Trans Type EN 4
Chapter 4 On Translation Strategies and Translation Methods in Chinese Translation of English Prose -- A Case Study of Chinese Translation of English Prose "The Pleasures of Ignorance"
浅析英语散文汉译中的翻译策略和翻译方法——以英语散文《无知的乐趣》汉译本为例
毛雅文 Mao Yawen, Hunan Normal University, China
Abstract
Prose, together with poetry, novel and drama, is a kind of literary form. It is not limited to rhythm, plot and characters, flexible in form, real and natural. English prose has a long history and various types, so it becomes an important object in translation practice and research. In China, the most famous English prose writers are Francis Bacon and Charles Lamb, hence, their works can be regarded as the focus of studies on Chinese translation of English prose. In fact, Chinese translation of English prose draws less attention in translation circle of China, compared with that of English poetry and drama. With English prose as the starting point, this paper will introduce the characteristics of English prose and the domestic studies on its Chinese translation, and take the Chinese translation of "The Pleasures of Ignorance", the representative work of English modern prose writer Robert Lynd, as an example to analyze its translation strategies and methods.
摘要
散文是与诗歌、小说、戏剧并称的一种文体，不拘泥于韵律、情节、人物，形式灵活，真实自然。英语散文历史悠久，类型多样，是翻译实践与研究中的重要研究对象。在我国，最著名的英语散文家是弗朗西斯·培根和查尔斯·兰姆，他们的作品也因此成为英语散文汉译的重点。而事实上，我国翻译界更加重视的是诗歌与小说的汉译，英语散文汉译的研究相较之下比较滞后。本文将以英语散文为切入点，介绍英语散文的特点及其在我国的汉译研究，并以英国现代散文家罗伯特·林德的代表作《无知的乐趣》汉译本为例，主要分析其中的策略及方法。
Key Words
"The Pleasures of Ignorance"; Chinese translation of English prose; translation strategies; translation methods; translation techniques
关键词
《无知的乐趣》；英语散文汉译；翻译策略；翻译方法；翻译技巧
Introduction
This chapter will point to the research background and its significance, and briefly set forth the structure of this paper and the methods used.
Research Background and Significance
In recent years, with the deepening of the reform and opening-up, the channels of international cultural exchange have become increasingly unblocked, and China's translation industry has also flourished. The studies on translation theory, drawing lesson from western translation studies, have yielded fruitful results, and more noteworthily, remarkable achievements have been made in studies on literary translation for all to see. (Hou 2014: 1)
Prose is a basic literary form in written or spoken language that typically exhibits a natural flow of speech and grammatical structure. A large number of works in philosophy, history, economics, journalism, etc, are examples of works written in prose. It can be seen that prose, which is widely used for creation, occupies an important position in literature. However, there are few researchers majoring in prose translation, still fewer ones who specialize in the Chinese translation of English prose. Given the above, this paper, based on previous studies, will study the Chinese translation of English prose, and take Liu Bingshan's Chinese translation of "The Pleasures of Ignorance" created by the English prose writer Robert Lynd, exploring its characteristics in translation strategies and methods, so as to provide better understanding and some reference for the appreciation and translation of English prose. (He 2018: 6) (Song 2018: 1)
Methodology and Structure
This paper will employ the methods of literature research and case analysis. The paper consists of three parts. The first section is the literature review, explicating the distinctive properties and linguistic features of English prose, and the prose translation with its principles, as well as introducing the previous studies on the Chinese translation of English prose at home. The second part, the core of this paper, will take Liu Bingshan's Chinese translation version of Robert Lynd's prose work "The Pleasures of Ignorance" as an example, carry out the interpretation of this translation in terms of its types, styles as well as strategies and methods employed. Lastly, the conclusion will point to the findings in this study and the weaknesses in the paper.
Literature Review
This part will draw into the domestic previous studies on Chinese translation of English prose.
With regard to the Chinese translation of English prose, at present, there are few domestic scholars dedicated to its systematic research. According to the different perspectives, the relevant researches at home can be roughly divided into three categories.
