Numerics In The Chinese-English Poetry Translation

Numerics in Chinese poetry are not only the imaginary numbers, but also phenomena of semantic vagueness. Numerics in Chinese poetry are essentially used as figures of speech, which makes it difficult to translate them into English. The thesis attempts to explore the cultural differences and characteristics of the numbers in Chinese poetry and suggest plausible methods in terms of domestication and foreignization in Chinese-English poetry translation, with a view to increasing the translator's awareness of intercultural communication and improving the translation quality. First of all, theories of literary translation and Chinese poetry translation are reviewed, especially from the perspective of translation strategies. Then, a comparative study of numbers is conducted in terms of cultural difference in the two languages, and usage of numerics in Chinese poetry is discussed with the illustration of many examples. After sufficient data are presented and discussed in order to test the applicability of current analysis, the thesis proposes four methods concerning numerics in Chinese poetry translation, namely literal translation, literal translation with notes, editing translation and free translation. Literal translation applies to the numeircs when two cultures have almost the same interpretation of them, very often those with real reference. Literal translation with notes can be used for some culturally-loaded numerics to reduce the foreignness of the target text. The editing translation is operated to enlarge or reduce the amount, in order to conform to the target language conventions. Free translation is employed to deal with some untranslatable numerics, aiming at the transference of the original messages without numerics themselves. Based on the discussion of a case study, the thesis arrives at a conclusion that either domestication or foreignization can be employed in the translation of numerics, and the choice of strategy varies in specific situation according to an overall consideration of many factors.