On Translators’ Subjectivity In Literary Translation

For a long time, translation study was restricted to the linguistic level, with faithfulness as its main assertion. Translators were fettered by such ideas that a translator should be totally faithful to the source text and he should be invisible in his translations. Thus, translators’ active role or their subjectivity in the process of translation was neglected to a great extent. With the widespread of "the Cultural Turn" in the1980s in the western world, more and more interdisciplinary studies have been made and the active role a translator plays in the process of translation has come into notice. Due to the openness and indeterminacy of the texts as well as the complexity and the unique features of the literary translation, translators’ subjectivity has gradually become a studying focus.This study focuses on the translators’subjectivity, and by comparing the two translated versions of O Henry’s short stories, the author elaborates how a translator displays himself in the translation process and what influences on the translated texts a translator’s subjectivity exerts. Thus, a more profound and illustrative understanding of the nature of the translators’ subjectivity is gained. Translators’ positive roles and functions in literary translation are summarized, which are helpful and instructive to the translation practice.Chapter One is an introduction of the research background and the two translators, as well as the structure of the thesis.In Chapter Two, a literature review is made with regard to the translation subjects, translators’subjectivity and its relative research in China and abroad. The development of the translated versions of O Henry’s short stories and the studies conducted correspondently are also introduced. In Chapter Three, the nature of literary translation and the functions of translators’subjectivity in light of Levy’s translation theory are elaborated. Meanwhile, the inappropriate display of translators’ subjectivity is analyzed from the linguistic, grammatical and logical perspectives. Chapter Four is the main body of the thesis, in which a comparison between the two versions is made from the aspects of linguistic preferences and cultural orientation. In addition, the internal factors that influence the translators’ subjectivity and how they influence the translators’ subjectivity are discussed. The conclusion of the thesis is that a translator’s subjectivity goes through all the stages of the translation process. The quality of a piece of translation is determined by a translator’s subjectivity. Such factors as selecting the source texts, ways of understanding and expression, specific translation strategies and the working attitude of a translator play an important role in the process of translation.