First, concerning research on the theory of Chinese translation of English prose into Chinese, there is a relatively small number of studies in this direction. One of the most fruitful works is The Study and Translation of British and American Prose co-authored by Zhao Xiuming and Zhao Zhangjin (2010), which makes a detailed investigation of the literary characteristics, historical evolution and style evolution of British and American prose. The work also discusses the basic principles of English prose translation in terms of pre-translation text analysis, historical and cultural context, artistic principles, and styles, etc., which can offer a reference for the further study of the theories and practices of English prose translation. (Hou 2014: 4)
Second, regarding research on the famous translators of English and American prose with their translation styles and skills, Xia Ying explored the style of Professor Cao's translation of Francis Bacon with the essay titled "Research on Professor Cao Minglunss Chinese translation of bacon prose". Some others probed into Liu Bingshans's and Liu Shicong's thoughts on prose translation which have guiding significance for prose translation practice. (Hou 2014: 4)
Third, as regards research on the practice of Chinese translation English prose based on translation theory, Huang Jianling (2012) analyzed the Chinese translation of Bacon's essays from the perspective of translation aesthetics. Hu Hongyun (2013) translates and elaborates on the British prose "Farewell" in vocabulary, semantics, style and cultural transmission, on the basis of Eugene Nida's Functional Equivalence theory. (Hou 2014: 5)
These researches and investigations have laid a solid foundation for future studies and the analysis in this paper.
Overview of English Prose
Prose can be defined in a broad sense and a narrow sense. In the broad sense, prose refers to all the written and oral works in a loose form free from parallelism; and in the narrow sense, it specifically means the writings with certain literary qualities, such as essays, and a literary genre juxtaposed with poetry, novel, drama and movie-television literature.
This section will clarify the distinctive characteristics and linguistic features of English prose, as well as its translation principles.
Distinctive Features of English Prose
As an independent literary genre, English prose has its distinctive characteristics.
The first characteristic is its expression of sincere feeling. Prose mostly depicts the real people, things and scenery, and is generated based on record and recollection of life. With prose, the author frequently describes his or her personal experiences, which expresses feelings full of personality and style. So in this sense, prose can be considered as an earnest conversation between the author and the readers. (Zhang 2011: 28)
Secondly, English prose is characterized by a wide material selection. In English prose, one detail, episode and facet of life can be used to display the author's specific emotions and circumstances, and all materials related to the theme can also be employed. It places no emphasis on rhythm and rhyme, like poetry, as well as to plot and characters, like drama. (Zhang 2011: 29)
Besides, English prose features a free and loose structure. The structure of prose writings is free and flexible. Prose is elastic and natural and boasts descriptive, argumentative and lyrical qualities, thereof constituting its most distinctive advantage. There are no strict restrictions and fixed patterns in the prose structure, but its flexibility and randomness are not tantamount to disorder and scatter, and its choice of theme and expression of feelings should be closely centered on one mainline. (Zhang 2011: 29)
Linguistic Features of English Prose
Compared with other literary forms, prose has no more skills to resort to. Therefore, as regards the form of artistic expression, English prose mainly has recourse to its language features.
First and foremost, succinctness and fluency characterize the English prose language. The concise prose language not only fully delivers the content that the author intends to convey but effectively shows the author's emotions and attitude towards persons and things. This is not the result of the author's deliberate elaboration, but the natural overflow of his or her plain and pure emotion. The fluency of prose language refers to both the informal use of words and phrases, and the author's sound expression of feelings. (Zhang 2011: 29)
Meanwhile, colloquial style and literary grace are characteristic of prose language. As prose mainly focuses on the description of the author's personal stories and sentiments, thus, he speaks or writes with his posture, style and tone, as if he is confiding to the readers, so as to highlight the agreeable conversation style and unique colloquial style. Colloquial prose language is natural due to its simplicity, friendly owing to its ease of communication, and true thanks to its individuality. (Zhang 2011: 30)
Furthermore, another linguistic feature of English prose is the smooth rhythm and reading. The rhythmic beauty of prose language is reflected in phonetic respect and sentence patterns. The prose reading is catchy, with no obstacles and awkwardness, and its rhythm is in line with the natural law of oral breathing pauses as well as with the ups and downs of feelings. (Zhang 2011: 30)
Principles of English Prose Translation
The beauty of prose lies in its language and artistic conception, the two permeating each other and jointly creating the artistic charm of prose. In prose translation practice, the following principles can be observed to reproduce the artistic appeal.
