On Translators' Times Adaptability Of Children's Literature

This thesis explores the times adaptability of a translator, the subject of translating, of the Children's Literature (hereafter CL), by analyzing the different Chinese versions of Wilde's tales (hereafter WT) and the two Chinese versions of the Harry Potter series (hereafter HP).First, this thesis discusses the relationship between the subjectivity of a CL translator and its adaptation to the time in which he lives from the perspective of the language since the May 4th Movement. As a whole, foreignization at that time was the main translation strategy chosen to introduce the new expressions of foreign languages to develop baihua, such as the use of punctuation. Influenced by the translation of WT, Ye Shengtao created his first fairy tale The Scarecrow in baihua, in which, to some extent, the form and the structure of foreignized language could also be found. In a sense, the translation of CL has a positive impact on the creation of Chinese CL and the development of Modern Chinese. The choices from the subjectivity of CL translators are influenced by the needs of their times and finally adapt to the times in which they live.Secondly, to make an effective comparison of a CL translator's adaptability to his times, that is, to make clear the relationship between the subjectivity of the translator and the choices of his times, this thesis takes today's best-selling HP series as another instance by carefully analyzing the different aspects of the language. The Chinese version from People's Literature Publishing House has a tendency to be like works of Adult Literature (hereafter AL). This seems to have violated the Children's Orientation, but today's children have an aesthetic appreciation similar to that of adults. It is the embodiment of both subjectivity and the temporal adaptability of the translator. It is also the representation that the translator has to be enslaved to his times but with a changing conception of the Children's Orientation in his mind. Thirdly, even at the same age, due to different dwelling regions and different cultures, the way a translator manages to meet the needs of the local children in his times is the representation of his positive subjectivity and his positive choices to adapt to his times. The Chinese version of HP published by Taiwan Crown Publisher is a good example. Both the adult-like translation and the childlike version are well accepted by their own readers. It can be certain that Children's Orientation of translation of CL is in fact a re-representation of subjectivity and times adaptability of the translator.Because of the particularity of children readers, a CL translator's subjectivity is often more obvious. Two questions have to be raised. As the subject of translating, to what extent does a translator have the right to translate as he likes and what are the differences between the classics and the abridged editions? Both questions will become the new focuses of the study of the translation of CL in the future.