A Translation Project Report Under The Guidance Of The Decision Theory

This article is a translation report on Second Language Learning and LanguageTeaching by Vivian Cook (1940-), the British professor of applied linguistics. Chapter13of Second Language Learning and Language Teaching is the source text. This bookis an academic monograph written especially for teachers engaged in second languageteaching as well as postgraduates majoring in applied linguistics.The Czechoslovakian translation theorist Ji í Levy (1926-1967)’s Decision Theorytreats translation process as the one in which translators have to make multiple decisions.It also puts forward two concepts, namely “definitional instruction” and “selectiveinstruction”, and explains how translators make all the decisions under thecircumscription of these two instructions. This translation project report, based on theDecision Theory, analyzes the translation decisions made in the translation of the sourcetext, and draws a conclusion that translators should be fully aware of the potentialalternatives in the paradigms and the instructions that circumscribe them, in order tomake appropriate translation decisions.The report consists of five parts. The first part is a brief introduction to thetranslation project, including the background and the objectives of the project, and theintroduction to the source text. The second part is an introduction to the translationprocedures, including preparations before translation, the translation process and therevision of the translation. The third part is about the Decision Theory and its influenceon the translation procedures, including the introduction to the Decision Theory and its comments made by the author, and the influence on the preparations before translation,the translation process and the revision of the translation. The fourth part is abouttranslation techniques and case analyses, in which the author analyses the translationtechniques with practical translation examples. The last part is the translation summary,including the experience that the author has gained in the translation procedures and theproblems to be solved.