Keep an eye on sound and rhythm. Despite that the sound and rhythm of prose are often internal, not as obvious, regular and musical as that of poetry, they are not disordered with no aesthetic purpose. On the contrary, they effectively represent the variation of emotion in the prose and are consistent with its unique aesthetic interest. This illustrates that in prose translation, on the one hand, the translators should recognize the great value and significance of prose sound and rhythm; on the other hand, with the intention of reproducing the linguistic subtleties of the original text, the translators can fully touch its aesthetic interest from the cadence between the lines, and perceive its inner rhythm from sentence length and speech speed. (Zhang 2011: 30)
Pay attention to the personalized mode of discourse. Different writers with various discourse modes bring about manifold writing styles. Not only is the personalized mode of discourse reflected in the author's choice of words and sentences as well as the layout of the prose, but also his thoughts and aesthetic interest. As a result, the translators can start with analyzing the original writer's one classic work and then his anthology and even look closely at the literary features of his age, in order to grasp the writer's personalized discourse mode, which is of particular importance to reproduce his artistic personality and the characteristics of his emotional expression in translation practice. (Zhang 2011: 31)
Place a premium on the unity of scene and emotion. The unity of scene and interest in prose is embodied in diverse ways of language expression and structure, as well as the images or settings created by the author. In translation practice, based on the unity of scene and interest in the prose, it is beneficial to preserve and reproduce the overall aesthetic orientation of the original text through aesthetic reconstruction in word selection and layout, so that the translated text can obtain the aesthetic taste similar to the original prose. (Zhang 2011: 31)
All in all, a general understanding of English prose can facilitate the study of its Chinese translation.
Case Study of Chinese Translation of "Pleasures of Ignorance"
The selected source text is "The Pleasures of Ignorance", written by Robert Lynd.
Robert Lynd (1879-1949), born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, was a modern critic and prose writer. He, together with E. V. Lucas, was a pioneer in reviving the tradition of Charles Lamb's prose. And "The Pleasures of Ignorance" is one of his notable prose works.
This prose points out that it is because of ignorance that people are interested in nature and the world and pursue knowledge, and the process of seeking knowledge is full of pleasure, by which the author emphasizes the importance of learning more and gaining insight. The article reveals somewhat erudition and aesthetic sensibility, as well as love for nature and passion for life. From his leisurely writing, the author's maturity of thought and capability in the usage of words is unveiled. Though the tone of the original text makes the readers feel that the author is chatting with them, giving people familiarity and closeness, it is not particularly colloquial. On the contrary, there is a kind of exactness and elegance of the learned between the lines, thus it can be seen that the case text is a typical scholar prose. (Zhu 2007: 326)
File:Source Text & Target Text.docx
The translator Professor Liu Bingshan firmly grasps these features of the original text and conveys the original style by carefully choosing words and sentences, with the principles of faithfulness, smoothness and expressiveness. His Chinese translation of "The Pleasures of Ignorance" will be analyzed in terms of translation strategies and methods. (Zhu 2007: 326)
There is a natural connection between translation strategies and translation methods, but the two concepts are often confused. It is generally believed that translation strategies (such as foreignization and domestication) are at the cultural level, while the translation methods (such as literal translation and free translation) are at the textual level. Translation methods are the approaches, steps and techniques used to achieve a specific translation purpose based on a certain translation strategy in translation activities, whereas translation strategies are a collection of principles and methods. Consequently, this paper will enunciate the translation text on the basis of translation methods under foreignization strategy and domestication strategy respectively. (Xiong 2014: 84)
Translation Methods under Foreignizing Strategy
Foreignization is a strategy in which a target text is produced which deliberately breaks target conventions by retaining something of the foreignness of the original. This strategy is "an ethnodeviant pressure on target-language cultural values to register the linguistic and cultural difference of the foreign text, sending the reader abroad" to have an alien reading experience. The translation methods under foreignization employed in Professor Liu's target text include literal translation, zero-translation and transliteration. (Venuti 2004: 20) (Lian 2006: 13)
Literal Translation
Literal translation is in fact looser renditions that replace individual source language words with individual target language words wherever possible, and cling as closely as possible to the source language word order in the target language. (Lian 2006: 12)
Specifically, in the case translation text, the translator faithfully retains some personal pronouns and demonstrative pronouns in the original text.
