, should be abandoned. But it can be seen that their ideas have not been widely supported. Just like Gu Zhengkun's viewpoint, unlike the cultural turn that emerged more than 100 years later in the West, cultural translation and translation studies in China at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century has presented its obvious characteristics of subjectivity.

4. Judgement

Since both the polysystem theory and cultural turn are not universal, so they have both advantages and disadvantages at the same time. We should keep rational and critical thinking when studying these theories, and treat their influence on translation studies objectively and dialectically.

4. 1 Advantages

Polysystem theory makes translation studies no longer an isolated linguistic study, but brings descriptive translation studies and cultural turn to translation studies. Linguistic schools tend to pay too much attention to static semantic contrast, focusing on language patterns or underdeveloped literary theories, while the polysystem system combines translation with many factors such as the cultural context, social conditions and politics, especially affecting translation studies at the political level, such as post-colonial translation studies, feminist translation studies and cannibalistic translation studies derived from historical events. Generally speaking, these theories have opened up a wide research field for translation studies, which makes translation studies no longer in a vacuum environment, and opens up a way for translation studies to finally get out of the prescribed aesthetic limitations. To enable people to look at translation from a broader perspective and grasp its true nature, people will not be limited on the equivalence between the source text and the target text, but also regard the target text as an entity in the target system to study its various properties. This is the very point that developed into Toury's "Target-oriented approach". Since the translation is not only selected from several existing linguistic models but restricted by various systems, we can understand the translation phenomenon from the perspective of wider inter-system transmission. After fully understanding this phenomenon, it can also be used to guide us on how to better promote our own culture through translation, which is an unprecedented opportunity for translation studies. At the same time, according to Zohar's theory, we can also know that only with a higher level of research can we better convey our own culture and contribute to our translation studies.

4. 2 Disadvantages

Polysystem theory and the view of cultural turn neglect the translator's subjectivity, and the principle of choosing original texts is determined by the situation that dominates the (native) polysystem: which means that texts are chosen because they are consistent with the new methods of target literature, and also because of their possible innovative role in target literature. However, the choice of the target text is not only determined by the polysystem, but also by the translator's subjectivity. Translators will try their best to choose texts or familiar genres consistent with their own styles to give full play to their advantages and improve the quality of translations.

Although the linguistic school pays too much attention to the micro-level of translation studies, which limits the development of translation studies, scholars such as Nida and Newmark put forward a series of scientific theories to study translation by studying syntax and vocabulary, which has merits. However, the attitude of the cultural school towards the linguistic school is to completely negate and abandon it. According to the cultural school, before putting forward the theory of cultural turn, translation studies lacked a set of macroscopic theories to guide them and did not form a theoretical system to guide translation practice, which is undesirable. At the same time, the cultural school's eyes are completely detached from the text, exaggerating the influence of macro factors other than the text, which has been criticized by later generations.

5. Conclusion

The following conclusions can be drawn from the present study. Taken together, these findings suggest a role for cultural elements in promoting translation studies. Up to now, polysystem theory and cultural turn still have a wide influence on translation studies, and cultural factors are still important factors that must be considered in translation activities(韩雪, 2019). The findings reported here also shed new light on the responsibilities of today’s translators. When the earth is like a "village", our cultural exchanges with other countries are getting closer and closer. It is necessary for contemporary translators to think about how to maintain cultural confidence through translation and effectively convey excellent culture to other countries. In the process of translation, translators should not only pay attention to linguistic equivalence, but also change their attitudes, think from the perspective of cultural exchange. They should explore a way to combine the inspiration of the polysystem theory and cultural turn, give full play to their subjectivities, and make efforts to tell Chinese stories well and build China's translation system in the world.

6. References

Bassnett, S. (1995). Comparative literature : a critical introduction: Blackwell.

BEECHER, S. H., & DAVID, B. UNCLE TOM'S CABIN: Harvard University Press.

Gillespie, G., & Even-Zohar, I. (1994). Polysystem Studies. Comparative Literature, 45(4), 374.

William, S. A Midsummer Night’s Dream: Yale University Press.

曾文雄. (2006). 翻译学“语用学转向”:“语言学转向”与“文化转向”的终结. 社会科学家(05), 193-197.

韩雪. (2019). 多元系统翻译论本土化策略及其创新性研究. 福建茶叶, 41(02), 137-138.

斯托, 林纾, & 魏易. (1981). 黑奴吁天录: 商务印书馆.

吴际. (2018). 翻译学中“文化转向”的前世今生. 校园英语(10), 205-206.

轩慧芳. (2019). 中国传统译论中的“文化转向”. 延安大学学报(社会科学版), 41(03), 92-96.

张素文. (2019). 探析多元系统论的理论构建. 文理导航(上旬)(03), 93+95.

The influence of cultural differences on translation methods 姚佳 Yao Jia

Introduction

The long-term transmission of culture must depend on language. Language has always been an important basis for cultural inheritance. And it is also one of the tools used by different cultures in communication. The exchanges between different countries and regions have deepened in recent years. The demand for translation activities has been increasing, and the requirement for translation quality has also been gradually improved. Translation is a cultural communication activity between different countries. It is not only the conversion of two sets of language symbols. In a sense, translation has gone beyond language and become the cultural transmission between countries. There are some differences between Chinese and Western social values and ways of thinking. So it is easy to make mistakes in English translation if many words are simply understood from the expression. In addition, different nationalities are often influenced by their own cultures in the process of historical development, which will also lead to mistakes in Chinese and English translation. In the face of cultural differences, we should choose appropriate translation methods to achieve the purpose of communication. In recent years, the focus of translators has gradually shifted from language level to cultural level. They began to study translation methods from a cultural perspective.

The Main Aspects of Cultural Differences in Translation

Translation is the process of transforming a relatively unfamiliar expression into a relatively familiar one. Wang Zuoliang, a famous translator and linguist, once said that translators are dealing with individual words, but they are facing with two large cultures.(42) Therefore, translation should include not only language but also culture. The development of each country's language has gone through a long process of cultural accumulation and it is influenced by its own history, culture, ethics and many other aspects. The differences between English and Chinese are mainly reflected in the following aspects: historical background, way of thinking, and social customs.

2.1 The Historical Background

2.2 The Thinking Mode

2.3 The Social Customs

Influences of cultural differences on translation

3.1 Lexical gap

3.2 Semantic conflict

3.3 Use specific translation methods from the perspective of cultural differences

The skills to choose the proper translation methods from the perspective of cultural differences

4.1 Focus on the work itself

4.2 Focus on the reader

4.3 Focus on the dynamic equivalence of translation

Abstract

For a long time, translation has been regarded as a conversion activity between languages. However, with the increasing international communication, translation studies gradually turn to cultural transfer. Generally speaking, there are two principal strategies to deal with cross-culture involved in translation, namely, TL (target language) culture-oriented domestication and culture-oriented foreignization. Domestication means bringing the foreign culture closer to the reader in the target culture,making the target text recognizable and familiar to the readers. Foreignization, on the other hand, means taking the reader over to the source text and in turn to the foreign culture, making him or her see the differences. Because of the differences between the SL culture and the TL culture,a translator is bound to face a choice. So it is inevitable to have the inclination of domestication or foreignization for a translation. It can be said that the subject of domestication and foreignization is one of the core topics of translation. This paper starts with the historical origin of domestication and foreignization, analyzes their respective strengths and weaknesses and discusses the relationship between them. The paper reaches a conclusion that the relationship between domestication and foreignization is dialectic and they can complement each other in the process of translation. And by analyzing the factors influencing and restricting the choice of translator’s strategy, the author puts forward some methods and means to realize cultural transmission through two translation strategies in order to guide translation practice.

==Key words==: domestication; foreignization; cross-culture translation

摘要

长期以来，翻译一直被视为语言间的转换活动。但随着国际间交往的日益紧密，翻译研究逐渐转向文化间的比较。一般而言，翻译中文化的转换有两种基本策略:即以目的语文化为归宿的归化和以源语文化为归宿的异化。归化是指尽量将译语文化纳入译文读者的知识范围，将作者引向读者;异化是指在翻译中保留原文语言文化的特异之处，将读者引向作者。由于源语和译语文化的巨大差异，译者在翻译过程中必然会面临两难选择，因而一篇译作也必然会出现归化或异化的倾向。可以说，归化和异化的课题是翻译的核心课题之一。 本文从归化和异化的历史渊源入手，分析二者各自的优势和缺陷，探讨了归化和异化两者之间的关系，认为二者既对立又统一，在翻译过程中可以互相补充，并通过选择一些翻译实践的例子加以说明二者的互补性。通过分析影响和制约译者策略选择的因素，作者最终提出了一些能够通过两种翻译策略实现文化传递的方法和手段，以期对翻译实践起指导作用。

==关键词==：归化；异化；跨文化翻译

Introduction

Translation is not only an activity of lingual exchange and information transfer, but also a kind of cultural communication between different countries and nations. With the growing ties among countries, cross-translation has become a hot topic. And in recent years, translators have shown increasing interest in the problems arising from cultural differences in translation. Generally speaking, there are two principal strategies to tackle them in translation, namely, ”domestication” ”foreignization”. The domestication is target language oriented, while the foreignization is source language oriented.

The study on domestication and foreignization has lasted for quite a long time. 

There have been numerous disputes over domestication and foreignization both in China and abroad. In these disputes, people have been trying to obtain a conclusion as to which translation strategy is better. They tend to overemphasize one strategy and ignore the positive and indispensable role of the other. In fact, their relationship is dialectic. The paper tries to hold a dialectic attitude towards the dispute over domestication and foreignization and study the relationship between the two and tries to make a conclusion that domestication and foreignization are both useful in translation and translators should choose different strategies in various situations. In fact, an excellent translation always well combines the two strategies.

This thesis mainly consists of three chapters.

Chapter I is a brief survey of the history of domestication and foreignizatio.The paper will provide a detailed account of some fundamental issues in the study of domestication and foreignization, including their definitions, their details and their advantages and limitations.

Chapter 2 presents that the disputes on domestication and foreignization have permeated the history of translation both in the West and in China. The disputes in translation history show that both sides take absolute and one sided attitude towards the two translation strategies and they just overemphasize one of them. Thus many translators feel puzzled at what strategy to choose according to different situations.

