On The Translation Of Science Fiction

Science Fiction, also known as "Sci-fi", has been in China since1900. In1900, a Chinese couple, Chen Yiru and Xue Shaohui translated the first western science fiction, Ba Shi Ri Huan You Ji (《八十日环游记》), which was transcribed from Jules Verne’s well-known novel Round the World in Eighty Days. From then on, western science fiction entered China. But whether at home or abroad, science fiction translation study is slower than translation practice. The relevant science fiction translation theory books and articles are limited and the only relevant science fiction translation theoretical book in China at present is Guo Jianzhong"s the Translation of Popular Science and Science Fiction:Theories, Strategies and Practice which was published in2004and was deemed a pioneering achievement in the field of science fiction translation studies. Guo Jianzhong has long been engaged in science fiction translation and research work, and with his massive experience he put forward the standards of science fiction translation:1. Literariness;2. Scientificness;3. Popularity. Are these three standards appropriate for science fiction translation? And whether they are applicable to the analysis of science fiction translation or not? Does the science fiction translation have any differences with other literary translation? Whether the standards of literary translation can be used for science fiction translation or not?The author of Twilight is Stephenie Meyer. After the publication of Twilight, Stephenie Meyer wrote three other novels Crescent, Eclipse and Breaking Dawn, which are together called the Twilight series. Until now, the Twilight series were sold85million copies worldwide, and its copyright was licensed in nearly40countries. It has topped the New York Times bestseller list for more than150weeks.This paper takes the three translation standards which are put forward by Guo Jianzhong as the theory basis, using Twilight as an example. Through the contrast of the character descriptions, scenery descriptions, psychological descriptions, and dialogue descriptions between the English and Chinese versions, it is found that the standards of literariness and popularity are too broad, and the standard of scientificness is fuzzy. Based on the major factors which influence the formulation of standards of science fiction translation, such as text types, translation purposes, readers and translators, this thesis summarizes that science fiction belongs to the popular works in literature. Thus the standards of literature translation are applicable to science fiction translation, but the standards are too broad. The translation standards of Twilight are:first, make diction fashionable, and strive for an effect of novelty and uniqueness; second, make language idiomatic and wording apposite, moreover, maintain the exotic tune; third, make discourse full of literary grace, and not pedantic. The scientificness proposed by Guo Jianzhong refers to the scientific contents and scientific predictions of science fiction, which are problems that should be considered by the author, not the translators. So the scientificness should not be considered as a translation standard, but translators are required to know some relevant general knowledge to make sure they can translate scientifically.Zhou Lingshun in his series of "Truth-seeking-Utility-attaining" model towards translator behavior said:the translators’behavior refers to the translators’blend of pure and impure translation. Pure translation means the translation which is intended to seek the original intention of the author/the original. Impure translation means the pragmatic goals that the translators and other patrons want to meet the readers/society’s needs. So the translators’behavior also means the translators’social behavior (Zhou Lingshun,2010).As a kind of popular literature, the translation purpose of science fiction determines that its social value outweighs its linguistic property which requires translators to deviate toward the part of "utility-attaining" on the "Truth-seeking-Utility-attaining" continuum.As the best-seller in science fiction, the translation standards of Twilight are supposed to be representative of other science fiction. Through the study of the translation of Twilight, this thesis is hoped to do its bit and it is intended to start further discussion on the science fiction translation. The thesis consists of five chapters:Chapter one is a brief introduction, which presents aims of the thesis and the overall structure of the thesis.Chapter two introduces Twilight and reviews the studies of science fiction translation at home and broad.Chapter three analyzes Twilight using Guo Jianzhong’s three standards of science fiction translation.Chapter four shows the deficiencies of Guo Jianzhong’s three standards through the analysis of the main factors which influence the formulation of the standards of science fiction translation.Chapter five is the conclusion of the thesis, which points out the major findings and limitations of the study, and provides some suggestions for the future research.