A Study On Narrative Reframing In The C-E Translation Of Chinese Diplomatic Discourse From The Perspective Of Narrative Theory

In the context of Chinese culture’s “going global”,diplomatic speech,as an important external propaganda medium,is an important channel for domestic and international exchanges.The translation of diplomatic discourse plays an important role in telling the story of China well and promoting the effective dissemination of Chinese diplomatic concepts and culture in the international community.The speech of the Foreign Minister is an important foreign propaganda narrative for China today.Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s golden sentence has often sparked heated discussions both domestically and internationally,and it can be said that his speech has played a positive role in spreading Chinese discourse and culture as well as establishing China’s image.Therefore,the study of the English translation of Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s speech is of great significance for the translation of diplomatic discourse research.Mona Baker proposes that the essence of translation is re-narrative and emphasizes the constructive role of narrative in the translation process.Translators can fully exert their initiative and adopt different narrative framing strategies to enhance or weaken the narrative.The translation of diplomatic discourse can be said to be a cross-linguistic and cross-cultural narrative,both of which emphasize the constructive role of narrative.This article takes the speech of Foreign Minister Wang Yi as the research object and analyzes how translators reframe the narratives in the English translation of Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s speech from the perspective of Mona Baker’s narrative theory,as well as the effectiveness of narrative framing strategies in the English translation of Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s speech.The research findings indicate that the translator reframes the narrative in the C-E translation of Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s speech through four narrative framing strategies:temporal and spatial framing(4.5%),selective appropriation of textual material(44.3%),framing by labelling(33.1%),and repositioning of participants(18.1%).Selective appropriation of textual material mainly through the addition and omission of text information to achieve reframing,which can emphasize the focus of diplomatic narrative and enhance the effectiveness of the original text;Framing by labelling is mainly achieved through title framing,naming,and modifying lexical meaning for reframing,which can highlight some key information in diplomatic narratives and enable Western readers to accept the connotation of the original narrative;Repositioning of participants is mainly achieved through person conversion and genre conversion for reframing,repositioning the relationship between readers and narrators,as well as repositioning the roles of participants in the source text,which can bring them closer to each other and enhance readers’ sense of identity;Finally,temporal and spatial framing is used to reframe historical allusions,which can place them in a new temporal and spatial context,making diplomatic narratives more consistent with the realistic context,demonstrating new practical significance,and on the other hand,promoting the dissemination of traditional Chinese culture.The application of narrative theory in translation has broadened the perspective of diplomatic discourse translation research,and the flexible application of narrative construction strategies in the English translation of Chinese diplomatic discourse provides some reference for the better integration of Chinese stories into the English-speaking world as well as for the English translation practice of Chinese diplomatic discourse.