On Translatability And Its Limitations

Translation, according to Roman Jacobson, may be intersemiotic, intralingual or interlingual. The word "translation", unless otherwise noted, refers to interlingual translation in this thesis.Translation concerns two languages. Translation, in essence, is the reproduction in one language of what has been expressed in another. It is composed of two procedures: reproduction of logical content (and style) and change of linguistic forms.The controversy concerning the issue of translatability vs. untranslatability in the West and in China has a long history. Those who dealt with and those who are dealing with translatability, from their different points of view on the issue, can be divided into three groups. The first group holds that all translation is impossible. The second group holds that all translation is possible and totally denies the existence of untranslatability. The above two opinions of translation, in their own ways, are neither scientific nor acceptable. A third attitude which holds that there is always, in principle, a channel for message transferring from one language to another because of cultural overlapping and semantic isomorphs. That is to say, any two languages can be intertranslatable in principle. In addition, the practice and the history of translation serve as proof of translation.The relativity of isomorphs and the fuzziness of language make translatability a relative concept. Any language is an independent patterned system. Generally speaking, any linguistic form has its own meaning. In another language, this meaning can be expressed with a corresponding linguistic form, but sometimes it cannot be expressed. To be concrete, there exist many obstructions in the interlingual transference. Consequently translation can be possible only to some extent.Translatability is necessarily accompanied by its limitations. The existence of limitations of translatability makes it impossible for equivalence to be a criterion of translation. As far as evaluation of translation is concerned, there should be three reference functional norms, i.e., advanced reference norm, immediate reference norm and primary reference norm. The basic modes of interlingual transference should include corresponding, paralleling, substitution and confliction.The relativity of translatability or limitations of tfanslatability is also interrelated with functions of language. The cognitive and expressive function of language assures general translatability between languages; the cultural function of language determines relative translatability between languages; the aesthetical function of language suggests the existence of untranslatability of some linguistic forms, which is the maximum of limitations of translatability.Untranslatability of some linguistic forms is also relative and dynamic. We admit its existence, but we should avoid thinking of it in terms of absolutes.The more differences between languages and cultures the more limitations of translatability. It is the limitations of translatability that lead to relative translatability of language and untranslatability of some linguistic forms.