Example 1(1):
It is impossible to take a walk in the country with an average townsman—especially, perhaps, in April or May—without being amazed at the vast continent of his ignorance.
同一个普通的城里人到乡下去走一走，特别是在四月或五月里，那么。对他的无知范围之广阔，就不能不感到惊奇。任何人独自到乡下去走一走，他对于自己的无知范围之广阔，都不能不感到惊奇。
Example 1(2):
This ignorance, however, is not altogether miserable.
不过，这种无知也并非全然不幸。
Example 1(3):
But your and my ignorance is not confined to cuckoos.
但是，你我的无知并不仅限于杜鹃这一方面。
Example 1(4):
A contemporary English novelist was once asked by a foreigner what was the most important crop in England.
一个外国人问一位当代英国小说家，英国最重要的农作物是什么。
The translation of these sentences, though properly altering the word order and voice with the adherence to the target-language syntactic norms, does not adopt the usage of transferred meaning in dealing with the lexical sense.
The use of literal translation, especially the retaining of the personal pronouns, like "we" and "you and I", conveys the style of the original text, showing friendliness and intimacy.
Zero-Translation
Zero translation refers to the translation in which the translators do not use the ready-made words in the target language to translate the source language words. This translation phenomenon occurs when adjustments must be made due to the differences in the syntactic structures of the two languages. For example, some articles and personal pronouns are not translated in E-C translation. (Fang 2011: 108)
In Liu's translation, zero-translation is particularly displayed by omission, a translation technique.
Omission of the expletives It and There:
Example 2(1):
It is impossible to take a walk in the country oneself without being amazed at the vast continent of one's own ignorance.
任何人独自到乡下去走一走，他对于自己的无知范围之广阔，都不能不感到惊奇。
Example 2(2):
There are occasions on which a memory of this kind is an affliction, especially if one has a passion for accuracy.
这样的记忆力，在某些场合自然叫人伤脑筋，尤其当人渴望精确的时候。
Omission of English articles:
Example 2(3):
Thousands of men and women live and die without knowing the difference between a beech and an elm, between the song of a thrush and the song of a blackbird.
成干上万的男男女女，从生到死，一辈子也说不出山毛榉和榆树有什么区别，听不出画眉的叫声和山乌鸦的叫声有什么不同。
Omission of pronouns:
Example 2(4):
... as she (the cuckoo) lays her egg on the ground and takes it in her bill to the nest in which it is destined to breed infanticide.
把蛋下到地面上，然后再用尖嘴把它叨进那注定要发生杀婴罪行的窠巢里。
The application of zero-translation can render the translation text concise, neat and fluent, and make the rhythm of the prose more natural and flexible, conforming to the principle of prose translation.
Transliteration
Proper names such as the names of persons and places of foreign countries, are, as a rule, to be transliterated, i.e., to be translated by using Chinese characters to represent the sound in articulating these names. In transliteration, the translators should follow the original pronunciation of proper names. (Lian 2006: 344)
Example 3(1): Hamlet 哈姆雷特
Example 3(2): Pickwick 匹克威克
The above two names are both transliterated from their original English sound.
Besides, in transliteration, the translators sometimes should also use the standard pronunciation of the Chinese characters. One of the difficulties in transliterating a foreign name in Chinese characters lies in the lack of many foreign sounds in Chinese, and the variation in the pronunciation of the Chinese characters causes confusion. The remedy is to fix certain Chinese characters for a certain syllable of foreign names. And many long-standing translated names, though not named after the original sounds, have been recognized by the world and are generally invariable. (Lian 2006: 346)
Example 3(3): Montaigne 蒙田
This name is not translated from its original French sound as "蒙泰涅", but translated as "蒙田", the translated name that is recognized by Chinese translators for a long time and fixed on the syllable of foreign names.
Transliteration plays a crucial role in the translation of proper nouns and technical terms, which ensures the correct conveyance of information.
The translation methods under foreignization are able to make the translation process more visible, by means of showing how translators are deeply involved in the construction of culture and ideology. The use of these methods can retain the foreignness of the source text and produce on the target-language readers an effect as close as possible to that obtained on the readers of the original, through which the readers can further understand the foreign expressions and cultures, realizing the differences between the two countries.
