Non-Quantitative Numerals Translation Based On Schema Theroy

Numerals, as an important part of language, do not just function for calculation or are used to express quantities. They are deeply embedded in culture and gain abundant cultural meanings with non-quantitative characteristics, which are caused by various reasons such as cultural traditions, ways of thinking and religious believes. The study of Chinese and English numerologies from the cultural perspective has aroused great interest in recent years, yet so far little study has been done on the translation of non-quantitative numerals in special contexts.The thesis aims to apply schema theory to study the translation process of non-quantitative numerals in Chinese and English and attempts to open a new angle for the translation of non-quantitative numerals. The study materials mainly come from A Dream of Red Mansions and daily life. As the comprehension of non-quantitative numerals in specific context requires the participation of the translators'cognitive thinking, translation in itself is a complex thinking activity. The author applies the schema theory to probe into the comprehension and representation of non-quantitative numerals, discussing how to activate translators'related schemata to decode the original schemata and how to activate the target readers'relevant schemata for ideal intercultural exchange.The author discusses how schema theory operates in the comprehension of non-quantitative numerals and verifies the feasibility. In particular,the author explores how to activate the translator's and the target readers'relevant schemata to improve their level of comprehension of non-quantitative numerals and to avoid the misunderstanding caused by relevant schema disparity and default.Finally the author creates"numeral cultural schemata"to provide a new strategy for the translation of numerals, namely, the way of sharing the same"numeral cultural schemata", using the target"numeral cultural schema", using the source"numeral cultural schemata", and abandoning"numeral cultural schema". This is a translation strategy that flexibly changes the schemata or creates new schemata according to different situations.