On The Translation Of Chinese Culture-specific Items In U.S. Newsmagazines

Globalization acts as a catalyst for cultural exchange between countries and regions. Newsmagazine, an important information medium, plays an undeniable role in transmitting cultures. As the top two U.S. newsmagazines, Time and Newsweek have huge readership around the world, thus Chinese culture-specific items dealt with in their reports are crucial to spread Chinese culture.Chinese culture-specific items are pervasive owing to China's long history and rich cultural heritage, the translation of them asks for both linguistic and cultural considerations. By now much ink has been spilt on how to achieve the most effective communication between cultures through translation. This thesis intends to discuss the translation of Chinese culture-specific items in the U.S. newsmagazines from the cultural perspective.Proceeding from the relation between culture and translation, this thesis summarizes the translation methods of Chinese culture-specific items adopted in the U.S. newsmagazines. Pros and cons of each method are also discussed. With the aid of Venuti's theory of domesticating and foreignising strategies, the author points out that the U.S. newsmagazines prefer the foreignising strategy to deal with the Chinese culture-specific items. Then the thesis tries to explain three underlying factors leading to this preference, i.e. readership, purpose of the news, and ideology. Due to ideological influence, the translations in the U.S. newsmagazines are not necessarily proper and sufficient. Therefore, translators' proficiency of translation skills and responsible manner are desired.Through the discussion of the translation of Chinese culture-specific items in the U.S. newsmagazines, this thesis hopes to be of some help to the Chinese - English translation practice and translation teaching practice in China.