A Study On Conceptual Integration Theory And The Cognitive Process In Translation

Starting from the fact that the cognitive process in translation has long been neglected or insufficiently investigated, this thesis applies Conceptual Integration Theory, which has been developing rapidly as a major force in cognitive science in recent years, to studies on the cognitive process in translation in an exploratory way. It aims at providing a unifying framework for the cognitive process in translation and testing the explanatory power of the theory.According to Conceptual Integration Theory (also called Blending Theory), the author combining some translation examples regards the cognitive process in translation as a process of interaction among four spaces, i.e. a conceptual integration process of the two input spaces (the STS and the TRS) in the blended space (the TTS) with the mapping from the generic space (GS). The STS (i.e. source text space) and the. TRS (i.e. translator space) themselves are the results of blending with the former integrating the source grammar with the author's intended conceptual structure and the latter integrating the translator's language competence, pragmatic consideration, personal preference and cognitive context which includes the target grammar that has been internalized as part of the translator's cognitive context. The GS is an abstract structure made up of similarities between the two inputs and maps onto both inputs throughout the whole process of translation guaranteeing the cross-space mappings and projections. This thesis, after the analyses of the translation examples, points out that it is the conceptual structure conveyed by the ST (i.e. source text) author that connects both inputs. Organized by more or less abstract and detailed frames or concepts, conceptual structure is usually reflected by certain cognitive connections. This structure can and should be recognized or cognized at some level by the translator who in most cases has a good command of both languages, and hence becomes an important part of the GS. The TT (i.e. target text) therefore becomes the natural result of the integration of the ST conceptual structure and the target grammar. This result may also function as one of the inputs in the following integration thus completing and elaborating the existing text. It is notable that the process of the integration is influenced by factors like the translator's cognitive context and pragmatic consideration, which marks the TT with the translator's agency and makes it a dynamic re-creation in the target language rather than a mere reproduction.In terms of the relationship between the conveyed conceptual structure and the organizing frames present in both inputs this thesis also divides translation into three categories to each of which some specific type(s) of conceptual integration network may be applied. No matter what type of network it happens to be, it can be brought into the proposed four-space integration model. Therefore, the cognitive process in translation is given a unifying framework.This thesis also reconsiders a few long-standing controversies in translation studies from the conceptual integration perspective. It argues that previously proposed equivalences are actually based on the metaphorical perspective on translation and unattainable and uncertain, and that the real equivalence exists at the cognitive level, i.e. it is equivalence at some conceptual level. In this way, the issues of translatability and the degree of it are accounted for accordingly. As for literal vs. free translation, the conceptual integration perspective holds that both translation strategies are the results of conceptual integration, only different in selective projection and the degree of similarity between both languages and cultures.The combination of Conceptual Integration Theory and translation studies has provided a brand-new perspective for either of the fields and will surely facilitate the development and perfection of both researches. The author hopes that the attempt made in this thesis may to some extent be helpful in interdisciplinary stud...