Practical Report On The Instrumental Translation Of Alternative Fuel Automobile EIS

This report is based on the English-into-Chinese translation of the Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Safer Affordable Fuel-Efficient(SAFE)Vehicles Rule(excerpt).The source text is the environmental impact assessment on the proposed SAFE Vehicles Rule in the United States,including the forecasts of the global electric vehicle market.The discourse is in the category of informative text written in two styles: that of science/technology and official statement,featured with abundant professional expressions,normative writing and robust logic reasoning.In preparing for the translation,the translator read extensively the parallel texts to become familiar with the contents of such informative text and the relevant knowledge.The translator also reviewed knowledge of logic in order to strengthen the ability of logic analysis on source-text sentences and discourses.The translated version targets the readers of environmental professionals and administers,and the general public for comments.The translator noticed that although the source text is informative in general,it serves various functions.In the translation process,the crux of the problem lies in the extraction and delivery of the core information of the source text,as well as the identification and reexpression of the text functions.In search of solutions,the translator employs Nord’s equifunctional translation and heterofunctional translation strategy suggested in instrumental translation,coupled with the logic analysis method for facilitating comprehension and for organizing sentences in target language.By analyzing translation examples,the experience is summarized as follows.(1)At lexical level,attention should be paid to determine the professional meaning of common words according to context,and re-express it in target language.(2)In translating descriptive discourses,in addition to strict equivalence of professional terms,it is advisable to take means such as structure shifts for achieving the same function in target language as the source text.(3)For discourses with implicit logic information,it is primarily necessary to identify the conceptual,propositional and inferential relationships and make them explicit if needed for achieving consistency both semantically and logically.(4)For discourses with implicit intentional and/or orientational information,it is necessary to sufficiently identify and retrieve the original author’s opinion.By choosing proper words with affective meaning and/or taking means such as condensation,amplification and free translation,the text function is appropriately modified for strengthening the intentional/orientational function in target language,so the readers may resonantly sense the meaning from the translated version.(5)For discourses integrating various functions,it is applicable to take comprehensive functional translation method that combines both equifunctional and heterofunctional translation strategy for accurate delivery of original meaning.This method is good for the text in style of science/technology or official statement,or both.In summary,this report discusses the application of Nord’s instrumental translation coupled with logic analysis method in the translational practice and translational case analysis of environmental impact assessment.The results show that the strategy of equifunctional translation and heterofunctional translation is of guiding significance in translating such text.Hopefully,it may be of consultative significance to the translation of similar texts.