Translation Studies In Light Of Adaptation Theory

This thesis explores the translation studies from the view of Jef Verschuern'sAdaptation Theory. The author'translation of Virginia Woolf's The Death of Moth and otherEssays is employed.Verschueren did not put forward Adaptation Theory formally until his bookUnderstanding Pragmatic is published in 1999, with the intention of studying language andlanguage use from a comparatively new perspective. According to Verschueren, languageuse is a continuous process of making choice and adaptation in linguistics structure orcontext at different level, consciously or unconsciously, for language internal or externalreasons. In the process of language use, there are at least three properties of languageneeded to be understood in the process of choices-making, namely, variability, negotiabilityand adaptability. In addition, four angles of investigation are still indispensable: contextualcorrelates of adaptability, structural objects of adaptability, dynamics of adaptability, andsalience of the adaptation process. These four angles study translation from linguistic, social,cultural and cognitive factors respectively. On the theoretical basis of Adaptation Theory,this thesis attempts to explore how the translator makes her choice and adaptation inaccordance various factors in the whole process of translation. It will be proved that thistheory is of great significance to translation studies.As an important writer in Britain, Virginia Woolf is not only regarded as one of theforemost modernist leader in the twentieth century, but also a great critic and essayist.Furthermore, her efforts contribute a lot to the west feminism thoughts and various socialmovements. It seems that scholars at abroad and home pay little attention to The Death ofthe Moth and Other Essays. There is only one Chinese version of this essay and the authormakes an attempt at translating this essay again on the basis of the previous translation. Thisthesis intends to apply the theory of Adaptation to the translation of The Death of the Mothand Other Essays.This thesis consists of five chapters. The introduction presents background, target andthe structure of this thesis. Chapter two is an introduction of Adaptation Theory. Chapterthree is the exploration of translation studies in light of Adaptation Theory. The author willput forward that as a complicated and special process of language use, translation is acontinuous dynamic process of choice-making, consciously or unconsciously. Chapter fouris the application of the adaptation theory to the translation of The Death of the Moth andOther Essays. This novel and its writer Virginia Woolf are introduced firstly, and then the thesis will present the study of The Death of the Moth and Other Essays'translation in lightof Adaptation Theory. Figures of speech and some other language phenomenon such assymbolism, interior monologue and idiom are selected as examples. This chapter explainshow the translator deals with the different problems and achieves the translation purpose inthe end in the process of translation. The conclusion sums up the whole thesis.