On Two Chinese Versions Of Emma: From The Perspective Of Context

It is believed that the 1990s witnessed a peak of translation activities in China, which concretely reflected in the retranslation of the literary masterpieces of foreign countries. There were at least two or three Chinese versions for one original text, sometimes even more. When we take this into account, it is necessary for us to improve the quality of translation on the basis of comparative analysis. It is important to make comparative analysis of different versions for the same original. First of all, through comparative study, merits and defects of each version can be brought out so that better versions can be selected and recommended to readers. Secondly, through translation criticism, we can appreciate the different versions of the same original, and such versions adopt different translation strategies to the same language phenomenon. Thirdly, translation criticism can be a good help for the improvement of the quality of the translated versions. It is known that context plays a significant role in language use; on the other hand, context is indispensable element in comprehending the original text and expressing the target language text. Hence, translation depends on context, and contextual factors restrict translation. From the respective of contextual factors, and by taking the approach of functional equivalence into consideration, this thesis makes a comparative analysis of two Chinese versions of Jane Austin's Emma and points out the merits and defects of the two.Different translators take different theories and strategies to the same original, such as meaning-oriented approaches, equivalence-oriented approach. It is known that functional equivalence is controversial, since one can rarely achieve absolute equivalence in translating. From the perspective of contextual factors, this thesis analyzes how the contexts of language, situation and social culture influence the choice of expression in the process of translation respectively. It is acknowledged that the closer the translated version to the original text, the better it will be. Nida puts forward that the nature of translation is to reproduce in the receptor language the closest natural equivalence of the source language, first in terms of meaning, and secondly style (Nida, 2004:30). What's more, the purpose of translation is not only precise transference of meaning, but also the reflection of the function of the original. In order to make the translation get similar response to the original, translators must thoroughly comprehend the whole original, and know clearly about the contextual factors in source language, with the understanding of the source text; furthermore, the translator must consider the contextual factors in target language.This thesis is just an attempt to throw a light on the relationship between translation and its context, and try to reveal the decisive role of context in producing a satisfactory translation work through many examples from Emma. It analyzes the influence of various contextual factors on the process of translation and draws the conclusion: any translation depends on context, and contextual factors influence on the quality of translation greatly. By verifying the influence of context on translation, this thesis is aimed at expanding the research scope of translation. The research made by the thesis is both practically and theoretically important. Theoretically, it tries to wide the scope of context study and to better comprehend the correlation between context study and translation theory. In practice, it tries to draw the translator's attentions to the contextual factors in translating, reduce mistranslation or avoid translationese in translation activities.