Translating Dialogues In Fictions Under The Guidance Of The Register Theory

Recipe for a Perfect Wife by Karma Brown is the source text of the translation analyzed in this study.The story depicts how two women,one in the 1960s and the other in 2018,fought for freedom in the hope of not being treated as reproductive tools.This thesis studies how to improve the translation of dialogues in fictions under the guidance of the register theory.According to the theory,register links the variables of social context to language choice and comprises three variables:field,tenor and mode.Each of the three variables is associated with one kind of meaning in the text,i.e.the ideational,interpersonal and textual meaning,respectively.The three kinds of meanings are achieved by the choices of lexis,grammar and syntax.From the aspects of field,tenor and mode,this thesis studies how to improve the translation of dialogues in fictions.The field of discourse determines the ideational meaning which can be realized via transitivity and voice.The transitivity system construes the world of experience into a set of process types which differ in functions.To realize the ideational meaning in the target text,the translator should first analyze the topic of the dialogue to be translated as well as the focus of the topic,and then determine whether and how to change the original process type appropriately.The original voice could be changed considering what the author tries to emphasize.The sentence should be presented in the active voice in the target text,if the focus is the actor,and the sentence should be in the passive voice,if the focus is the receiver.The tenor of discourse corelates with the interpersonal meaning.The interpersonal meaning in the target text can be realized through changing the mood structure of the clause and adding modal particles.The translation of modal verbs should also well reflect the relationship between interlocutors and accurately convey the speaker’s tone.The mode of discourse is associated with the textual meaning.The translator should first identify the stylistic feature of the dialogue to be translated,and then construct the textual meaning by applying appropriate cohesion devices,such as ellipsis,substitution,and lexical cohesion.Based on this case study,the thesis concludes that the register theory can help improve the translation of dialogues in fictions,and make it easier for target readers to follow the plot and grasp the theme of the story.A deep understanding of field,tenor and mode of original texts can contribute to the realization of the ideational meaning,interpersonal meaning,and textual meaning in the target texts.