On Chinese-English Translation Strategies Of Mo Yan’s Works From The Perspective Of The Functional Translation Theory

China boasts a long and splendid cultural history.In recent years,the translation of Chinese literary works has received growing attention through telling Chinese stories,spreading Chinese voices and interpreting Chinese characteristics.Mo Yan won the Nobel Prize in Literature,which pushed Chinese contemporary literature to the world.Mo Yan became the Chinese writer with the greatest number of translations and the most influential works abroad.However,there are many problems in the numerous translations of Mo Yan’s literary works,such as taking words too literally,inappropriate phrasing,improper and even incorrect translation,which hindered the realization of the function and purpose of the source language.Therefore,it is necessary to translate Mo Yan’s works under the guidance of appropriate theory.As one of the influential translation theories in modern times,German Functional Translation Theory broke through the characteristics of just valuing form and equivalence which is how a typical linguistics school would do.It believes that translation is a purposeful behavior and the purpose of translation determines the entire process of translation.The overriding principle is that all translations must follow the Skopos Rules.It states that translation is not only the conversion of letters,but also the communication between different cultures.In order to achieve this purpose,translators should follow some corresponding translation principles and adopt the relevant translation strategies.Besides,according to the theory,the translator,the author of the source text and target readers should also be made an all-sided consideration.This will give a more comprehensive perspective on the translation of literature works.Under the guidance of this theory,translators can consider adopting more effective translation strategies to achieve the purpose and function of the original text.Based on the Functional Translation Theory and the personal translation practice of chapters 1-7 of Mo Yan’s novel The Endless River,the author makes a systematic comparison between two translation versions before and after using the Functional Translation Theory.The research is largely focused on the translation strategies,and it also values some cultural factors.Chapter one is the brief introduction of the research background,the purpose andsignificance of the research,research methodologies as well as Mo Yan’s novel The Endless River.Chapter two is concerned with literature review.It gives a review of the Functional Translation Theory both at home and abroad and the studies on the translation of Mo Yan’works.Chapter three mainly introduces the theoretical framework of this thesis.Chapter four,the kernel of this thesis,in which the two versions of translation of The Endless River with and without the guidance of Functional Translation Theory are compared and analyzed.The last chapter summarizes the findings and limitations of the thesis and proposes some suggestions for further studies.Through comparative analysis,this thesis finds that the translation under the guidance of the Functional Translation Theory can better convey the information and the essence of culture of the original text.It can,therefore,be received and understood by readers more easily.The author hopes that this thesis will be helpful to improve the quality of Mo Yan’s novel translation,be conducive to the dissemination of Chinese culture and improvement of cross-cultural exchange as outlined in the Belt and Road Initiative.