Chapter 3 focuses on the factors influencing the choice of the translation strategies. General speaking,there are three major factors: translation purpose, the text type, and the target reader. Understanding these factors can help translators choose an appropriate translation strategy.A translator should try to avoid biases and remain objective. What’s more, he should consider the above three factors before he decides whether to adapt the original text or to retain as much as possible the foreign flavor of the original text.

In conclusion, the writer tries to conclude that a good translator should adopt different devices to realize different strategies according to different situations, and a good translation is one that well combines domestication and foreignization.

Ⅰ A Brief Study of Domestication and Foreignization

In many cases controversy is due to the looseness of clarification of fundamental issues (Hou Yanan 2004,5 ). Many people talk about domestication and foreignization when the fundamental issues are seldom clearly defined.In this chapter, the paper will provide some fundamental issues of domestication and foreignization which are based on the following arguments.

1.1 Definition

The terms of domestication and foreignization were first introduced by the famous American translator Lawrence Venuti in his book The Translator’s Invisibility: A History of Translation, which was published in 1995. Domestication and foreignization are defined by Lawrence Venuti as follows:”Domestication means bringing the foreign culture closer to the reader in the target culture, making the text recognizable and familiar. Foreignization, on the other hand, means taking the reader over to the  foreign culture, making him or her see the cultural and linguistic difference"(Venuti 1995:19-20). Domesticating means bringing the foreign culture closer to the reader in the target culture, making the text recognizable and familiar. Foreignizing, on the other hand, means taking the reader over to the foreign culture, making him or her see the differences.Compared to marriage, translation practice is similar to the marriage of a Chinese girl with a foreigner. By domestication,"the Chinese girl" will be forced to undergo the cosmetic in order to make her look like a westerner. By foreignization, the bride’s appearance will be left intact although she has to put on the western-style wedding gown. Her cultural identity is also kept to the maximum (Chen Fu 2004,4-5).

1.2 Details About Domestication

There are various opinions as to the forms of domestication.According to Ke Ping (Ke Ping 1993,23),domestication only refers to adaptation of words or phrases.That is domestication means that translating a word or phrase which is of target language (TL) cultural color and which is used as frequently in the TL as the original in the source language (SL) (Hou Yanan 20046).Qin Hongwu (Qin Hongwu 2000,372) holds that domestication also includes the adaptation of SL syntactic structure.According to the definition given by Lawrence Venuti, all the forms of adaptation aim to make the TL more acceptable and familiar to the TL readers.

Many scholars who favor domestication have put forward their own point view on domestication. Eugene Nida is widely considered as an influential representative of domesticating translation who puts much emphasis on the communication function of translation.His concept of "dynamic equivalence" or "functional equivalence"in translation is the representative of domestication strategy.Dynamic equivalence is defined as"a translation principle according to which a translator seeks to translate the meaning of the original in such a way that the target language wording will trigger the same impact one target culture audience as the original wording did upon the source text audience".

"A translation of dynamic equivalence aims at complete naturalness of expression. And tries to relate the receptor to modes of behavior relevant within the context of his own culture:it does not insist that he understand the cultural patterns of the source-language context in order to comprehend the message”(Nida,1964,159). Therefore, Nida pay much attention to readers response."the relationship between the original receptors and message should be substantially the same as that which existed between the original receptors and message"(Nida,1964:159). So a translation of dynamic equivalence directs its focus of attention not so much toward the source message as towards the receptor response (Zhou Min 2007, 23). For example, according to Nida’s approach of domestication, the Chinese idiom "智者千虑,必有一失"will be translated into "Homer sometimes nods"; the English idiom "to cast pearls before swine" can be translated into "对牛弹琴". A dynamic equivalent translation shifts the focus from verbal comparison between the originala and translation to readers' response (Zhou Min 2007,24).

Meanwhile, domestication involves alteration of the SL cultural images, syntactic structure, and so on. This kind of alteration is designed to make the translation more understandable and smoother to the TL readers. For example, in Hong Lou Meng,

谋事在人，成事在天。（第六回）

Man purposes, God disposes. (Hawkes)

Hawkes quotes the English proverb directly and make it untouched. In this way,he changes the Buddhist flavor into the Christian flavor. The SL image is replaced with TL cultural image.

He’s always been strong as a mule．

他一向壮得像头牛。

‘牛’is often used to express physical fitness in Chinese culture, while’牛’is expressed in‘horse’or‘mule’according to English expression habits.In summary, domesticated translation can provide readers with closeness,nature and fluency.TL readers easily accept this translation and have more profound understanding of the connotation of the target language.

1.3 Details About Foreignization

Foreignization signifies the differences of the foreign text. Lawrence Venuti,the representative of foreignization, views such kind of translation method as"a strategic cultural intervention in the current state of world affairs, against the hegemonic English-language nations and the unequal cultural exchanges in which they engage their global others” (Venuti 1995,20). Venuti puts forward that foreignization can be a form of resistance against ethnocentrism and racism, cultural narcissism and imperialism (Hou Yanan 2004,10).

Translators who adopt the foreignization strategy try to avoid any alteration or departure from the SL. The culture-specific elements, literary form, and linguistic feature are preserved as much as possible. Foreignization is based on the differences between different national cultures and advocates the original flavor of culture. The purpose of foreignization is to make the TL readers fully experience the exotic atmosphere, feel different nationalities and realize the differences among different language traditions and national cultures by retaining the language styles and national characteristics of foreign countries. Therefore, the appropriate foreignization not only promotes the cultural exchange,but also greatly enriches the expressiveness of the translated language(Tian Yunping 2005,107 ).With the expansion of cultural exchange,many English loanwords gradually infiltrate into Chinese through foreignizing translation and are widely familiar and accepted by us. For example,in English-Chinese translation, we have talk show(脱口秀),ivory tower(象牙塔),crocodile tears(鳄鱼的眼泪),sour grapes(酸葡萄) and so on. And in Chinese-English translation,there are 气功(qi gong),豆腐(to fu),功夫(kong fu),君子协定 (gentleman’s agreement ), 门户开放政策(the open door policy) and so on.

1.4 Advantages and Limitations of Domestication and Foreignization

Domestication and foreignization are the main translating strategies. While in translation, translators have a tendency to overemphasize the significance of one strategy and ignore the role of the other one. In fact, both domesticating and foreignizing strategies have their advantages and limitations.

As the main strategy,domestication holds its advantages. Mark Schuttleworth and Moira Cowie regard domestication as"a term used by Venuti to describe the translation strategy in which a transparent, fluent style is adopted in order to minimize the strangeness of the foreign text for the TL readers" (Schuttleworth and Cowie,1997,43-44). This involves erasing the linguistic and cultural differences of the original text and adapting them to the norms and conventions of the target culture.Therefore, this target-culture-oriented approach makes the foreign familiar and avoids cultural conflicts and communication barriers. However, every coin has two sides. Venuti holds that domestication has negative connotation "as it is identified with a policy common in dominant cultures which are ‘aggressive monolingual, unreceptive to the foreign’, and which he describes as being accustomed to fluent translations that invisibly inscribes foreign texts with TL values and provide readers with the narcissistic experience of recognizing their own culture in a cultural other"(Venuti, 1995,20). For example, Nide said that "to grow like mushroom" can be translated into "雨后春笋" so as to achieve functional equivalence, but "雨后春笋" may mislead Chinese readers into believing that there are bamboo shoots in the English-speaking countries.Though domestication is easier for the reader to understand and accept, its naturalness and smoothness of the TT are often achieved at the expense of the cultural messages of the SL. What's more, if the translator always adopts the domestication strategy to replace the cultural differences with the information familiar to TL readers, the TL readers will be further apart from SL culture. Readers just review their own culture which is against the purpose of intercultural communication.

Foreignization, source-culture-oriented approach, respects the foreignness of the source language and culture and try to retain the foreign linguistic forms and cultural differences in target text, so that it enables the target readers to gain "an alien reading experience"(Venuti,1995,20), to know the cultural otherness and to promote cultural communication. Besides, foreignization will play an significant role in preventing cultural hegemony and enhancing the status of foreign culture in the target culture. It is necessary for the target reader to acquaint himself with the foreign culture. What’s more, translation with foreignization could broaden the view of readers.It accords with the needs of cultural transmission and exchanges among different nations.

For instance,there are plenty of expressions concerning animals in every language. The tiger is considered to be the‘king of animals' and stands for dignity in Chinese, while in English, the same meaning is carried by the image of ‘lion’. For example,"他结婚了,太太是只母老虎”,in English, it can translates"He was married and had a lioness at home Another Chinese sentence." In the foreignized expressions, it is natural for readers to associate them with their native expressions. Through the comparison, they can understand different usages and the exact connotations of the lion and those of the tiger. It is in this way that target readers enrich their acquisition of foreign cultures and accelerate cultural communication.

However,there are limitations in foreignizating translation.Sometimes, alien cultural image and linguistic features may cause information overload to the readers. For example,if the reader can’t understand the ST image, he can’t receive the cultural message contained in the ST, and he may even fail to understand the ST.

Ⅱ Disputes over Domestication and Foreignization in History

No study of domestication and foreignization would be complete without consideration of them in a historical perspective.Throughout the history,there are many different opinions on domestication and foreignization in cross-culture translation.

2.1 Disputes over Domestication and Foreignization in the West

In the west,there are various opinions on domestication and foreignization.It was Cicero in the first century B.C.who first eloquently formulated that a translatormust be either an interpreter or rhetorician.For the next two thousand years, translation theory was mainly limited to a heated discussion of this dichotomy.

In the western translation field of today, the loudest speaker for domestication is Eugene Nida, and Lawrence Venuti is the representative of those who favor foreignization. Domestication recommends fluent translation. Eugene Nida is the representative of those who favor domesticating translation. The concept of dynamic equivalence is a clear indication of his inclination towards domestication. "A dynamic equivalence aims at complete naturalness of expression and tries to relate the receptor to modes of behavior relevant within the context of his own culture" (Nida,1993,159). Dynamic equivalence or functional equivalence is based on the principle of equivalent effect,i.e.the relationship between receiver and message should aim at being the same as that between the original receivers and the SL message(Zhou Ming 2007,41). A minimal definition of functional equivalence is stated as “ The readers of a translated text should be able to comprehend it to the point that they can conceive of how the original readers of the text must have understood and appreciated it" in the book Language, Culture and Translating (Nida, 1993,117). He claims, "Anything less than this degree of equivalence should be unacceptable"(Nida,1993, 118). The maximal,ideal definition is stated as “the readers of a translated text should be able to understand and appreciate it in essentially the same manner as the original readers did" (Nida, 1993: 118). Nida’s "Dynamic Equivalence" can be viewed as a euphemism for domestication (Zhou Ming 2007,41). This can be evidenced also in Nida's own words "The translator must be a person who can draw aside the curtains of linguistic and cultural differences so that people may see clearly the relevance of the original meaning"(Nida, 1993: 121). All in all, Nida's theory virtually reinforces the status of domestication as a canon in English-language translation.

