A Study Of The Translation Of Nicknames In Shui Hu Zhuan-From The Perspective Of Communicative & Semantic Translation

Through a comparative study of some nicknames in three English versions of Shui Hu Zhuan, i.e. All Men are Brothers, Outlaws of the Marsh and The Water Margin, this thesis attempts to analyze the translation strategies used in each version and act as a guide to nickname translation, with the application of Peter Newmark’s theory of communicative and semantic translation. Furthermore, based on an analysis of characters’ personalities, cultural origins and historical backgrounds as well as the literal meanings of the nicknames, this thesis analyzes the merits and demerits of the translation of corresponding nicknames adopted by each translator, the constraints the translations bring to target readers, and both the loss and the gain of meaning resulted from meaning association in TL custom and culture.This thesis consists of five chapters. Chapter one provides a general introduction to the research. Chapter two focuses on a survey of previous studies on the translation of nicknames. Chapter three is about some relevant theories contributed to this thesis, which mainly focus on Peter Newmark’s communicative & semantic translation. Chapter four provides a detailed analysis and comparison about nickname translation in the three English versions of Shui Hu Zhuan under the given translation theories and criteria. In the end a conclusion about translation strategies and approaches on nicknames is drawn and the limitations of the present study are listed for further research.Studies on nickname translation in Shui Hu Zhuan not only help to improve the development of CE translation to produce better works, but also help to transmit traditional Chinese culture. This research studies nickname translation from the perspective of communicative translation and semantic translation, and analyzes the strategies and approaches that can be adopted to translate certain groups of nicknames in Shui Hu Zhuan.