| Translation Norms Theory is one of the important theories of translation studies, whose main purpose is to establish theoretical system of translation studies based on the description and application of Norms Theory and to guide translation practice and related translation activities. In1980s, Toury proposed Norms Theory on the basis of large amount of case study. By analyzing the three Chinese versions of A Tale of Two Cities from the perspective of translation Norms Theory, this thesis attempts to explore the translation strategies employed by translators and study the influence of translation norms on translation activities and translated works.First of all, the thesis reviews the origin, development and research quo of translation Norms Theory and introduces Toury’s Norms Theory. Toury classified Norms Theory as three norms, i.e. initial norms, preliminary norms and operational norms. Initial norm elaborates which norm the translator follows, the translator can follow the norm of the original text, or follow that of the target text. Preliminary norms including translation policy and translation directness are the macro factors that affect translator’s policy and directness before his translation activity. Operational norms including matricial norms and textual-linguistic norms are the micro factors that influence translator in the course of translation. Secondly, the thesis introduces Charles Dickens and his A Tale of Two Cities; its Chinese versions are introduced and analyzed. Thirdly, from non-textual level, the author analyzes the cultural background, the reason of translator’s selecting source text, translation directness and the initial norms that three translators adhere to. At last, from textual level, i.e. matricial norms and textual-linguistic norms of operational norms, the author analyzes the translation of table of contents, words, sentences and text in three Chinese versions.Some major findings could be borne out through analysis as follows. On non-textual level, the cultural background of one era will influence translators on the choosing of translation works. The open cultural background will impel translation works of various types, while the closed cultural background will remind translators of cautious choice of works which are consistent with the theme of the times; meanwhile, translators’ directness is influenced by the cultural backgrounds during translating process; translators are affected by both the culture of source language and target language, and the translation versions complying with target language culture is much easier for readers to accept. On textual level, the selecting of translation strategies is also influenced by various factors of non-textual level. The thesis has provided a new perspective for the study of the Chinese translations of A Tale of Two Cities. On the other hand, the case study can help us further testify and reflect upon Toury’s Norms Theory. |