Since the publication of the Translator’s Invisibility in 1986, Lawrence Venuti has become one of the most prominent figures in contemporary U.S. translation circle. Lawrence Venuti is a major advocator of foreignization. His aim is "rather to develop a theory and practice of translation that resists dominant target-language cultural values so as  to signify the linguistic and cultural difference of the foreign text" (Venuti, 1995, 23). He states"the fact of translation is erased by suppressing the linguistic and cultural differences of the foreign text, assimilating it to dominant values in the target-language culture, making it recognizable and therefore seemingly untranslatable. With this domestication the translated text passes for the original"(Venuti,1995,23). Hence,he puts forth the principle of"resistancy" to signify the difference from the foreign text by disrupting the cultural codes that prevail in the target language.

2.2 Disputes over Domestication and Foreignization in China

The disputes over domestication and foreignization can be dated back to the period of translating the Sanskrit Buddhist scriptures into Chinese， which is known as the dispute over"simple translation"(文)and"sophisticated translation"(质) Sutra scriptures. Dao’an (Luo Xingzhang 1984，26) firmly advocated faithful translation of "zhi", namely,foreignizatiing translation. While Kumarajiva is strongly against foreignization. He advocated the translation of "wen".In the 1930s,Zhao Jingshen (Luo Xingzhang 1984:267) proposed the translation principle of “smoothness over faithfulness”. Zhao declared that a piece of translation should be smooth, even if smoothness was achieved at the expense of faithfulness. Thus he chose to “rearrange Yan Fu’s three points in a new order, as follows: expressiveness, faithfulness, elegance"(Luo Xingzhangv1984,267). The most famous Chinese scholar who firmly advocates domestication in the 20th century might be Qian Zhongshu. He insists that the highest standard of translation be "sublimation" and a translation be "so faithful to the source text that it does not read like a translated work, because the text in the source language will by no means read like a translated one"(Qian Zhongshu,1981,18-19). That is to say,a piece of good translation should not reveal its foreignness.Compared with the advocacy of foreignization, the school of domestication is more powerful and popular.Most acknowledged translators century were the representatives of the domestication school,such as Yan Fu,Zhang Guruo,Yang Bi ,just to name a few. (Zhou Ming 2007,39) Professor Xu Yuanchong favors domestication. He sees clearly the differences between eastern and western cultures，and proposes the theory of cultural competition to deal with the cultural differences.That is, a translator should make full use of the strength of the TL in order to make the TT more beautiful (Xu Yuanchong,2000:90).As using of four-character-phrases is widely acknowledged as one of the characteristics as well as strong points of the Chinese language,Xu uses a lot of four character phrases in his translation. He also likes to use phrases from ancient Chinese literary works in his translation. For example,“ Elle morul”is translated into“魂归离恨天”which is a phrase used in Hong Lou Meng(Hou Yanan 2004，21).

Ⅲ Factors Influencing the Choice of Domestication and Foreignization

In essence, domestication and foreignization are only two different translation methods used to deal with the linguistic and cultural differences between in the process of translation. Whether to choose domestication or foreignization is determined by many factors. Generally speaking, there are so many factors influencing the translator's strategy choice. For example, the text type,the translation purpose,the target reader, the translators cultural attitude,the context, etc.This paper will make a discussion about the three factors: the translation purpose,the text type and the target reader.

3.1 The Translation Purpose

Translation is a purposeful activity.Any human activity is conducted with certain intention in mind.Translation as a human activity is no exception.According to Manttari，the famous functional translation theorist,translating behavior is a complex activity designed to realize the information convey across different cultures and different languages. In his opinion, purpose principle is the first principle of translation(周敏60). As Hermans points out: “Without such intention, without taking into account the function which the translation is meant to serve or the problem it is trying to solve,the translators choices appear whimsical, or pointless,or wholly idiosyncratic" (Hermans,1999,39). Because of the existence of linguistic and cultural differences, there is no complete equivalence between TL and SL. Then what should be preserved and what should be altered, or to what degree the SL should be preserved, in other words, what translation strategies the translator should chose is determined by the purpose of translation (周敏60-61). On the one hand, if the main purpose of translation is to introduce the culture of the SL, to promote the mutual understanding and communication between different cultures in order to broaden the view of the target readers. We should adopt the foreignization strategy. On the other hand, if the main purpose is for amusement or to please the target readers, and avoid the cultural obstacles or conflicts that may occur in readers reading and comprehending of the TT, domestication should be chosen firstly. Therefore, if translation is for a specific purpose and the task is very urgent, his major concern will be the fluency and readability of the translation in order to avoid obscurity and ambiguity. In such case, the domestication approach is preferable. On the contrary,if translation is for a pressing task of communication,he may adopt foreignization in order to meet the need of appreciating foreign cultures on the part of the readers. For example, in the Chinese sentence “谋事在人, 成事在天”, the word “天”, in China, is a Daoism concept, while in western we will use “God”. Foreignization strategy should be adopted if the purpose of translation is to popularize the Daoism and broaden the westerners’ horizon about Chinese culture. The translator can use the word ‘ heaven’ to keep foreign flavors. On the contrary, when the purpose of translation is to make the target readers know the meaning of the sentence and improve the readability of the sentence, domestication should be adopted to make TT more acceptable to the readers and the  word ‘god’ should be used.

So the purpose of translation can shift cultural orientation, which may also determine which translation strateg to choose, domestication or foreignization in some aspects.

3.2 The Target Reader

In the translating process, the translator acts as the producer and the readers the receptor. The relationship between the producer (translator) and receptor (readers)is considered one of the most important among relations involved in translating process (周敏,67).A translation process is not complete without the participation of the readers.  Nida  (Nida 1993: 139) once said:“The target audience for which a translation is made almost always constitutes a major factor in determining the translation procedures and the level of language to be employed.” Therefore, the level of the intended readers plays an important role in determining a translator’s  translation strategy. As target readers are different from each other in almost every aspect, the translator is responsible to analyze their respective communicative needs. The readers are the ultimate judges of a translation. Therefore, the first and foremost  thing the translator should bear in mind is to recognize what type of readers his work will probably face.The readers will be they children,general public or experts and so on, in order to have his versions acceptable to the target readers.

Depending on the different groups of readers, the translator can decide which kind of approach he may adopt. For example, for the sentence below, there will be different translations according to different groups of readers.

He is a modern Samson.

(1)他简直就是现代的参孙。

(2)他是一个大力士。

Samson is a character in Bible, who is famous for his strong figure. For readers  who know western culture very well, version(1), which is the result of foreignization,seems to be a vivid translation. However, for those who are not familiar with or those who know little about western culture, version (2) is more comprehensible and preferable.

All in all, translators should pay attention to the target reader in the translating process.Domestication and foreignization both take target readers,their cultural backgrounds,their expectation and the time the are in and so on, into consideration but with different focuses of emphasis. The translator should stress the significant role of target readers in order to make a better translation.

3.3 The Text Type

Different types of texts require different translation strategies. Because different types of ST have different functions and intentions, which requires the translator to choose different translation strategies. So, different types of ST also affect the choice of translation strategies.

According to Christiane Nord,translation can be classified into instrumental translation and documentary translation (Christiane Nord,1997,36). Instrumental translation refers to transfer information of communicative activity in the source culture into the target culture in the translating process. This type of translation is mainly used in the true information and tries to preserve the truth. It stresses the transmission of information,which mainly includes non-literary writing such as advertisement, journalistic writing, reports, scientific and so on. Therefore, the aim of translation is to achieve the accuracy of the content and fluency in language without paying attention to the foreign flavor. Thus domestication is more accessible and can be obtained as much as possible.

Documentary translation refers to the translation that is the medium to represent authentic communicative activities in the source language culture for the target readers(周敏63). Documentary translation is suitable for translating the original expression where the specific language of the speaker or writer is as important as the content. It is often used in fictional texts like literature. Mainly concerning the mental field and imaginary things, this kind of text contains rich cultural connotations, and reflects the social thoughts and customs (周敏 63).So,in the documentary translation, the foreignization strategy is preferable. 

From the above analysis, we could have a conclusion that different strategies should be adopted according to different types of the source text. For example, when translators translate political, historical or philosophical texts,the method of foreignization is often adopted because the aim of these texts is to introduce and reveal the source cultures. On the other hand, when translators translate texts of practical styles, such as notices, news reports, advertisements and popular literature, domestication tends to be the general guideline because the purpose for these texts is to achieve wider readers and better readability (周敏 64).

In summary, understanding these factors can help a translator to choose an appropriate translation strategy. 

Conclusion

In a word, in the cross-cultural perspective, domestication and foreignization have their own advantages, and have a profound impact on translation. In different contexts, they should be reasonably selected, which puts forward higher requirements for the translator’s cultural literacy. In the process of translation, translators should adopt more appropriate translation methods according to specific problems and specific conditions, so that domestication and foreignization complement each other to achieve the ultimate goal of promoting cultural exchanges and communication. If one-sided emphasis on domestication or the pursuit of foreignization will lead to a very short translation work. Therefore,it is necessary to combine the two methods scientifically and grasp the degree to improve the translation effect.

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The Translation of Cultural Elements in Tourism Promotional Materials Under Skopos Theory

杨子泠 Yang Ziling 202070080647

Abstract

As China has become an increasingly large inbound tourism country, efforts are put in the promotion of supporting facilities, among which promotion service, especially Tourism Promotional Materials (TMP), is the main way to introduce to not only Chinese tourists themselves but also the great number of foreign travelers, China’s scenic spots, natural resources and culture, and thereby arouse their interest in the landscapes and ancient cultural relics. Therefore, the translation of TMP is of vital importance in the publicity. Based on Skopostheory, this paper first introduces TPMs, then compares cultural differences in TPM translation. Finally it concludes some strategies and techniques used in TPM translation under the framework of Skopostheory. The author deems it that TPM translation should stand on the side of foreigners, meanwhile revealing the main idea of Chinese original sources.

