A Report On E-C Translation Of Construction Contract Of Upper Trishuli 3A Hydroelectric Project From The Perspective Of Skopos Theory

With the deepening of reform and opening-up and gradual implementation of “The Belt and Road Initiative”,China takes an active part in international cooperation.Nowadays,as China has become a major country for the constructions of overseas projects,a large number of Sino-foreign construction contracts are signed to protect their mutual profits.Undoubtedly,translation of such contracts becomes vital.Against this background,studies on construction contract and its translation are at the top of agenda.Based on an E-C contract translation project,the author tries to discuss the E-C translation skills of construction contracts under the guidance of three rules of the Skopos theory.In accordance with the guiding rule of the Skopos theory,the author highlights the translation purpose of construction contract,especially in association with the E-C translation of Upper Trishuli 3A Hydroelectric Project.Besides,the author applies the fidelity rule to its lexical translation by mainly analyzing the translation skills of archaic words,technical terms,synonyms and modal verbs.Then,the author explores the coherence rule,mainly exploring the translation skills of long sentences,passive voice and conditional clauses.In this paper,the translation practice and analysis attach much importance to the construction contract quality at both lexical and syntactical levels,especially with the translation purpose in view.Based on theoretical analysis,the author finds that it is feasible to apply the Skopos theory to the E-C construction contract translation,which has been proven very instructive and effective in case studies.In this translation practice,the author also finds that how to choose the proper method in the E-C construction contract translation under the guidance of the three rules of the Skopos theory.For instance,skopos rule is used to help the translator choose the appropriate translation methods in general.In accordance with skopos rule,the purpose for translation determines the selection of translation method.Then,the translation purpose of this project is primarily discussed.A successful construction contract should stipulate the rights and obligations of the parties clearly.So,the construction contract should be translated exactly in consistence with its purpose,namely to attain the accuracy,formality and readability as the original one.Fidelity rule is used to achieve the accuracy and fidelity at the lexical level.Then,at the lexical translation,literal translation can be generally adopted,or otherwise.According to coherence rule,the target text should be readable and understandable by target readers.Thus,at the syntactical translation,translation skills can be used flexibly according to different cases,such as adjusting the sentence order,adopting the skills of division and reconstruction in dealing with long sentences,converting the passive voice into active voice,etc.Some other important inspirations and experiences for construction contract translation are drawn and some suggestions for later improvement are advocated in the conclusion.