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The Dynamic Unity Of Foreignization And Domestication In Translation

Posted on:2002-08-30Degree:MasterType:Thesis
Country:ChinaCandidate:C X ZhangFull Text:PDF
GTID:2155360095951781Subject:English Language and Literature
Abstract/Summary:PDF Full Text Request
Translation is representation in one language of what is written or said in another language. It is not only a linguistic transference, but also an intercultural communication. The universals and disparities of the culture make the communication possible with people from various cultures. At the same time they give rise to quite a few translation problems, especially a contradiction between foreignization and domestication.To this contradiction, German translation theorist Friedrich Schleiermacher argued that there were two divergent ways, foreignization or domestication in translation. "The two approaches are so absolutely different that no mixture of the two is to be trusted." Thus the thesis is committed to the relationship between foreignization and domestication.In fact, foreignization and domestication are dynamically united. Each presupposes the existence of the other. By "dynamically united", I mean that in the process of translating they don't take equal shares but one as the primary and the other as the secondary in different types of writings and at different stages of times. Either foreignizing translation or domesticating translation is just a tendency of the translator, the principal inclination in their taking the two approaches, or the translated text is done with one of the approaches specially emphasized; but neither of them is exclusively adopted. Therefore, the dynamic unity consists in the varying degrees of foreignizing or domesticating inclination in the light of the following factors: 1) the translator's condition including the historical social environment in which he lives; 2) the type of the source text; 3) the significance of cultural flavor in the source text. By analyzing the foreignizing or domesticating inclination in different text type in particular social situation we illustrate the dynamic unity offoreignization and domestication. And we can see that, with the increasingly frequent contacts of culture and the development of cultural diffusion, it is quite likely for the SL culture-oriented principle to become more and more acceptable.Accordingly, the demonstration and manifestation of the thesis is laid out as follows:Chapter One gives introduction to the background of the emergence of the two terms of foreignization and domestication, and focus on representatives of either extreme approach and their heated dispute.Chapter Two begins with the criteria of translation and the task of the translators, pointing out that the overemphasis of one side will violate the criteria of translation. We take the three different versions of On Liberty as a case to illustrate different condition of the translator generating different versions with varying degrees of foreignizing or domesticating inclination. Then foreignization and domestication at different stages of times of China have been investigated so as to prove that the employment of foreignization and domestication has much to do with the social effects, political environment and people's psychological as well.Chapter Three, as the main part, analyzes the features and the strategies for literary writings, treatises in humanities and social sciences and scientific and technical texts, with a view to proving that various text types involving different degree of cultural implications leads to varying emphasis on the employment of foreignization and domestication; which is elaborated by discussing the transference of different symbolic and pragmatic meanings between English and Chinese and the way dealing with images and allusion, in some classical Chinese poems, culture-bound words, scientific and technical terms, brands and advertisements.Chapter Four draws a conclusion that foreignization and domestication are dynamically united. It is possible for foreignization tobe the dominant method, or vice versa. And the priority of the two approaches varies in types of texts to be translated, with literary translations generally preferring foreignization, and appealing, if only necessary, to the domesticatin...
Keywords/Search Tags:translation, language, culture, foreignization, domestication, dynamic unity
PDF Full Text Request
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