Key Words

TPM translation cultural differences Skopostheory

摘要

中国已经成为了一个旅游大国，政府开始大力完善旅游配套设施，其中旅游宣传服务，特别是旅游宣传资料是向中外游客介绍中国旅游景点，自然资源以及文化的最主要方式，从而激起他们对自然风光和古文物的兴趣。因此，旅游宣传资料对宣传工作十分重要。文章从目的论的角度出发，首先介绍了旅游宣传资料，然后对比了宣传资料中中西方的文化差异。最后基于目的论，文章总结出几种实际可行的翻译策略和技巧。作者认为旅游宣传资料的翻译应该站在外国游客的立场来传达中文素材的主要信息。

关键词

旅游宣传资料翻译 文化差异 目的论

I. Introduction

China is a large tourism country with rapid development of tourism industry. Tourism has become increasingly more an entertainment enriching people’s spiritual life. Serving as promotional materials and advertisements, Tourism Promotional Material (hereafter referred to as TPM) plays increasingly important role in introducing China’s specialty to the world. With the development, more and more TPMs have been translated into English in recent years. Indeed, some good translation materials leave a strong impression on travelers to China, especially those from English speaking countries. It is truly a better way to attract more visitors across the world, to introduce famous scenic spots, tourist attractions and food specialties and to promote the development of international tourism and cultural communication.

TPM, to a certain degree, is a trademark and an external promotion work of tourism destinations, revealing the first image of the tourist attractions, landscapes and the surrounding environments. A good translation is of great significance in the first impression it leaves on potential visitors. Since TPM has a strong effect on the image of tourist attractions in domestic tourism industry, the study of it is of great importance. Mr. Liu Fagong (2012:70) once said, “some translation errors seem to be very slight, but it can reflect the international communicative competence of a certain area or a certain enterprise”. Inappropriate translation will not only lead to cultural misunderstanding, but also result in barriers in the development of international tourism as a whole.

This thesis focuses on the possible strategies to improve the quality of TMP by comparing Chinese and western cultural differences. To guide the practice of Chinese TPM translation, various theories have been adopted and used, among which Skopostheory is going to be testified. The merits of it and the awareness of cultural differences are to be revealed.

Therefore, it first introduces the definition and features of TPM. Then it reveals the difficulties in the translation of TPM caused by cultural differences. After that, the framework of Skopostheory is introduced and the methods and strategies of cultural translation in TPM is discussed under the framework of Skopostheory.

II. Literature Review

2.1 Tourism Promotional Materials (TPM)

2.1.1 Definition of Tourism Promotional Materials In order to define tourism promotional materials, the definition of promotional materials should first be made clear. Mr. Duan Liancheng (1990: 97) has put TPM into two separate categories: the general type and the official type. The former refers to general reports and region guiding brochures, mainly introducing China’s current issues to the public, including introduction of economy, politics, society, culture, people’s living situation and historical heritage. The latter refers to official documents, diplomatic conference and legal instruments, etc. Written in a special form, TPM covers many fields and areas.

TPM in this article is the general type, dealing with the tourism industry and resources in tourism cities, which aims at foreign readers. TPM has various types, including books, brochures, maps, paintings, videos, TV documents, newspapers, periodicals and tourism-guided websites as well. TPM serves to depict China’s scenic spots, culture and historical heritages, broadening viewers’ sight, arousing interests among them and finally making them eager to pay a visit.

2.1.2 Characteristics of Tourism Promotional Materials

As an informative type of material with certain purposes, tourism promotional materials are very distinct from other type of text, for example news, document, reports etc. They are equipped with features as follow:

Firstly, informative as they are, abundant messages covering all parts of social life are included. Since tourism, nowadays, not simply embraces scenery and transportation, but is a concept including experiencing different culture convention, food distinction and language confliction. Therefore, tourism publicity materials should convey a wide range of ideas that may be involved in tourism activities. Secondly, tourism publicity materials mainly boost deep cultural connotation. They aim at tourists all over the world who come from different cultural backgrounds, who share distinct religions and who have various thinking modes and patterns. To make TPM understood and accepted by all, cultural connotation is to be expressed with the aid of aspects of laws, politics, economics and so on.

2.1.3 Function of Tourism Promotional Materials

Intended for the potential tourists, tourism publicity materials provide basic information about destinations, including its cultural background, local people and services. With the assistance of such materials, people’s overview about the target destinations is formed; their interests of visitation are aroused. It aims at convincing tourists, say target readers, of the beauties of destinations. Taken this intention into consideration, TPM contain functions as follows:

First, TPMs are informative and serve informative function. Generally speaking, TPM passes the first images of tourist attractions, cities or provinces on to target readers. Tourism materials such as brochures, photo albums and leaflets impress people at first. TPM carry basic information not only about culture, history but also always nature and ethnic relics as well.

Second, TPMs are attractive, intending to attract people when they see them at the first sight. In order to make it a success, only to provide information is far from enough. A successful promotional material needs to be equally informative and attractive, making the content easy to remember. Rather through their bright colors and magnificent landscapes, TPM are attractive in the way they depict and express. Therefore, often a series of writing techniques are required and used to achieve this effect.

Third, apart from being informative and attractive, TPM should be persuasive as well. Actually speaking, persuasive function is the most important of the three functions, as through it visitors’ interests and final minds are to be stimulated. As a promotion function, it is always significant to appeal to target readers.

Consequently, the translation of TPM should also take these three functions into consideration in order to achieve final goal of TPM.

III. Difficulties in The Translation of TPM Caused by Cultural Differences

The so-called cultural difference is what people form in different ecological and natural environment, such as various language, knowledge, belief, outlook on life, values, ways of thinking, ethics, customs and other aspects of social life. In their own living environment, distinct ethnic groups create their own unique cultural system, shaping their own culture. The difference of culture, especially between Eastern and Western countries, leads to people's different understanding and interpretation on the same thing or even causes misunderstanding (Yu, 2000: 58).

3.1 Differences in Psychology

For domestic and foreign tourists, they have different tourism motivations, which reflects their different cultural and psychological state. Because most of the tourists at home are familiar with attractions of the historic events, the anecdotes, and the poetry, their purpose is to relax, enjoy the nature, taste the local food, and experience the cultural atmosphere. However, as for foreign visitors, their main motivation is to experience the exotic culture, hoping to get knowledge and to enrich their life experience in China. A qualified translator must always understand this difference, and then take effective measures, to the maximum extent, to meet the needs of readers.

3.2 Differences in Food Culture

Chinese pay close attention to diet, and have formed a rich diet culture, emphasizing color, smell, taste of each dish. However, some foods, such as traditional salted production, are not good for the body with some auxiliary materials due to the pursuit of taste. In the process of cooking, Chinese fry the dishes in many ways. To name the dishes, menu also expresses the people's pursuit of beauty, such as Sixi Wanzi, glutinous Rice Balls etc. They have all been granted special meanings. Nevertheless, people in western countries focus on nutrition. They pay attention to the quantity of protein, Calorie, and raw materials in each food. So American "KFC" -- Kentucky Fried Chicken -- is a simple combination of production process and the raw material. So in the translation of diet culture, translators should also take into account the differences between Chinese and western people.

3.3 Differences in Customs

Every nation has its own unique folk customs. Many foreign tourists are very interested in Chinese people's way of life, especially the origin of some festivals and the way local people celebrate them. For example, during Chinese lunar spring festival, people make dumplings and eat them. During Chinese Lantern Festival, people boil sweet dumplings and hang up lanterns. Tomb-sweeping Day is not only a solar term, but also a day for people to worship ancestors. Dragon-Boat Festival and Mid-Autumn Festival have customs respectively. In western countries, they have Halloweens and Christmas, carrying distinct cultures as well. People in China bow to Heaven and Earth as part of a wedding ceremony while westerners go to churches. Westerners have Valentine's Day and China Double Seven Day. Although the origins are different, they have evolved into special days for lovers to exchange passion between each other. Increasingly more young westerners know The Legend of Love in China. Therefore, apart from distinctions, culture also has something in common, which makes it translatable and understandable.

3.4 Differences in Religions

The majority of westerners believe in Chris, and Chinese people have more religious belief include: Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, Catholicism and Protestantism. They are having far-reaching influence on people's ideology in China. These places have also become the tourist hot spots. Temples, Buddha, Buddhist scriptures in many attractions have attracted a large number of foreign tourists across the world.

IV. Tourism Text Sources Translation Under Skopos Rules

4.1 A Functionalist Theoretical Framework: The Skopostheory The functionalist approach to translation came into being in the late 1970 in Germany. After its emergence, it had become a prominent strategy and one of the dominant theories used in translation studies. A German scholar Hans J. Vermeer (Vermeer, 1879: 208) first proposed Skopostheory which is widely applied in translating various projects. Skopostheory is to be the functionalist theoretical framework of this research.

4.1.1 An Overview of the Functionalist Approach

According to Bassnett (Bassnett, 2002: 43-44), the purpose of translation theory is to achieve an understanding in the course of translation behavior. The act of translation was purely a linguistic activity then. Because of the limitations of linguistic theories, translation theorists started to approach the act of translation in a different point of view in the 1970s. Therefore, the functionalist approach to translation began to emerge. According to Nida, “translating consists in reproducing in the receptor language the closest natural equivalent of the source-language message, first in terms of meaning and second in terms of style” (Nida & Taber, 1983: 12). Later, Nida proposed dynamic/functional equivalence theory, which breaks the stereotype of the traditional linguistic approach and then leads the way of further studies. This theory is very practical in TPM translation because it achieves functional equivalence while sharing the same purpose of TPM translation.

4.1.2 Development of Skopostheory

In Paul Kussmaul’s (Kussmaul, 2005: 37) point of view, the functional approach is closely related to Skopostheory. To translate the source text into a new language, target readers’ culture characteristics, religion relics and historical backgrounds are to be considered, which determines whether the source texts are to be preserved, modified, or even changed. As TPM is highly practical and pragmatic, its function value is not to be ignored. In Nord’s (Nord, 2005: 10) words, “in the translation of practical texts (such as advertisement, instructions), instead of literary works, theorists adhering to equivalence are more likely to adopt the method of non-word-for-word translation. They choose translation methods followed by identifying different or even contrary standards in accordance with different types of texts and genres of discourses, which makes them more on fused by equivalent theory”. Some scholars agreed with Nord’s view and made functional approaches more practical in translation, which makes the theory more useful in TPM translation. Consequently, the Skopostheory developed with the main study of the four theorists: Katharina Reiss, Hans J. Vermeer, Justa Holz-Manttari and Christiane Nord.

