Interpretation Of Children Literature Translation In The May Fourth Period By Chesterman's Models Of Translation Ethics

Translation as a cross-cultural communication requires the guidance of ethical consensus that has been reached by all the parties involved in order to avoid causing any misunderstanding or even cultural clashes that frustrate the communication. The ethical consensus in transition is so-called translation ethics.Since its beginning in the 1980s, the study of translation ethics in the West has gained substantial achievements. Among active translation theorists, Chesterman first defines the field of translation ethics and classifies the abstract concept into five models: ethics of representation, ethics of service, ethics of communication, norm-based ethics and ethics of commitment. Chesterman s models of translation ethics provide a multi-dimensional view on studying translation ethics and have strong feasibility in interpreting ethical phenomena in the process of translation.During the May Fourth period, the translations of children literature have reached a stunning climax in terms of quantity, genre and the number of countries and translators involved. The unprecedented achievement that has been made in this period has exerted fundamental influence on the development of children literature translation and creation in China.This paper tries to interpret the ethical problems emerging in the translation practice of children literature in the May Fourth period from the perspective of Chesterman s models of translation ethics. Through exploring the embodiment of translation ethics as well as the relationship between the five models in children literature translation, this paper is devoted to shedding fresh light on the study of children literature translation while providing pragmatic support to the theory of translation ethics.