Discursive Interaction-based Study On Translator Subjectivity In Translation Change Of Political Concepts With Chinese Characteristics

Political concepts with Chinese characteristics,concepts that express the position and major policy of Communist Party of China(CPC)and the Chinese government and reflect Chinese cultural characteristics and political nature,are the core expressions of China’s governance practice and political discourse,whose translation can change over time.With translators occupying the core role in constructing the translation discourses,it would be meaningful to explore the translator subjectivity in the changing process.Based on the discursive interaction theory,this dissertation views the changing translation of political concepts with Chinese characteristics as discursive practices made under translator subjectivity in different time.By integrating discourse semantics and conceptual history,this dissertation takes the English translation of related texts of the concept “law-based governance” in Report to the National Congress of the CPC(15th to 19th)as examples to examine the translator subjectivity in the translation change process from the two levels of language use and social factors.This study aims to answer the following three questions: 1.How does the English translation of political concepts with Chinese characteristics change,taking “yifazhiguo”as an example? 2.In view of discursive interaction,what kind of subjectivity did the translators play in the above-mentioned translation process in different times,and what are their similarities and differences? 3.In view of discursive interaction,what is the nature and mechanism of the translator subjectivity in the changing translation of political concepts with Chinese characteristics?The results show that based on the case study of changing translation of the concept "law-based governance" :At the language use level,the horizontal interaction between the source text(ST)and the translation text(TT)discourse contributes to the semantic change of the TT.The subjectivity of translator of political concepts with Chinese characteristics,the mediator between the ST and TT,lies in understanding the meaning of the past concept in the present context by identifying the interaction between ST discourses(continuity and development)and constructing the corresponding TT discourse that conforms to the present meaning of the concept with strategies in rhetorical,thematical,referential,and focus management,facilitating the horizontal ST-TT discourse interaction.The translator employs similar management strategies to highlight the conceptual meaning continuation and different strategies to the conceptual meaning development,constructing a "faithful" interaction between the ST and TT discourses.At the social practice level,the diachronic discursive interaction of translation discourses contributes to the translation strategy change of the TT.The subjectivity of the translator,with his ideology as a mediator,lies in coordinating power relations in the translation field and conducting social practices,facilitating the diachronic TT discourse interaction.The inter-subjective power relations constrain the translator in exercising subjectivity,who coordinates through the power relations among authors,readers,and patrons in the translation field to submit to or resist the existing power.Over time,the translator ideology motivates the translator in changing subjectivity,who forms an ideology of power relations and his own will in the current context,and is guided by it to interpret ST and construct TT discourses on the past concept,accomplish different social practices and construct different identities.Metadiscourse serves as the mechanism of translator subjectivity.The state-will metadiscourse,manifesting its vertical interaction in the ruling philosophy in ST discourse and knowledge construction in TT discourses,influences the translator ideology by shaping the translator’s entextualization(de/recontextualizing process).This study,focusing on the translator at the core of translation from the theoretical perspective of discursive interaction,clarifies the manifestation,mechanism and theoretical essence of translator subjectivity and outlines the subjective role of translators in the changing translation activities of political concepts with Chinese characteristics,providing theoretical reference for concept creation and knowledge construction in the international communication of Chinese discourse.