Katharina Reiss (Reiss, 2004: 32) first put forward the concept of text topology, denying the proposal that any target sources not equivalent to the original ones are considered as “non-translation”. Reiss pointed out comprehensive communicative translation, which made the ideas equivalent to the corresponding sources rather than individual words. His contribution laid the foundation for the development of Skopostheory. Katharina Reiss’s view better serves the function purpose of TPM translation, making Chinese traditional culture features well revealed in a foreign way.

Vermeer was the first one who proposed Skopostheory. According to his theory (Vermeer, 2000: 228), “translation is a type of human action”, and “any action has its own purpose (skopos)”, thus “translation is an intentional and purposeful behavior”. It can be concluded that translation is a purposeful action aiming at target readers, so the target text should bear fully their culture, religion and background to be better appropriate.

Then Skopostheory was improved by Justa Holz-Manttari (Manttari, 2001: 35) with his translation action method. Translation is defined as “a complex action designed to achieve a particular purpose or function”(Nord, 2005: 16), and according to Holz-Manttari, it should be regarded as the “translation action” instead of “translation”. Her theory highlighted oriented outcome and driven purpose. Moreover, the commissioner is concerned. The translation action proposed by Holz-Manttari is later widely used in TPM translation due to its practical features.

Christiane Nord (Nord, 2001: 197) finally refined Skopostheory by proposing her own functional practice “function plus loyalty”. She added the concept of “loyalty” to the framework of functional approaches. In her theory, “Function refers to the factors that make a target text work in the intended way in the target situation” (Nord, 2001: 125), which is basically in accordance with Vermeer’s view.

4.2 Skopos Rules (Wu, 2008: 28)

Skopos rule itself is above all in three rules. There are many purposes in the field of translation, but skopos refer to the purpose of target text. According to it, what determines the process of translation is not source text itself or the effect it has on target readers, but the expected function of the target source. Therefore it is regarded as results determining methods.

Second one is the coherence rule. As a target source, the translation is for target readers who share different cultural backgrounds or religion relics and who are going to find the parts that interest them. In this regard, translators should bear in mind their distinct backgrounds and cultural situations, making the translation reasonably understandable and acceptable.

The third rule is the loyalty rule. Since target text is originated from the source text, they are related to each other. However, the relationship is depended upon the skopos and explanation of the translator.

According to Skopostheory, the skopos rule is above all to follow, then the coherence rule and then the loyal rule.

4.3 The Translation of Cultural Elements in TPM Under Skopostheory

Translation of TPM aims at ordinary foreign tourists, introducing Chinese tourism industry and various natural resources, not including monographs for experts traveling in China(Cheng, 2008: 30). Tourism promotional materials are practical, which arouse interests among tourists. As a result, TPM translation should first follow the basic rule of Skopostheory.

The purpose of the target text-oriented principles are concerned about the target text itself and the tastes of readers. The majority of the source text is written to attract tourists at home, so it will not have the same effect on foreigners. If the source text is created for translation, the translator is also short of indispensable target culture. The translator should be aware that he is translating one culture to another and that he needs to pick out useful information from source text. Furthermore, the source text is one kind of all messages. It does not necessarily be the primary standard. Translation should aim at tourists, so translators should translate to attract them and arouse their interest. This is the final goal of TPM translation. TPM can be various in style and form. As for a translator, cultural elements are huge challenges. However, under Skopostheory, it is to pass cultural messages on to potential foreign visitors.

What is more, those who travel distances to China are not only for bird viewing landscapes, but also for exotic culture and lifestyles. Therefore, culture translation should include as many Chinese cultural messages as possible, to a certain degree, following the third rule – loyalty rule.

V. The Translation of Cultural Elements in TPM Under Skopostheory

Traveling is not only for landscapes but cultural differences as well. The translation of TPM is intended to attract visitors to come and consume. Consequently, cultural translation is a matter of primary importance.

Susan Bassnett (Bassnett, 2002: 59), the famous Britain translation theorist, pointed out four specific concepts in Cultural Translation Theory. Firstly, translation should be based on the culture rather than text itself. Secondly, translation is not simply to decode restructuring, but a communication process. Thirdly, target text should not be restricted to source text, and should focus on functional equivalence in two cultures. Last but not least, there are difference norms and standards for translation in different period, each meeting distinct needs. The translation of cultural elements in TPM is to meet the need of people experiencing Chinese local culture. There are various cultural elements in TPM, such as food culture, custom, religion, poetry and landscape architecture etc. Under the framework of Skopostheory, the translation strategies of cultural elements can be concluded into transliteration, literal translation and free translation.

5.1 Transliteration with Explanation Transliteration is often adopted when translating Chinese words that do not exit in English. However, only transliteration may lead to misunderstanding sometimes, therefore, it is usually followed by explanations. Explanations always well express the meaning, enabling target readers better understand the different culture it embraces

Example 1. 烧卖 Shaomai (Steamed Pork Dumplings)

          豆汁  Douzhir (Fermented Bean Drink)
          汤圆  Tangyuan (Glutinous Rice Balls)
          驴打滚  Lüdagunr (Glutinous Rice Rolls with Sweet Bean Flour)
          油条  Youtiao (Deep-Fried Dough Stick)

Examples of transliteration are often found in food translation. Chinese traditional foods are short in Chinese and rarely seen in western countries as well. Therefore, only using transliteration is hard to explain clearly what the main source of the foods are and how they come into being, as these elements are highlighted by western countries. So transliteration is followed by explanation in such translation.

Example 2. 土家族建筑的独特之处在于，在正屋左右两端建有吊脚楼。吊脚楼分上下两层，楼上有伸出的悬空走廊，下面有雕刻而成的柱脚。走廊外沿两边，檐角翘起，雄伟壮观。

The special feature of the Tujia architecture – Diao Jiao Lou is represented by the house with an extending corridor supported by wooden pillars on both side of the main room. There are two stories in the house, the upper floor of which has an extending corridor seemingly suspended in the air while the lower one has sculpted pillars on the ground. Grand are the eave points tilting up on both ends of the corridor edge. (Xu, 2007: 133)

People take granted for “吊脚楼” in Chinese, because the name suggests the appearance of the building. However, when translated into English, Diao Jiao Lou is followed by explanations – “the house with an extending corridor supported by wooden pillars”. If it is literally translated, the sound effect of revealing a picturesque image will not be achieved.

Example 3. 文人墨客常以古代美女西施来比喻西湖的娇美，因此它又有“西子湖”的美称。

Many men of letters like to compare the West Lake in Hangzhou, whose Chinese name is Xi Hu, to the famous beauty Xi Shi of the Spring and Autumn Period, calling it “Xi Zi Hu”, where “zi”, in Chinese, is used to refer to a female.

In this example, if translation stops by transliteration, target readers will not get the full picture of the history behind the West Lake. The impression made on them will not that deep so it may not achieve the effect of attracting them to visit. Therefore, explanation is indispensable in such special words that merely exist in Chinese.

5.2 Literal Translation

Literal translation refers to the faithful translation that is loyal to original sources. The translators do not need to make any adjustment in addition to the sentence structure due to the essential information and not much special cultural contents provided in original sources. This translation method is often used in the introduction of the area, location, development and entertainment. The examples are as follow:

Example 4. 老醋泡花生 Peanuts Pickled in Aged Vinegar

         腌三文鱼 Marinated Salmon 
         北菇扒菜心Braised Shanghai Greens and Mushrooms
         陈皮兔肉 Rabbit Meat with Tangerine Flavor

In this menu, literal translation is used because essential information has been given and there is not much special culture contents. Under this circumstance, literal translation will not lead to misunderstanding among target readers.

Example 5. 弟子数百里受业仙师,纵不能得长生术,或小有传习,亦可慰求教之心。《老山道士》

I came hundred miles to study under such an immortal master as yourself. Even though I cannot learn the art of everlasting life, there are many be some small skills you could impart that would appease my wish for learning. (The Taoist of Lao Mountain)

In this example, these Taoism related words and expressions reflect an aspect of Chinese traditional culture. With the development of cultural communication, when translating these culture-loaded words, literal translation is practical when target readers are able to understand. Because it can better pass Chinese traditional culture on to foreigners, keeping them interested in Chinese traditions. In this example, “仙师” is translated into “immortal master” and “长生术”, art of everlasting life.

Literal translation is practical for TPM that does not contain specific substantive cultural content. It is not necessarily to adopt various methods to translate.

5.3 Free Translation Considering that not every original text can be literally translated because of the differences of sentence structures or words. Free translation is to express the original meaning in a complete English way, not word for word or sentence for sentence translation, which focuses more on the content of sentences. Translators should pay more attention to the whole meaning rather than single words.

Example 6. 夫妻肺片 Pork Lungs in Chili Source

          蛋黄狮子头 Stewed Meat Ball with Egg York,
          蚂蚁上树 Sauteed Vermicelli with Spicy Minced Pork

There are many original dish names with no sources in them because they always have stories behind and are often well-known among Chinese, however, with which foreigners will be frightened. These examples often contain exaggerated elements. If translated literally, it will not express the original idea or the true features of the dishes which foreigners value most.

Example 7. 梁山伯与祝英台的故事，是西湖爱情的又一不朽之作。(Wu, 2008: 342)

Translation 1. The love story of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai is another imperishable work of the West Lake Romance.

Translation 2. Butterflies Romance, known as a Chinese Romeo and Juliet, is another heartbreaking love story engendered by the West Lake.

The first version is noticeably literal translation, without the explanation of the two names. In China, the names are well-known to all. However, it is not the same story with westerners. After reading the first version, they are not deeply impressed. Therefore, here merely transliteration cannot work. In comparison, the second translation takes free translation, omitting the names and adding “known as a Chinese Romeo and Juliet”. In this way, they immediately know what has happened by the West Lake, because they are quite familiar with the love story between Romeo and Juliet.

