Translation Criticism: A New Integrated Model Suggested

In this thesis is suggested a new integrated model for conducting TC. It draws upon the advantages and avoids the shortcomings of the four most representative models in the West, namely the schemes of House, Newmark, Reiss and Wilss. Meanwhile, the new model also integrates the essence of the research done by Chinese scholars in TC area. In short, the integrated model is intended to be widely applicable and of theoretical depth and value.The four frameworks mentioned above are the most influential in the studies on TC, presenting systematic and practical models with solid theoretical basis. Although there are many viewpoints on translation assessment which are of great significance, most of them have not provided any complete and practicable plans for evaluating translations. As a result, they seldom get widely applied. In contrast, the four models by House, Newmark, Reiss and Wilss have received more attention and their influence is much greater than other theoretical proposals. That is why among the large number of TC points of view the four models are chosen as the focus of the present study. Their respective advantages are helpful for the construction of an integrated model. The detailed parameters put forward in House's model for analysis of ST and evaluation of TT are particularly useful for the establishment of the new model, for they help to quantify the assessment of translation quality and thus make TC more objective and convincing. From Newmark's highly instructive works in the practice of TC it is learned that the new integrated model, in addition to other strong points, should be highly practical, for TC is not purely theoretical speculation. Clear procedures in the integrated model with some theoretical depth will be appreciated. Besides, the new model should also hold its own views about the criteria for evaluating a translation, for otherwise it cannot be considered as scientific. Reiss's approach shows that a clear and definite point of view should be maintained from the very beginning, which can help make translation assessment more systematic and persuasive. Wilss adopts such linguistic theories as syntax, semantics and pragmatics, and presents a hierarchy of different translation qualities. In this way, the evaluation of translations is made more objective and this grading method can serve as a reference for the new model.Compared with the West, the studies on TC in China are somewhat fragmentary and unsystematic. Within the scanty theoretical research on this field in China, no TC model or framework has been developed which can be widely accepted or well known. In short, TC merely occupies a marginal position in the circles of translation studies. Still, the research done in China has its own characteristics and advantages which can serve as reference for further studies, such as emphasis on moral standards, convincing reasoning methods realized with the help of plentiful examples, and the enlightenment in exploring tricky translations.Reflections made on the nature of TC provide a basis for the integrated model, including its fundamental principles, general framework, and specific procedures to get it up and running. The new integrated model begins from the perspective of the translation critic and considers the different options facing him/her. As diversity is encouraged in the model, the subjectivity of the translation critic is very much heightened. The critic is allowed to choose his/her own point of view and the translation theory or standards relevant to the analysis. Although a certain amount of subjectivity in making evaluations is inevitable, efforts to be objective about the assessment are made within the integrated model, such as an introduction of different parameters in text linguistics to analyze the translation. Moreover, as the new model is left open for criticism and thereby improves itself accordingly, it is full of vitality to progress towards better operation.In this study, inductive research methods are employed, for generalizations are made systematically in terms of the advantages and disadvantages of the four models. Their merits and the useful experience in the studies of China are carried on into the integrated model as well. Besides, in order to show how the new model is operated and test its workability, the translation of a passage from "A Dream of Red Mansions" is commented on under the guidance of the integrated model.