A Translation Report Of The One And Only Ivan From Reception Aesthetics

The thesis is a report conducted on the basis of the writer’s practice of translating The One and OnlyIvan written by American writer, Katherine Applegate. The book, written for8-12years old children, isnarrated from the distinct voice of the gorilla, which is filled with wry humor, deep emotion andthought-provoking insights into the nature of friendship, hope and humanity.There are six parts in the report. The first part is an introduction to the deep impact of animal novel onthe healthy growth of children and the present situation of the development of domestic animal novel, andthe writer attempts to prove the guiding significance of Reception Aesthetics to children’s literaturetranslation through this translation practice. The second part is task description which includes selection oftranslation task, the brief introduction to the author, the content, and type and characteristics of source text.The third one is process description which includes pre-translation preparation and process of translation.Pre-translation consists of four aspects; they are respectively arrangement of translation task, the basicexplanation of Reception Aesthetics as a theoretical guidance, its application to the translation project, andglossary formulation. Process of translation covers choice of translation tools and implementation of thetranslation. The fourth part is case analysis. Under the guidance of the theory of Reception Aesthetics, thewriter selects some examples to show how to flexibly apply translation strategies, such as domesticationand foreignization, and translation methods, such as addition, omission and conversion of word classes tomeet the receptivity of target readers. The fifth is quality control of the translation practice. According tothe suggestion of the supervisor and more than thirty children readers ranging from8-12years old, thewriter modifies the target translation carefully to meet target readers’ reading requirements. The sixth part isconclusion which summarizes experiences gained from the translation practice, such as the quality requiredby the translator while translating children’s literature and the guiding significance of Reception Aestheticsto children’s literature translation; and also sums up the limitations in the translation practice because ofimmature development of children’s literature translation and the writer’s limited ability.