A Translation Report On My Name Is Lucy Barton(Excerpt)

The source text of this translation practice report comes from the first four chapters of the novel My Name is Lucy Barton written by American writer Elizabeth Strout.The novel centers on the life story of the heroine Lucy Barton narrated from her perspective.While Lucy is in hospital,she gets an unexpected visit from her mother whom she has not ever seen for years,and it arouses her memories about the past.The novel was long-listed into Man Booker Prize of 2016 and a best seller in America.The Chinese version of this book has not been published.The author thinks that it deserves to be translated due to the wide recognition from American readers.The whole translation process is mainly guided by Peter Newmark's communicative translation theory.Founded on the principles of the theory,different translation strategies and skills are applied to tackle the translation difficulties.Word conversion,four-word phrases and word meaning extension all contribute to the readability of the translation,while on the syntactic level,division and combination,order adjustment,and omission and addition of sentences are helpful in acquiring a coherent and understandable translationAfter the translation practice,the author acquires a better understanding of communicative translation theory and valuable translation practicing experience,and is more skillful at the application of the translation strategies and skills.Meanwhile,the author also realizes the inadequacy of her professional abilities that she will make further improvement.Moreover.the author hopes this translation report may afford references to other translators in their translation practice of the related fields.