Example 8. 南京的风俗：但凡新媳妇进门，三日就要到厨房收拾一样菜，发个利市。这菜一定是鱼，取“富贵有徐”的意思。 (Wu, 1958: 285)

The custom in Nanjing is for all brides to invite good luck by going to the kitchen on the third day and cooking a fish, which stands for fortune. (杨宪益、戴乃迭译) (Bao, 2001: 340)

In this sentence, it is “收拾” in Chinese and “cooking” in English. In Chinese “收拾” has many meanings such as tidy(the room), clear away(the kitchen), and even repair(a bike). However, these are not related to the dishes. So Mr. Yang and Mr. Dai used free translation and put it into “cooking”. Then the idea is clearly delivered.

Example 9. 《好了歌》

        世人都晓神仙好,
        只有功名忘不了!
        古今将相在何方?
        荒家一堆草没了!

Translation from H.B. Chorley (1892) All men spiritual life know to be good, But fame to disregard they never succeed!

From old till now the state-men where are they? Waste lie their graves，a heap of grass extinct．

Translation from E. Hudson (1928) To train for a saint we know is best， But love of fame distracts our minds． Where are homebred sages now? Grass grows on their place of rest．

Translation from Mr. Wang Jizhen (1987): They all know the freedom of the immortals But Reward and Fame they cannot forget． Where are the ministers and generals past and present? Under the neglected graves overgrown with grass．

Translation from Hawks (1999): Men all know that salvation should be won. But with ambition won’t have done, have done． Where are the famous ones of days gone by? In grassy graves they lay now, every one.

This poem is the combination of Taoism “quietism” and Buddhist “nothing concrete”, reminding people not to be tired of fame and wealth.

In H.B. Chorley’s version, “神仙” is literally translated into “spiritual life”, which means spiritual and religious, not revealing the artistic conception of “神仙”. E. Hudson put it into “saint”, which is used to describe a person who is kind, good, or holy, not showing the value of “神仙” indeed. According to Mr. Wang, “immortals” is used, conveying living or continuing forever, which also does not give the whole picture of the goodness of “神仙” in Chinese. In comparison, Hawks adopted the word “salvation”, which means something that prevents or saves someone or something from danger, loss, or failure, and the explanation is equal to Christians belief in which only God can save mankind, and all the well-being comes from God’s gift. He used the method of free translation, making target readers has the same recognition as source text readers.

Free translation is widely used in TPM translation when much special cultural content is included and literal translation is not practical. Free translation can better maintain cultural features of original sources while expressed in a foreign way.

VI. Conclusion

Tourism promotional materials translation plays an important role in the development of tourism. Translators should not translate word by word or sentence by sentence, but they should translate under a certain theoretical guidance, adopting some translating methods and strategies and taking into account the differences between Chinese and Western cultures. Only in this way can translation be possibly understood and accepted.

Tourism promotional materials are practical, aiming at attracting potential visitors to come and visit China after reading them. In this regard, they should be translated under the framework of Skopostheory. Based on translation practice, this paper studies the method of translation from several cultural points under the guidance of Skopostheory.

Part one gives a brief introduction of this paper. Part two discusses the definition and the main features of TPM and the importance of a better translation. Then it analyzes the difficulties in translation caused by cultural differences and the framework of Skopostheory. Finally, under this framework, translation strategies and methods are discussed.

There are many other aspects in the field of cultural differences in tourism promotional materials, such as poetry, landscapes and architecture etc. Due to the limited length of the paper and my own knowledge, other parts cannot be fully illustrated. To conclude, it is worthwhile to study TPM translation from the perspective of cultural differences.

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Functional Equivalence

Research on C-E Translation of Corporate Publicity Texts from the Perspective of Functional Equivalence 彭锐宏 Peng Ruihong

摘 要：随着全球经济一体化进程的不断发展，越来越多的中国企业开始走向全球市场，企业外宣文本的英译文本成为了国内企业与国外客户联系的桥梁。查阅我国企业外宣文本的英译本，其中不乏大量优秀译作；但同时,也有不少企业外宣英译文本的质量有待提高。在翻译企业外宣文本实践中，奈达的功能对等理论能够很好地指导企业外宣资料的翻译。因此本文将中外外宣文本进行对比，并对中外企业外宣文本的英译做深入的分析探讨。

关键词：功能对等理论；企业外宣文本；翻译方法

Abstract: With the further deepening of global economic integration, more and more Chinese enterprises are going to the global market and the English translation of enterprise publicity text becomes the bridge between domestic enterprises and foreign customers. The English translation of the publicity texts of Chinese enterprises includes a large number of excellent translations; But at the same time, there are many enterprises publicity English translation with bad quality. In the practice of translation of publicity texts of enterprises, Nida’s functional equivalence theory can well guide the translation of publicity materials of enterprises. Therefore, this paper compares China’s corporate publicity texts with foreign corporate publicity texts and makes deep discussion and exploration in C-E translation of corporate publicity texts.

Key Words: corporate promotional materials; Functional equivalence; translation methods--Peng Ruihong (talk) 03:12, 30 October 2020 (UTC)

OUTLINE I. Introduction II. Brief Introduction to Functional Equivalence Theory

  2.1 The Concept of Equivalence
  2.2 The Concept of Receptor Response
  2.3 The Concept of Diversity 

III. Features of Corporate Publicity Texts 3.1 Features of Chinese Corporate Publicity Texts 3.2 Features of English Corporate Publicity Texts IV. C-E Translation Methods in the Guidance of Functional Equivalence Theory

  4.1 Explanatory Translation
  4.2 Omission in Translation
  4.3 Re-creation Translation
  4.4 Domestication and Foreignization

V. Conclusion

Research on C-E Translation of Corporate Publicity Texts from the Perspective of Functional Equivalence

= = I. Introduction = =

Nowadays, with the development of economic globalization, corporate publicity texts are used frequently across the world. Corporate publicity texts constitute an important part of corporate international publicity. The translation of corporate publicity texts has become a significant bridge and connection between different countries in the world in the exchange of trade and culture, which poses a brand new challenge to translators across the world. Corporate publicity texts translation is different from other types of translation because of its unique vocabulary and syntactic features. The study of domestic corporate publicity texts translation mainly focuses on stylistics, registration or functional grammar. The study of corporate publicity texts translation started late. Fortunately, Chinese scholars have recently strengthened research in this area, including language features, translation standards and translation strategies for corporate publicity texts translation. However, the results of Chinese corporate publicity texts translation research are relatively limited. There is a lack of systematic theoretical research and lack of comprehensive articles on the description of some translation examples. At present, domestic research on this aspect is mostly empirical and decentralized. How to systematize existing theories, how to develop in depth, and to propose a clear methodology are important topics for each researcher. This paper studies the translation of commercial contracts based on Nida’s functional equivalence theory. This paper first reviews the current research status of corporate publicity texts translation, and points out the application value of functional equivalence theory in corporate publicity texts translation. Then the linguistic features of corporate publicity texts are analyzed and elaborated from two aspects: vocabulary and sentence structure. On this basis, the linguistic features of corporate publicity texts are analyzed through examples. This article focuses on the translation of corporate publicity texts. Based on the functional equivalence theory, this paper explores and studies the translation of corporate publicity texts, which is expected to enrich the application of translation theory and research. In addition, it helps to draft and translate corporate publicity texts for companies outside China for reference and guidance.

= II. Brief Introduction to Functional Equivalence Theory =

The functional equivalence theory exerts a significant influence on translation in the world. Nida is one of the founders of the western linguistic translation theory. One of his greatest contribution to the translation theory is to put forward the functional equivalence theory, a theory that is different from most of the early theories that focus on the verbal comparison between the SL and TL. Nida attempts to provide a new way to generate equivalents that take into account the relationship between receptors and text. It is believed that “the relationship between the target language receptor and the target language text should be roughly equivalent to the relationship between the original receptor and the original text.” (Nida,1993) The basic ideas of Nida’s functional equivalence theory are mainly reflected in the following three aspects. 2.1 The Concept of Equivalence One way to defining functional equivalence in translation is to describe it as “the natural equivalent of the source language information” (Nida,1964). There are three basic terms in this definition that deserve our attention: closest, natural, and equivalent. “equivalent” here should not be understood as the meaning of “identity”, but should only be understood as “close”. Functional equivalence translation focuses on the equivalence of receptor “response” rather than the equivalence of linguistic forms. Using the term “equivalent”, Nida recommends to bring the response of the target language receptor as close as possible to the response of the source language receptor. In terms of language, the term “natural” means that the presentation must be readable (related to the linguistic form) and understandable (related to the content) to the target recipient, as different languages have different grammatical features and vocabulary. As far as culture is concerned, functional equivalence is considered to be rendering. Translators should be familiar with the cultural patterns familiar to the target receptors, and translators should domesticate those foreign cultural patterns. It is allowable to make some adjustments in the form and even in the content to achieve a functionally equivalent effect. Nida uses the term “closest” to describe the proximity between the source language and the target language. Functional equivalence requires the highest degree of proximity. Personally, the author believes that the word “closest” should be analyzed in two different ways: linguistic form and meaning discourse. The ideal situation is to make the version of the form and meaning “closest” to the original message. No aspect should be sacrificed at the expense of the other, but in fact, in translation practice, problems between linguistic forms and discourse meanings always occur, especially when it comes to culturally loaded words or expressions. The transferred information directly determines the response of the target receptor, so in most cases, the linguistic form is forced to give way to the transferred information in order to obtain the closest response between the receptors in two different cultures. 2.2 The Concept of Receptor Response It is essential that functional equivalence be stated primarily in terms of a comparison of the way in which the original receptors understood and appreciated the text and the way in which receptors of translated text understand and appreciate the translated text(Nida,1993). From this point of view, we can see that Nida emphasizes the response of different receptors ‘source language and target language, i.e, language function, instead of language form. Functional-equivalent translation is receptor-directed and places great emphasis on the response of target receptors. In judging the version, Nida put the receptor in a very important position. Traditionally, translation has always been judged by the comparison between the original text and the translated text. Compared to formal equivalent translation, functional equivalence translation focuses more on the response of the receptor and the naturalness of the target language rather than the linguistic form. 2.3 The Concept of Diversity Functional equivalence theory provides varying degrees of sufficiency for the minimum translation to the largest qualified translation, rather than a fixed standard. In the case of given the minimum and maximum levels, all translations between the two levels are considered acceptable. Nida pointed out many different factors that the adequacy of translation depends on“the reliability of the text itself, the discourse type, the intended audience, the manner in which the translated text is to be used, and the purpose for which the translation has been made.”(Nida,1993). All of these factors can produce enough translations. In fact, a series of different degrees of equivalence are understandable and reasonable. Therefore, functional equivalence theory provides translators with more freedom to deal with specific situations. Compared with many other translation theories that attempt to develop a single standard, functional equivalence theory not only establishes an ideal definition of translation, but also has the lowest standards, and allows for a wide variety of translations. As mentioned above, according to the theory of functional equivalence, the response of the target reader to the translation should be basically consistent with the response of the original reader to the original text. To this end, Nida emphasizes that the translation should faithfully convey the original information. As a propaganda text, the corporate text is reflected in the recommendation of enterprises and the promotion of corporate products. The translation should faithfully conveys the original information, so that the target reader can obtain the same amount of information as the original reader, understand the enterprise, produce a response consistent with the original reader, and then recommend the enterprise among the target readers, so that the reader can recognize the business philosophy of the enterprise and have confidence in the company’s products. The similar response of readers is what Nida’s functional equivalence theory emphasizes. Therefore, equivalence theory can be used to guide the translation of corporate texts. At the same time, Nida also emphasized that the translation should conform to the expression habits of the translated words. The corporate publicity text of the company represents the image of the company in the eyes of the reader. The original text of the company’s external materials is in line with the reading habits of the source language readers. The translation cannot be bound by the structure of the original text in the text. Moreover, the translation should conform to the reading habits of the target language reader. Functional equivalence proposes the lowest level of equivalence and the highest level of equivalence, and translations within both limits are acceptable, but the quality of the translation is different. When translating a company’s external propaganda text, the translator can use the functional equivalence theory as a guide and adopt appropriate translation methods to make the translation conform to the reading habits of the target readers, and to achieve the highest degree of equivalence of the translations as much as possible. Therefore, functional equivalence at the specific translation operation level can also guide the translation of the corporate publicity text. Based on the above two points of analysis, it is feasible that functional equivalence theory guides the translation practice of corporate publicity texts.