Translation Methods under Domesticating Strategy
Domestication is a strategy in which a transparent, fluent style is adopted in order to minimize the strangeness of the foreign text for target language readers. This strategy is "an ethnocentric reduction of the foreign text to target-language cultural values, bring the author back home". In other words, as regards the use of domesticating strategy, the translators are required to make target-language readers feel familiar and close through conveying the content of the original text with the expressions to which TL readers are accustomed. And in Liu Bingshan's Chinese translation of "The Pleasures of Ignorance", free translation method and imitation method under domestication are used and displayed in several translation techniques. (Venuti 2004: 20) (Lian 2006: 14)
Free Translation
Free translation, also known as sense-for-sense translation, emphasizes the transfer of the meaning or the "spirit" of a source text over accurate reproduction of the original wording. The purpose of this method is to accommodate the needs of the target-language readers by producing a text which conforms to the linguistic and textual norms of the target language and culture which does not therefore sound "foreign". (Shuttleworth & Cowie 2014: 59) (Lian 2006: 12)
Such a method, in this case study, is specifically embodied in the choice of words packed with Chinese characteristics, that is, diction, also a translation technique. For example,
Example 4(1):
Probably in a modern city the man who can distinguish between a thrush's and a blackbird's song is the exception.
在一个现代化城市里，能听得出画眉和山乌鸦叫声不同的人，恐怕是凤毛麟角。
Example 4(2):
It is not that we have not seen the birds. It is simply that we have not noticed them.
所以如此，并不是因为这些鸟我们没有见过，而只是因为我们习焉不察。
Example 4(3):
When in the oak's green arms the cuckoo sings,
And first delights men in the lovely springs.
杜鹃在橡树的绿色怀抱里啭啼，
第一个为人们带来欢欣、美好的春意。
In translating these sentences, the translator transfers some words into vocabulary or phrases with conspicuously Chinese features. For instance, the transfer of "the exception" and "have not noticed" to Chinese idioms "凤毛麟角" (that describes rare and precious items) and "习焉不察" (which means that one is too accustomed to something to call it in questions), respectively, exemplify the typical Chinese four-character structure. Moreover, the verb "sings" is transferred to "啭啼" (that describes birds' melodious chirp), a Chinese term composed of two words with the same left side, which is one of common and special linguistic phenomena in Chinese language. Meanwhile, "the lovely springs" is transferred to "欢欣、美好的春意" (a joyful and wonderful feeling brought by the spring) through abstraction.
Thus, it can be seen that the application of free translation can reproduce the sense of the original text more smoothly and idiomatically. And the wide adoption of the four-character structures enhances the academic atmosphere of the translation version.
Imitation
With regard to the use of imitation, the translators do not stick to the meaning details of the original text, let alone its vocabulary and syntactic structure, but take the original text as a reference model, either by deleting or condensing to only translate its gist and key information, or by adding and expanding to deliver more information than that in the original text. (Xiong 2014: 85)
Example 5:
Thousands of men and women live and die without knowing the difference between a beech and an elm, between the song of a thrush and the song of a blackbird.
成千上万的男男女女，从生到死，一辈子也说不出山毛榉和榆树有什么区别，听不出画眉的叫声和山乌鸦的叫声有什么不同。
In the translation of this sentence, a variety of translation techniques are employed.
(1) Conversion:
The translator uses conversion to alter the syntactic structure of the original sentence.
The predicate "live and die" is converted into the preposition phrase "从生到死" as the adverbial in Chinese.
And the adverbial preposition phrase in the source text "without knowing" is converted into the predicate in Chinese translation.
(2) Division:
In accordance with the need of Chinese expression, "without knowing" is divided into two verb phrases "说不出" and "听不出" in Chinese as the predicate.
(3) Addition:
With the addition of the expression "一辈子", the translator highlights a long time between life and death.
(4) Repetition:
The plural form "men and women" is translated into the reiterative locution "男男女女" by repetition.
The change of sentence structure via techniques such as conversion and division as well as of vocabulary via repetition and addition renders the translation natural and smooth, showing the translator’s superb handling of the original text.
Example 6:
...we are all the more delighted at the spectacle of its runaway flight as it (the cuckoo) hurries from wood to wood conscious of its crimes ...
一日看见它（杜鹃）因为自己犯了罪而煌惶不安地从这个林子飞逃向那个林子 ... 我们才会觉得大大开心。
In this example, there are also various translation techniques used.
