A Report On The Translation Of Mercy (Excerpt) Under The Guidance Of Hermeneutic Translation Theory

At the call of Chinese culture "going out",more and more Chinese literary works are entering the international market.As a representative of writers born in the 1970s,Lu Nei’s works have been well received by the international readers.This translation practice is excerpted from his novel Mercy(《慈悲》),published in 2015.With a background of China in the 1950s,the novel tells the seemingly peaceful but actually dangerous life of Shuisheng in the third person.With a simple and moderate language,it describes the rough life of working class under the turbulent history of China in the second half of the 20th century.This translation practice excerpts the first six chapters of Mercy.Under the guidance of George Steiner’s hermeneutic translation theory,the translator had a deep understanding of the original text and categorized the translation difficulties into three aspects,namely those in the linguistic,aesthetic and cultural areas.Aiming at these difficulties,the translator adopted flexible translation techniques and methods.This translation practice makes a conclusion that Steiner’s hermeneutic translation theory can help translator to standardize their behavior.Also,the choice of translation methods and techniques is determined by the translator’s understanding and interpretation of the original text.Understanding,interpretation and translation are inseparable.In the linguistic area,there are a lot of folk expressions and traditional Chinese slangs which the translator translates with the strategy of domestication and the method of free translation,so that the target readers can know more about the connotations of these slangs,the images of the characters in the story and the spiritual intension of the novel.In the aesthetic area,to the translation of metaphors and images,the translator uses both literal translation and free translation to recreate the vivid picture and deep emotion.When it comes to the translation of cultural contexts,the translator adopts the methods of addition and literal translation,which makes the target text more understandable and helps the target readers to construct the historical context of the novel.This translation report hopes to provide some inspirations to the translation of similar texts and promote the spread of Chinese culture.