A Contrastive Study On The English Translation Of Proverbs In Xiyou Ji From The Perspective Of Speech Act Theory

Xiyou Ji,as one of China’s four great classic novels,has not only had a profound influence on Chinese culture,but has also been spread worldwide with great fame.Among all the other things that make the book widely acknowledged and studied are the large number of proverbs used by Wu Chengen,which contributes to the vivid depiction of the various characters in the book and draws the reader’s attention and resonance.How these proverbs in dialogues are used and translated can be well studied in light of the speech act theory,which focuses on how people use words to perform and the effect implied in the language or utterance.At present,there exist only two complete English versions,one by Anthony C.Yu and the other by W.J.F.Jenner.Based on the speech act theory,this thesis focuses on 180 proverbs taken from Anthony C.Yu’s and W.J.F.Jenner’s complete versions,some of which are used to conduct a qualitative research.By dint of contrastive analysis,the thesis attempts to answer the following questions:(1)What are the main differences between W.J.F.Jenner and Anthony C.Yu in their translation of proverbs in Xiyou Ji?(2)How can the differences be accounted for in light of the speech act theory?(3)Within the speech act theory,which act plays the biggest role in causing the differences?The contrastive analysis of the two English versions has found that Anthony C.Yu’s translation is more prone to the literal meaning of the proverbs,while W.J.F.Jenner’s translation is usually closer to the practical meaning,with a result that there are such main differences as sentence structures,words usage and modality by the two translators.In terms of the proverb translation,not only should the locutionary act be considered,but most important of all is to experience the true intention of the original author as well in order to achieve the speaker’s intention,namely illocutionary act.Only in this way can readers experience similar speech effect to what the original readers feel to the greatest extent so that the communicative purpose can be achieved and it can be easier for readers to understand the proverbs.