(1) Conversion:
Firstly, the preposition phrase "at the spectacle of" is converted into the verb "看见" in Chinese.
Secondly, the noun phrase "runaway flight" is converted into Chinese verbs "飞" (fly) and "逃" (escape).
Besides, the verb "hurries" (that means to move quickly in a particular direction) is converted into "惶惶不安地" (which means to feel panic, afraid and utterly uneasy), a Chinese adverb to modify the verbs "飞" and "逃", which endows the subject cuckoo with somewhat human characteristic.
(2) Repetition:
The adjective "more" is translated into the reiterative locution "大大", a Chinese adverb equivalent to "very" or "extremely" in English to modify the adjective "delighted".
In this example, the adjustment of the sentence order and conversion of parts of speech make the translation more consistent with the word sequence in Chinese. Meanwhile, the choice of words such as the Chinese four-character structure "惶惶不安" conveys the romantic charm beyond the original text. And there are also indicators of the use of repetition embodied in the typical Chinese reiterative locutions like "惶惶" and "大大".
Example 7:
I have myself a capricious and leaking memory.
我自己的记忆力也是漏洞百出、不听使唤。
Although this is a short sentence, it still contains the flexible use of translation techniques.
(1) Conversion:
At first, the original object "memory" is converted to the subject in the Chinese translation.
And then, the subject "I" with its appositive "myself" is converted into the attribute "我自己的" to modify the subject in the translation "记忆".
(2) Addition:
On account of the conversion of the subject and the verb, the original predicate "have" is inappropriate. The addition of "也是" that is equivalent to the verb "be" in English enforces the completeness of sentence structure. And this is a structural addition mainly due to the structural difference between Chinese and English.
(3) Diction:
The two vivid adjectives "capricious" and "leaking" are translated as "不听使唤" and "漏洞百出" respectively which are typical Chinese four-character structures. The Chinese adjective "漏洞百出(的)" means that the loopholes appear one after another, which is often used to describe that one's writing or speech is untenable because of lack of sufficient reasons and grounds. And here, this word shows the author's weak memory with which he forgets things time and again. And the other adjective "不听使唤(的)" generally depicts that someone loses control and is not obedient to the rules or instructions. Here, the word properly demonstrates that the author cannot manipulate his memory well and also cannot preclude it from being weaker. The use of these two words conforms to the choice of affective and stylistic meanings.
In this example, the conversion of the subject and object, as well as the change of the predicate, enable the translation to be more closely in accord with the Chinese sentential structure. Moreover, the two figurative adjectives packed with personified traits not only fully convey the author's intention, but also enhance the literariness of the translation and even display a lively mood beyond the original text.
Example 8:
We know, again, that, the blossom precedes and not succeeds the fruit of the apple-tree, but this does not lessen our amazement at the beautiful holiday of a May orchard.
另外，我们知道苹果树先开花，后结果，可是五月一旦到来，果园里一片欢闹的花海。我们不是仍然惊为奇观吗？
This is a typical example of the imitation method embodied in the use of diverse translation techniques.
(1) Conversion:
Regarding the conversion of word classes, the noun "blossom" is converted into the Chinese verb "开花".
Concerning the conversion of sentence members, the object in the clause "apple-tree" is converted into the subject "苹果树" in the Chinese translation. And the attribute "May" is converted into the adverbial in Chinese as "五月一旦到来".
Considering the conversion of sentence patterns, the negative sentence "this does not lessen our amazement at..." is converted into an interrogative sentence "我们不是仍然惊为奇观吗？".
(2) Negation:
The negative form "not succeeds" in English is translated into the affirmative form "后结果" in Chinese, intensifying a positive tone on which Chinese language often places emphasis.
(3) Division:
The original complicated sentence in English is divided into several simplex clauses and phrases in Chinese, which underlines the "chronicle style" of Chinese language with frequent use of shorter or composite structures.
(4) Addition:
Now that the original sentence is divided into smaller components, it is necessary to supply connectors for better cohesion. The addition of the logical connectors in Chinese such as "先", "后", "一旦" and "仍然" renders the translation more smooth and expressive.
In this instance, the translator flexibly takes advantage of the techniques such as conversion, negation and division, not only contributing to the diversity of sentence patterns but also adding a sense of warmth and vividness of the translation. Additionally, the semantic addition of logical connectors renders the translation more cohesive and coherent.
