On The Translation Of Long Sentences In Biographical Texts From The Perspective Of Functional Equivalence Theory

With the emphasis on individual value and the wide spread of popular culture,biographies become more and more popular among the general public.W.A.P.Martin,Pioneer of Progress in China is a biography of the American missionary W.A.P.Martin.From the perspective of China’s modernization,the book takes Martin’s activities in China and the progress he brought to China as the main line,and makes a comprehensive introduction to Martin’s early life and activities.The translator chooses Chapter One of the book as translation materials and finds that English long sentence is the main feature of this chapter which has caused some difficulties in the translation process.This problem has become the main content of this report.Eugene A.Nida’s functional equivalence theory emphasizes that translation is a total transformation from semantics to stylistics.In the target language,the source language information is reproduced in the nearest natural equivalent language.The translator believes that this theory can be used as a standard for long sentence translation practice,and can also guide the translation practice well.At present,there have been very few studies on the application of functional equivalence theory to exploring the practice and research of long sentence translation in biographical texts.Therefore,this report will follow Nida’s theory of functional equivalence.By analyzing the authenticity and literariness of biographical texts,and the characteristics and classification of English long sentences,the translator will discuss different translation techniques used for different types of English long sentences in this report.Through these analyses,the translator can better understand the complex syntactic structure of English long sentences,and make the translated text conform to the Chinese expression habits properly.In addition,this report can also benefit people who learn English in translating English long sentences.