Application Of Thick Translation Theory To Translating Historical Texts Into Chinese

This translation practice report is based on translating the first chapter and the fourth chapter in the first volume of History of the Great Civil War: 1642-1649 into Chinese.History of the great Civil War: 1642-1649,written by Samuel R.Gardiner,a British historian,is an authoritative book on military history,which mainly introduces the major historical event that changed the course of the English history—the Puritan Revolution.There are very few domestic historical documents about Britain in this period,so the translation of this monograph is helpful for domestic readers to understand the detailed historical records of Britain in this period.In the process of translating,the author finds that the source text involves a large number of proper words,personal names and rich historical knowledge background.Since the author lacks detailed knowledge of the historical background of the text,has weak language skills and limited access to authoritative information for reference,it is difficult to accurately express the specific meaning of the source text in the initial translation,thus misleading or confusing the target readers.In order to solve these problems and improve the quality of translation,the author revised the first draft of translation under the guidance of Apia’s thick translation theory.Apia’s thick translation theory,which is interpretive and instrumental,requires the translator to place the original text in a rich cultural and linguistic context in the translation process.It provides a solution to the difficulties the author encountered in translating historical text.Based on this translation theory,the author analyzes the translation of proper words,personal names,ambiguous words and long difficult sentences in the source text.By adding translation and notes,the implied meaning hidden in the source text is revealed,so that the final target text can retain the rich linguistic and cultural information in the source text,and increase the fluency and readability of the translation as well.The theory of thick translation provides a theoretical support for the author in the process of proofreading and revising the translated text.Through the analysis of specific cases,the author classifies and summarizes the problems and solutions in the translation process,highlighting the significance of thick translation theory in guiding the translator’s practice.