Example 9:
Once more I shall see the world as a garden through the eyes of a stranger, my breath taken away with surprise by the painted fields.
那时，我像一个陌生者进人大花园，放眼四望，五色缤纷的原野再一次使我目不暇接，心迷神醉。
As regards this example, the translator enriches the meaning of the original text and creates a more balmy atmosphere by employing various translation techniques.
(1) Division:
The long complex sentence, composed of two clauses, is divided into several separated clauses arranged in a certain order, which renders the translation rhythmic and highlights the focus of expression.
(2) Addition:
The addition of the Chinese set phrase "目不暇接" (which means that so many wonderful things and so swift change of scenery come into sight that the eyes are kept fully occupied) makes the context more coherent, as it echoes "see" and "the eyes" in the preceding and connects the "painted fields" in the following that greet the author's eyes and take his breath away.
(3) Diction:
The verb "see" is translated into "放眼四望" (to look around), the noun phrase "breath taken away with surprise" into "心醉神迷" (to be thrown into ecstasies), and the adjective "painted" into "五彩缤纷" (colorful). These recurring four-character structures in translation are loaded with positive meanings, and proper to depict the attractive scenery and to be used in scholarly prose.
(4) Conversion:
The original clause "my breath taken away with surprise by the painted fields" is in passive voice, and is converted into the active voice in Chinese translation "五色缤纷的原野再一次使我目不暇接，心迷神醉". This kind of conversion is due to the fact that the Chinese passive form marked by "被" is traditionally felt to be an "inflictive voice", mainly expressing things unpleasant or undesirable, contrasted with the cheerful aura overflowing the original text.
The translator employs short clauses separated from the original complex sentence to bestow smoothness and naturalness on the translation and strengthen its artistic appeal. Furthermore, the translator selects the words that tally with the affective, contextual and stylistic meanings of the original. And the opportune addition of words and change of voice also polish the translation.
The reasonable use of the imitation translation method can make the translation more idiomatic and vivid, and even enable the translation to overshadow the original text in terms of showcasing the artistic and aesthetic charm.
In a word, translation methods under domesticating strategy will involve the careful selection of texts which lend themselves to being translated in this manner, the conscious adoption of a fluent, natural-sounding target language style, the adaptation of target text to conform to target discourse types, the interpolation of explanatory material, the removal of source language REALIA and the general harmonization of target text with target language preconceptions and preferences. These methods can render the translation highly literary, aesthetic and readable, and also can to some extent optimize the source text. The appropriate application of domesticating translation is able to even become a sublimation of the original.
Conclusion
This paper makes an analysis of translation strategies and translation methods in English prose, with translator Liu Bingshan's Chinese translation of "Pleasures of Ignorance" created by Robert Lynd as an example. With translation strategies and methods as the starting point, this paper considers Chinese translation of English prose as the research subject. The paper first introduces English prose along with its distinctive properties, linguistics features and principles of its translation. And then this paper carries out the interpretation of translation strategies and methods in Liu Bingshan's Chinese translation of "Pleasures of Ignorance" in which the application of translation methods as well as techniques under foreignizing and domesticating strategies are elaborated, and the concrete effects they exert are also elucidated.
Major Findings
Based on the above study of translation strategies and methods employed in Liu Bingshan's Chinese translation of "Pleasures of Ignorance", the features or common ground of Chinese translation of English prose in terms of translation strategies and methods can be generally summarized.
In Chinese translation of English prose, foreignization strategy and domestication strategy are both used in the light of the style, linguistic features, and syntactic structures of the source text.
But, on the whole, the domesticating translation strategy which includes translation methods such as free translation and imitation is applied more frequently compared with foreignization. This is because that prose translation falls into literary translation that is special on the grounds of the unique characteristics of the original literary works. In literary works, or specifically, in English prose, some words are not used with their literal meanings but their connotative or extension meanings, so literal translation under foreignization may not correctly convey the real significance of the original text. Meanwhile, in English prose, there are complex syntactic structures whose translation cannot be carried out with no proper conversion and alteration. Additionally, multiple rhetoric devices such as metaphor, metonymy and allusion are used in English literary works, and the literal translation of these figures of speech may elude the target-language readers because of the cultural differences and the obscurity of the translation. However, the appropriate adoption of translation methods under domestication strategy, to some extent, can give the target-language readers a sense of closeness and deliver the aesthetic charm with the premise that the real meaning of the original text can be ensured.
