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LIANG Zhi-min
(School of Foreign Languages, Huaiyin Normal University, Jiangsu 223300, China)
Abstract: The paper analyzes the definition of translation and discusses the criteria of translation in detail.
Meanwhile, the paper explores the style in literary translation with some typical examples to prove that in general
the style can be possibly transferred into another language.
Key words: translation; criteria of translation; style; literary translation
LIANG Zhi-min, female, M.A., lecturer of School of Foreign Languages, Huaiyin Normal University; research fields: applied
linguistics, translation theory and practice.
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The reflection of translation study—Theory and practice
practice and the science of translation theory is of no exception. It is a kind of systematic theory aiming at
studying the activity of translation and setting up the objective law of the activity.
And it is a science connected with linguistics, rhetoric, psychology, aesthetics, logic, communication science,
anthropology, and semiotics, etc., just like what the author has mentioned in the above parts.
Though it cannot be considered as a direct component of linguistics, the activity of translation does have
some connection with languages. It is also an art of language just like creation. A theory of translation is in fact a
theory of language.
To sum up: A theory of translation, a theory of semantic transfer, must mean one of two things. It is either an
intentionally sharpened, hermeneutically oriented way of designating a working model of all meaningful
exchanges, of the totality of semantic communication (including Jakobson’s intersemiotic translation or
“transmutation”). Or it is a subsection of such a model with specific reference to interlingual exchanges, to the
emission and reception of significant messages between languages.
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The reflection of translation study—Theory and practice
They always exhibit in the style. If the translated version can really be close or fit to the original one, the style
problem must be solved properly. Hence, we come to the discussion of style.
1
Retrieved from http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Jonathan_Swift.
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The reflection of translation study—Theory and practice
of translating. The translator has achieved to agree with the writer spiritually, not only conform in form. So who
says that translation is impossible to achieve that?
As for the author, the meaning of style should contains not only the author’s writing style but also the culture
difference and the graceful bearing achieved by using so many different methods to produce, In short, in
translation it should resemble the source language in form and in spirit.
4. Conclusion
Although I’ve listed the above to prove that the style can be possibly transferred into another language, we
do have found that sometimes it is really hard or impossible for translators to reproduce the style of the source
language into the receptor language especially in translating poems or prose. There are so many differences
between the SL and TL such as the categories of the words, the sentence structures, grammars and habits, rhetoric
devices, and there are also so many different idioms or old sayings from which we can see the different ways of
thinking; different aspects of views; different customs, attitudes and beliefs; different social background; and
different ways of expression. In a word, language is closely related to people’s mentalities and thought patterns.
Being an intrinsic part of culture, language carries culture, mirrors culture, spreads culture and helps develop
culture. In translating, translators have to transfer all these information (combined as the style) into the target
language. Even the most excellent translated version cannot keep at the same level of the original version, usually
goes too far or is inferior to the original one or sometimes it is just impossible to transfer. Look at this poem
Loneliness by E. E. Cummings (WANG, 2007):
l(a);
le;
af;
fa;
ll;
s);
one;
l;
iness
Of course it is a poem in different form according to the common sense, but till now, there is still no
satisfying Chinese version though a lot of people have tried.
All translators, especially literary translators are expected to uphold reproduction of the original style as their
common goal and strive for it all their lives.
References:
Clay Dollerup. (Ed.). 2003. Perspectives: Studies in translatology. Beijing, Tsinghua University Press.
Cuddon J. A. (Ed.). 1979. A dictionary of literary terms (Rev. ed.). London: Andre Deutsch Limited.
FAN Zhong-ying. 1999. Practical course of translation. Beijing: Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press. (in Chinese)
George Steiner. 2001. After Babel: Aspects of language and translation. Shanghai: Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press.
GUO Jian-zhong. 1999. Culture and translation. Beijing: China Translation & Publishing Corporation. (in Chinese)
Theodore H. Savory. 1957. The Art of translation. London: Jonathan Cape Ltd.
WANG Hong-yang. 2007. A multimodal functional analysis of the poem “la” by E. E. Cummings. Foreign Language Education, 5.
(in Chinese)
XU Jian-pin. (Ed.). 2008. A practical course of translation for postgraduates (2nd ed.). Teacher’s Book. Beijing: China Renmin
University Press (in Chinese)
(Edited by Cathy, Nicole and Sunny)
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