On Fiction Translation Strategies From The Perspective Of Peter Newmark's Communicative Translation Theory

This paper focuses on fiction translation strategies from the perspective of Peter Newmark's Communicative Translation Theory based on my translation of Lawrence Osborne's short story “Kakua”,trying to highlight my ways of handling some specific translation strategies.Communicative translation theory pays close attention to the understanding and perception of target readers,attaches importance to the overall smooth and natural effect of target texts,and puts in the second place the communication of the author's ideas and writing techniques.Inspired by this theory which is oriented in the target readers,the translator uses commoner collocations and more usual words,remodels the syntax and improves the force and clarity of the target text so as to enhance the readability and acceptability of the translation."Kakua" narrates its heroine's life experience,directing the readers' attention to an appalling culture of cannibalism.With some characteristics of a thriller,it can be categorized as one of what Newmark called the "vocative texts" in his communication translation theory so it is suitable for me to handle my E-C translation according to his perspectives.In order to retain the atmosphere of the fiction and make the target text smoother and more acceptable,the translator first applies idioms,modal particles and other unique expressions to transform the original forms to ensure simpler and more conventional translation.Secondly,the translator bridges the gaps between Chinese and English in terms of syntax and reconstructs the perspective of the target readers in an aim to present a natural translation version by means of restructuring,changing the passive voice to the active voice,amplification and omission.Finally,the translator focuses on force and clarity,determining the meanings of different words and revealing the gist based on the context so as to conform to the cognition of the target readers.Based on the E-C translation of “Kakua” from the perspective of Peter Newmark's communicative translation theory,this paper endeavors to review the translation version with a number of cases taken from the project and summarizes some translation strategies in respect of language forms,structures and meanings.It arrives at the conclusion that the communicative translation theory is of theoretical significance to fiction translation and the translator can convey the contextual effect as well as the story content and atmosphere with appropriate strategies so as to convey in the target text the linguistic features of what Newmark calls a vocative text.