In terms of translation methods under foreignizing strategy, literal translation is used when the lexical meaning of the source text is lucid and the syntactic structures in it are relatively simple and clear, so the translators need not find a new path in the mode of expression in order to be faithful to the source text. And the use of literal translation can convey the information more objectively and avoid the interference of translators' subjective factors. Meanwhile, in Chinese translation of English prose, the use of zero-translation is frequent but imperceptible, with the omission of some words peculiar to English, such as expletives it and there, English articles and pronouns, but sometimes the English pronouns can also be retained to show a sense of closeness and friendliness. Besides, transliteration is used for the translation of proper nouns and technical terms not only in English prose but also in almost all text types, conforming to the principles of being named after the original sound and of the translated names accepted through common practice. In a word, translation methods under foreignization can ensure the objective conveyance of information of the original text and preserve its foreignness and unique cultural values that can enrich the target-language readers' knowledge and their languages.
With regard to translation methods under domesticating strategy, in Chinese translation English prose, free translation and imitation method are oftentimes employed. English prose, as one of the English literary genres, boasts distinctive features of literature, such as aesthetic value, the language with hidden meanings and the usual use of figures of speech as well as culturally loaded images, which may not be shown vividly and be easily understood by target-language readers via literal or word-for-word translation. Thus, translation methods under domestication, with careful choice of words, proper adjustment of syntactic structures and sentence sequence, and appropriate sublimation of the original text, can express the original author's feelings more lively, render the translation more fluent, idiomatic and expressive, and display the aesthetic charm of the source text.
At the lexical level, in Chinese translation of English prose, the translation techniques --- diction, addition, conversion and repetition --- are usually used. The typical Chinese four-character structures appear time from time in Chinese translation, and the translators choose the words in line with the affectionate, contextual and stylistic meanings of the original prose, which intensify literariness and satisfy the characteristics of scholar prose. Moreover, the addition of Chinese conjunctive words and logical connectors by which sentences in translation are connected into a text can create better cohesion. Furthermore, the conversion of word classes in translation is based on the contrastive studies of English and Chinese, viz., English with its nominal style is static whereas Chinese with its verbal style is dynamic. Besides, it is one of the peculiarities of Chinese to reduplicate characters or words in word-formation and to repeat the similar or same word or expression in a discourse for expressiveness and parallelism, which can render translation more appealing to Chinese readers and produce the rhetorical and grammatical effect.
At the syntactic level, the translation techniques --- conversion and division--- are often employed in Chinese translation of English prose. To start with, conversion in the syntactic respect involves conversions of sentence members, sentence patterns and the voice. The conversion of word classes often results in the conversion of sentence members, and the alteration of sentences patterns like the inter-conversion between assertive or negative sentences and question sentences can variegate sentence types in translation. The conversion of passive voice in English prose into active voice in Chinese translation is due to the preference for active forms that can produce a positive effect in Chinese language. What's more, part of sentences in English prose are longer and more complicated because of subordination, a fundamental feature of English, and it may be hard to reproduce the original thought with following the original sentence structure in translation, hence the division of complex English sentences into word-groups, clauses or simplex sentences in Chinese can endow Chinese translation of English prose with more naturalness, fluency and sense of rhythm.
The research on the features of translation strategies and methods in Chinese translation of English prose, theoretically can offer a deeper insight into English prose and its translation, and practically can help to some extent improve the quality of Chinese translation of English prose.
Limitations and Suggestions
There are drawbacks in this paper: firstly, the paper takes only one piece of English prose as an example in case study, so it lacks strong persuasiveness; secondly, since there are few researchers on prose translation at home and abroad, especially those specializing in Chinese translation of English prose, this paper resorts to insufficient literature guidance and reference; thirdly, owing to the confined conditions and narrow academic capacity, this paper is devoid of enough depth and breadth as well as favorable insight and acuity, thus the theoretical support and practical assistance it provides are bound to be limited. As a consequence, it is expected that researchers in this field can cooperate well to build up a system to minimize the possible errors and create more thorough and holistic works to enunciate and improve Chinese translation of English prose.
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