Contextual Analysis In Text Translation

The paper, intended to apply contextual analysis to essay translation at the textual level, begins with a brief introduction to translation from the perspective of text linguistics. From the text linguists' point of view, text is the unit of translation and a communicative occurrence, too. For a communicative occurrence, the analysis of context in both the ST and the TT and that of the participants of the communication are very essential in text translation. The discussion in the paper is limited to contextual analysis. The second chapter of the paper is concerned with the brief summary of the context theory. The third, fourth and fifth chapters of the paper are devoted to the three dimensions of context respectively, which are the communicative dimension, the pragmatic dimension and the semiotic dimension. The communicative dimension mainly includes the register theory of Halliday. Through the analysis of field, tenor and mode, we understand how the experiential, interpersonal and textual meanings of the text are achieved. What is more, we find in essay, one of the literary forms, mat style is affected by register. The analysis of register is useful for achieving stylistic equivalence in the TT. The lexical and syntactic choices made within the field (tenor, mode, etc.) of a given discourse reflect and are ultimately determined by pragmatic considerations. Therefore, the pragmatic dimension is a necessity in analyzing context. In order to put the communication forward and to get the pragmatic meaning conveyed,we should, first of all, regard linguistic elements as signs. Translation is above all an intersemiotic activity. Therefore, the paper deals with the semiotic dimension of context in chapter five. In the sixth chapter, the present author draws a conclusion that the three-dimension contextual analysis renders a full-range analysis of context. It connects language, culture and intercultural communication all together. First of all, according to semiotics, the translator can choose to adopt either of the two translation strategies: foreignization and domestication by keeping the TT's intertextuality with texts in the ST culture or breaking this intertextuality and creating new intertextuality between the TT and texts in the TT culture. Secondly, contextual analysis explores the relationship between Linguistic form at the micro level and culture elements at the macro level. As the textual analysis concerns both the extratextual factors and intratextual factors, the function of contextual analysis complies with the research scope of textual analysis. Therefore, the present author concludes that text and context are indispensable to each other. In the paper, we find that contextual analysis is a prerequisite for effectively conveying the style, the aesthetic effects and the pragmatic meaning of the essay.