= III. Features of Corporate Publicity Texts =

With the vigorous development of Chinese enterprises, more and more enterprises are turning their eyes to foreign countries in order to open up a larger and broader market and development space. Of course, the quality of their products is significant. In addition, the quality of the corporate publicity texts translation is also a very important part. To produce high-quality translation, translators need to grasp the characteristics of Chinese and western corporate publicity texts, compare them, find differences, and translate them with the guidance of functional equivalence theory. Corporate publicity texts have their own unique characteristics. The two main functions of corporate publicity texts are information function and imperative function, and communication are its characteristics. There are four basic elements in the process of foreign exchange: communicators, translators, communication channels and foreign audiences.

Chinese corporate publicity texts have obvious Chinese expression characteristics: pursuing the glory word and abusing the “flowers of speech”; using empty phrases, slogans, and official language. In the process of translation, the language, culture, politics, economy and ideology in the primitive and translated language society play a significant role in macro or micro. In order to achieve effective translation of foreign materials, it is necessary to understand the translation principles (information prominence, summoning and simplicity), the content of translation, and specific purposes on the basis of understanding the characteristics of the text itself. At the same time, the factors of the target language, reader response and translation culture should be taken into account. In the process of translation, we should follow the style of the target language, focus on the reader, pay attention to the reader’s reaction, respect the culture of the target language, and moderately control the value information between the source language and the detailed language to ensure the realization of intercultural communication.

In contrast, foreign corporate publicity texts highlights the delivery of practical information for the company, so that customers can have a very clear understanding of the company’s products and service and the company can obtain a favorable position in the customer’s mind. Therefore, it focuses on the history, performance and future development of the company, rather than the ideological and political belonging of the company. 3.1 Features of Chinese Corporate Publicity Texts The Chinese corporate publicity text offers readers a view of beautiful language and strong momentum; while the text provides corporate information, it also allows readers to gain aesthetic enjoyment in reading. Specifically, Chinese corporate publicity texts have the following main features: 3.1.1 Four-character Structure The corporate publicity text presents the soft power of enterprise competition, and its function is to promote the enterprise, recommend products and services. In order to attract readers and realize the function of corporate publicity texts, Chinese corporate publicity texts often have a four-character structure. The four-character structure has rich and concise forms. It is a unique structural form of Chinese and an expression favored by Chinese readers. The proper application of the four-character structure in the corporate publicity text can not only enhances the cultural connotation of the enterprise, but also enables the text to be neat, rhythmic and musical, so that the corporate text is more aesthetically pleasing than the general text. Moreover, corporate publicity texts satisfy the aesthetic psychological need, enhance the appeal of the text and leave a good impression in the minds of customers. E.g: “The core concept of a company’ s culture is ‘至诚无息,博厚悠远’ .” “至诚无息,博厚悠远”源自《中庸》,原文是“故至诚无息。不息则久,久则征。征则悠远。悠远则博厚,博厚则高明。博厚,所以载物也；高明,所以覆物也；悠久,所以成物也。博厚配地,高明配天,悠久无疆”Qiao Junchen, Du Yuzhu, 2007) Combined with the actual situation of the company, this company has integrated and summarized this famous saying. It has condensed the “sincere and uninteresting, profound and far-reaching”. These two four-character structures illustrate its corporate culture, and make the readers add a sense of trust to the company, which makes the company take an advantage in the market competition. In another example, in 2013, China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation ranked first in the top 500 Chinese companies. The company also likes to use the four-character structure in its text. On the basis of full investigation, they formulated and promulgated the outline of China’s petrochemical enterprise culture construction, and announced the outline to the public, leaving a deep and good impression on the people. The outline puts forward the corporate tenet of “发展企业,贡献国家,回报股东,服务社会,造福员工” and reaffirm the enterprise spirit of “爱我中华,振兴石化”. Moreover, the outline also clarify the fine style of “精细严谨,务实创新” and establish the business philosophy of “诚信规范,合作共赢”, and comprehensively promoted the development of company’s corporate culture. The above examples show that the four-character structure is a feature of the domestic corporate propaganda text. Appropriate use of the four-character structure can increase the vividness and attractiveness of the text, and is conducive to the propaganda function of the corporate propaganda. 3.1.2 Curve Thinking When expressing in Chinese, the Chinese are accustomed to knocking out sideways, turning around, explaining the external environment, and then speaking the main purpose, reflecting the characteristics of curved thinking. This feature is also reflected in the corporate publicity texts. The corporate publicity texts often list the excellent achievements of the company in various aspects, and then the central idea of the bright future of the enterprise. To this end, the corporate publicity texts firstly give the facts, draw conclusions, and then use the inductive method which is in line with the curve thinking to introduce the enterprise and the products of the enterprise to our customers. For example, Aucma wrote in his external text: “澳柯玛拥有员工7000多人,具备年产冷柜300万台、冰箱300万台、生活家电500万台、洗衣机400万台、电动车100万辆、自动售货机1万台的生产能力,营销网络覆盖全球五大洲100个国家和地区,呈现出蓬勃向上的发展态势。” The text first enumerates the number of employees, annual production capacity, and broad product sales channels, and finally proposes the main purpose of Aucma’s development prospects. The method of first dividing and then concluding is in line with the thinking and reading habits of the Chinese people, which helps the company to win the reader’s goodwill. The corporate publicity texts written by the curve thinking is in line with the reading expectations of domestic readers. Such text helps to promote the enterprise. At the same time, the Chinese corporate publicity texts also focus on the second-person perspective to recommend companies. 3.1.3 The Third-person Perspective The Chinese corporate publicity texts often adopt the third-person perspective, and regard the enterprise as the narrative theme, highlighting the subjectivity of the enterprise. This kind of perspective makes the reader feel that the facts stated in the text are objective, without personal feelings, exaggeration, and then trust the enterprise. The following example sentences are taken from Zoomlion’s official website: “中联重科股份有限公司创立于1992年,主要从事建筑工程、能源工程、环境工程、交通工程等基础设施建设所需重大高新技术装备的研发制造,是一家持续创新的全球化企业。 中联重科成立20年来,年均复合增长率超过65%,为全球增长最为迅速的工程机械企业。 中联重科是中国工程机械首家A+H股上市公司。 中联重科开创了中国工程机械行业整合海外资源的先河……” When introducing a company, Zoomlion’s publicity texts often refer to the enterprise as the company name. Using a third-person perspective, the name of the company can continually stimulate the minds of customers and leave a deep impression on the minds of customers; at the same time, it makes the texts of the propaganda objective and authoritative. 3.1.4 With Political Color China’s socialist economic system determines the dominant position of state-owned enterprises in the Chinese economy. At the same time, private and individual enterprises are also an important part of the socialist economy and make positive contributions to the development of socialist construction. Party organizations in state-owned enterprises, private enterprises and individual enterprises play a guiding role in China’s economic development. Therefore, Chinese companies have an ideology with a strong political color. When discussing the nature of the enterprise, the corporate publicity texts emphasize the care and support of the Chinese Communist Party. Domestic customers believe that the party branch of the company reflects the recognition and attention of the state to the enterprise. Therefore, in the corporate publicity texts, domestic enterprises have focused on highlighting the work of their party construction departments, enhancing the soft power of enterprise competition, and winning the trust of customers. The official website of Sinopec Group has a column of “Party Construction” advocates the activities organized by the company in the implementation of the party’s guidelines, which shows that the company has always supported the party’s leadership. Domestic readers believe that their development prospects are worth looking forward to with the trust and support of the party. Therefore, this part of the content has important publicity value in the external propaganda text for domestic customers. It can be seen from the above analysis that the Chinese corporate publicity texts have formed four characteristics of this type of text in order to better recommend the enterprise. These characteristics are in line with the reading habits of domestic readers and can be accepted well by readers, thus effectively realizing the function of corporate texts. 3.2 Features of English Corporate Publicity Texts The purpose of Chinese and western corporate publicity texts is to recommend corporate products and services to customers. The functions and purposes of the two are the same, but their direct readers are different, and their styles are naturally different, showing their different characteristics. To be specific, western corporate publicity texts have the following characteristics. 3.2.1 Use Common Vocabulary The western corporate publicity texts advocate the beauty of simplicity, use everyday vocabulary, and are easy to read, which can meets the needs of customers at all levels of reading, and achieve the effect of the enterprise propaganda. These everyday vocabularies help to build a bridge of communication between readers and businesses, making it easy for companies to reach their customers. Wal-Mart, Chevron and GM’s corporate publicity texts frequently use everyday vocabulary. For example, Wal-Mart’s slogan “Have money, Live better”. It not only reflects Wal-Mart’s business philosophy, and draws closer to the customer’s psychological distance, bringing customers a sense of intimacy. Moreover, it also makes Wal-Mart leave a good impression in the hearts of customers. There is such a sentence in Chevron’s official website: “We also care about the environment and are proud of the many ways in which our employees work to safeguard it.” The “care about and are proud of” in the sentence explain the company’s efforts in fulfilling its environmental responsibilities, and familiar words make customers feel more intimate. The sentence also adds a sense of closeness and trust of the company. An example in the official website of the automobile giant GM is: “Our culture, one which represents diversity, inclusion, mutual respect, responsibility and understanding, welcomes fresh perspectives and varied experiences.” The familiar vocabularies of “mutual”, “fresh” and “varied” in the sentence embody the closeness of the enterprise. Among them, “fresh” and “varied” highlight the company’s continuous innovation and introduction of various talents when providing high-quality products to customers, so that the products can meet the needs of customers to the greatest extent. Western companies have a large number of everyday vocabularies, which not only make the text easy to read, but also have a sense of intimacy. In the meanwhile, the everyday vocabularies can eliminate the strangeness of customers to the company. 3.2.2 Linear Thinking Westerners follow linear thinking. When communicating, westerns often get to the point, unlike the Chinese who are mealy-mouthed. This linear way of thinking is also reflected in the text of western corporate publicity texts. In narrative, westerners are accustomed to first explaining the main points and then interpreting them. The layout of the articles follows the principle of from general to concrete, from general to example, and from whole to individual. The linear thinking in the western corporate publicity texts: using the deductive method, the important information is placed at the beginning of the paragraph, and then the cases is used for argumentation. This is in line with the reading habits of western readers and is conducive to propagandizing the company. For example, when GM introduced the development process of the company, it has the following text: In fact, there are a lot of exciting things to share about our company. This text is straightforward to show that GM has a gratifying performance, allowing readers to quickly get the meaning of the text, and then use specific examples to prove. The western corporation publicity texts influenced by linear thinking use deductive method of writing, which can help readers quickly find the center of the text. At the same time, the author also found that western corporate publicity texts often introduce enterprises in the first-person perspective. 3.2.3 The First-person Perspective The function of the corporate publicity texts is to propagandize the enterprise. In order to better perform this function of the text, one can give the text the emotional color. The corporate publicity texts often use the first-person writing when introducing companies. Adopting the first person perspective can give the company vitality, let the company and customers communicate close the distance between the company and the customer, which is beneficial to recommending the company to the customer.

