On Untranslatability And Its Correlation With Language Functions

The world is composed of innumerable contradictory entities. In every contradictory unity, the existence of one side is dependent on the other side. Translation practice is a process teeming with a succession of contradiction-solutions between translatability and untranslatability. Therefore, untranslatability is an undeniable fact in translation. It is the distinctions between languages that make one language its own instead of another and trigger off the possibility of untranslatability. J. C. Catford points out in his A Linguistic Theory of Translation that limits of translatability or untranslatability involves two kinds of cases, that is, linguistic untranslatability and cultural untranslatability. The thesis, based on Catford's findings, makes a detailed exploration into limits of translatability. Meanwhile, the thesis argues that translation between homogeneous languages is confronted with less untranslatability than the translation between heterogeneous languages and likewise, that there is less untranslatability in translating within homogeneous cultures than translating between heterogeneous cultures. Different linguists have different definitions of language functions. As far as translation theory is concerned, language functions can be classified into three kinds, namely, cognitive and expressive function, cultural function and aesthetic function. In the author's opinion, there is high correlation between the question of translatability and untranslatability and the three language functions, namely, cognitive and expressive function forms the basis of general translatability between languages while cultural and the aesthetic functions are the causes of untranslatability-the former produces relative untranslatability and the latterabsolute untranslatability. Furthermore, the performance of the three language functions is mirrored in three grades of translations, basic, medium and superior grades. Different styles require different grades of translation and different styles have different degrees of untranslatability. The author thinks that translation studies should attach primary importance to performance of language function to reduce untranslatability and increase translatability so as to make the end product of translating lie in the superior grade.