A Study Of The Translation Of Xiehouyu In Honglou Meng From The Perspective Of Relevance Theory

Sperber&Wilson’s Relevance Theory holds that language communication is anostensive-inferential process during which the audience can infer from the stimulusproduced by the communicator what his communicative intention is. Similarly, as a specialform of communication, translation process is also characterized by ostensive-inferentialnature involving three parties: the original writer, the translator and the target reader. Thetranslator is supposed to play the dual roles of a reader and a communicator. In order topromote a successful communication, the translator should also take into account theinformative intention of the original writer and the expectation of the target reader, thusachieving optimal relevance between the author and the reader.Honglou Meng is an epitome of classical novels in Chinese literature. Its Englishtranslation therefore plays a monumental role in its being widely accepted across the world.Xiehouyu (XHY), as a distinctive linguistic form in the novel, is of vital significance inportraying the characters’ personalities, deepening the theme of the novel as well as ding tothe artistic effect of its language. Through a detailed comparative analysis of the twocomplete English versions of Honglou Meng, this thesis is devoted to the translation ofXHY from the perspective of Relevance Theory. Moreover, qualitative analysis, togetherwith contrastive analysis, theoretical interpretation and example illustration is adopted inthis research to help illustrate how optimal relevance can be achieved between the originalwriter and the target reader and what strategies a translator can adopt in the translation ofXHYs in Honglou Meng.