For example, Chevron wrote in its corporate profile:

“Chevron is one of the world’s leading integrated energy companies. Our success is driven by our people and their commitment to get results the right way.... We explore for, produce and transport crude oil and natural gas; refine, market and distribute transportation fuels and lubricants; manufacture and sell petrochemical products” The example uses “us”, “we” to call the enterprise, letting the reader feel that it is a face-to-face conversation with the company. In this way, the sentence closes the psychological distance between the company and the customer, which is conducive to recommending the enterprise. The first-person perspective of writing has given the company the emotional color. This kind of feeling encourages readers to get in touch with the company. 3.2.4 Focus on the Transmission of Practical Information The western corporate publicity texts highlight the delivery of practical information of the company, so that customers can have a very clear understanding of the company’s products and services and the company can win a favorable position in the customer’s mind. Therefore, it focus on the history, the performance and future development trend of the company, rather than the ideology and political belonging of the company. Reading Wal-Mart, Chevron and GM’s corporate publicity texts, we can easily find that western companies’ introduction focuses on introducing the history of the company, propagandizing the scale of the business, and explaining the social responsibilities, development prospects, and enterprises of the company. The practical information is what readers care most about, and it is also the most convincing. For example, in its corporate text, GM first focused on the company’s excellent design, quality products and caring services, then introduced the history of the company, its achievements and development prospects, and finally focused on how the company provides its customers with high-end products and high-quality enjoyment. The information such as “safety and Quality” and “Create Lifelong Customers” appearing in the text will leave a deep impression on the customer’s mind and make the customer feel good about the company. In this way, the corporate publicity texts can achieve the functions of recommending the company and products. Through the analysis of the characteristics of the Chinese and western corporate publicity, we can see that the Chinese and western corporate publicity texts have their own characteristics. These characteristics are consistent with the reading habits of the respective text readers, so they can play a very good publicity role in their respective fields. The characteristics and differences of Chinese and western corporate publicity texts require translators to appropriately transform the text structure into the target language structure when translating the Chinese corporate publicity texts. In this way, the translations can have the characteristics of western corporate publicity texts, which are in line with western readers’ reading habit.

IV. C-E Translation Methods in the Guidance of Functional Equivalence Theory Combining the theory of functional equivalence, the classification of textual functions, and the theory of translation function, the author believes that foreign translation should follow the principle of functional equivalence and functional translation. Translators should adopt interpretive translation, omission and re-creation methods, and use the strategy of domestication and foreignization .

4.1 Explanatory Translation 

Cultural omission is the biggest obstacle of readers in a cross-cultural environment. If the translator ignores the cultural omission or avoids the translation, it will result in the omission and absence of the important information of the original text, which will affect the understanding of the target reader. The translator must create the fullest contextual effect for the target readers and narrow the cultural information, such as: “863计划” “The Match 1986” “Program to stimulate the development of high technologies” “三讲” “the Three Stresses-the stresses of studying ,raising political awareness and ensuring honesty and integrity” 4.2 Omission in Translation Translators who translate foreign propaganda must cut down some low-value information, try to reduce the reading and thinking burden of the target readers and convey the meaning of the original text. For example: “昆明物华天宝,人杰地灵,曾孕育和涌现出郑和,兰茂,徐霞客,聂耳等许多风流人物,留下了许多历史文物。” “As a place of excellent products and outstanding people, Kunming has numerous historical relics with time passing by.” 4.3 Re-creation Translation Re-creation translation is not simply a “check-in seat”. It must be multi-level and multi-angled. It must be “designed and meticulously constructed”. It must first adjust, sort, summarize, refine, adjust and then carry on the interpretation. Such as: “把国家电网公司建设成为“电网坚强、资产优良、服务优质、业绩优秀”的现代公司。” “To build a modernized power grid company with a strong grid, excellent assets, service and performance. ” “我厂轴承产品多次荣获国家金奖、国家质量金奖杯,并获重大科研成果奖。” These products are finely machined and highly meet the specifications of relevant standards. Choosing them , you are choosing the best, 4.4 Domestication and Foreignization In the translation of the corporate publicity texts, in order to make the target readers better understand, it is recommended to adopt the domestication strategy, with the target language culture and readers as the center, and use the easy-to-accept expression method of the target language to make the translation easy to understand. Such as “金鸡奖” translated as “JinJi Award”或 “the Golden Rooster Award”, The effect is not good, but it is naturalized as “China’s Oscar”. The effect is obviously improved. For some languages with Chinese characteristics, the alienation strategy can better preserve its exotic atmosphere, which can let the Chinese culture affects the world. 10 domestication and 10 alienation complement each other, such as: “鸳鸯”, “lovebird” , “龙舟”, “dragon boat” , “公积金”, “public accumulation fund” , “梁祝”, “China’s Romeo and Juliet” , “七彩云南”, “7-Colored Yunnan”, “汉文化”, “the Han Culture”, “中原”, “Zhongyuan”, “the central plains” , and “鱼米之乡”, “a land of rice and fish or a land of milk and honey”等. Foreign translation, aiming to introduce China objectively and truthfully to foreign readers, is a strategic issue. All sectors of society should give more attention and support to quality control, academic control, administrative control, media monitoring, and work together to improve the quality of translation. Foreign translators must have a deep understanding of the corporate publicity texts translation work and have a highly responsible attitude. Translators should take the word seriously and accurately understand the meaning. Translators should pay attention to the cultivation of language skills, expand the knowledge, enhance cross-cultural communication awareness, be familiar with Chinese and English, and strive to become an expert of Chinese and English language and culture. The translation of the corporate publicity texts is “to let other countries and people in the world understand China”, and its translators should uphold cultural conscious and cultural self-confidence and actively deal with the specific words of the original text. In short, the translation of the corporate publicity texts is not a corresponding copy of the machine, but the use of the linguistic advantage of the translation under the guidance of functional equivalence. To achieve effective cross-cultural communication, foreign translations must have sufficient audience awareness and strive to achieve cultural self-awareness and demonstrate cultural self-confidence.

= V. Conclusion =

To sum up, corporate publicity texts put forward more stringent requirements for the accuracy of the translation. As a translator, one should constantly accumulate professional knowledge and improve professional literacy, which should be combined with specific context. Also, one should be good at making use of grammatical rules and strengthening cultural cultivation to enhance the ability to transform different cultural connotations and enrich the experience of improving the accuracy of translation of corporate publicity texts from practice, in order to promote the smooth development of international communication in the world.

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A Study of Functional Equivalence in Translating Children's Literature---A Case Study on The Lion King 刘智伟 Liu Zhiwei

摘要：儿童期是人生发育最重要的阶段，而儿童文学对于儿童的教育影响处于前位且是第一性的。儿童文学特别要求通俗易懂，生动活泼，这也就要求儿童文学翻译作品应根据儿童心理发展特点、基于功能对等翻译理调整翻译策略。本文主要是通过儿童特点、儿童文学特点，同时结合《狮子王》翻译策略与方法，对翻译对等理论进行更加深刻的解析。

Abstract: Childhood is the most important stage of life development, and the influence of children's literature on children's education is in the first place. Children's literature is particularly required to be vivid and easy to understand, which requires that translation strategies should be adjusted according to the characteristics of children's psychological development and on the basis of functional equivalence translation theory. Based on the characteristics of children and children's literature, and combined with the translation strategies and methods of Lion King, the thesis makes a more profound analysis of translation equivalence theory.

Key Words: Children's Psychological Characters, Children's Literature, Equivalence Theory --Liu Zhiwei (talk) 01:59, 1 November 2020 (UTC)