The Significance Of "Reader Response Theory" In The Translation Of English Fiction

As an activity of translating one language into another, translation bridges the gapbetween two different cultures. Recently, along with the development of foreign trade,exchange and cooperation with foreign countries in fields such as science and technologykeep growing. As a result, more and more people attach great importance to non-literarytranslation. However, in the practice of translation, I have found that literary translation isfar more challenging than non-literary translation, which expects a great deal fromtranslators, such as their bilingual language skills, literary accomplishment as well astheoretical knowledge.In this thesis I intend to analyze the significance of “reader response theory” in thetranslation of English fiction based on the case study of the translation of JohnGalsworthy’s The Apple Tree. The fiction was written with simplicity and vivid descriptionof scenery and characters’ emotions, featured by a variety of literary quotations and figuresof speech. The main difficulties the translator has encountered while translating areproblems like words in contexts, cultural connotations, figures of speech and viewdescriptions.With the aim of making target readers who know little about the English culture feelthe same as source language readers, the present translator has applied flexible translationstrategies. Firstly, the translator decodes the real meanings of words in context, showingpreference for literary words and trying to borrow Chinese expressions when contents arewith no cultural connotations. Secondly, in regard to idiom and literary quotationtranslation, literal translation with notes is applied. Lastly, in regard to view descriptions,figures of speech such as personification, metaphor and simile, different translationstrategies such as literal translation, free translation, and converting metaphor to smile areapplied according to different situations.In the end, it is concluded that translators should keep in mind what the translated textis for, which determines the form of translated text and translation strategies. Beingmessengers between different cultures, translators are required to exert their subjectivityand choose translation strategies flexibly from the viewpoint of the target text reader so asto fully and faithfully convey the content and gist of the original text. The case study is conducted with a view to enhancing translators’ awareness ofdifficulties and values involved in literary translation. It is argued that more efforts shouldbe devoted to literary translation.