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On Domestication And Foreignization In Two Chinese Versions Of Gone With The Wind

Posted on:2008-10-05Degree:MasterType:Thesis
Country:ChinaCandidate:R ChenFull Text:PDF
GTID:2155360215481061Subject:Foreign Linguistics and Applied Linguistics
Abstract/Summary:PDF Full Text Request
Debate over domestication and foreignization has been going on for literally thousands of years in China as well as in the west. However, no consensus has been reached yet and most of it has been confined to the linguistic level. Scholars prescriptively argue for one and against the other and little attention is paid to the factors involved in the choice of certain translation strategy.To explore the underlying factors of translators'choice of translation strategies, this thesis selects Gone with the Wind, a classic love novel written by the American female writer, Margaret Mitchell as a case study. There are many versions of it in China. Among them Fu Donghua's version is the earliest and also the most controversial one. The author carries out a comparative study of Fu Donghua's version and Li Meihua's version from the perspective of domestication and foreignization manifested in the lexicon, rhetoric and syntax and analyzes social and cultural backgrounds of the translations as well as academic and personal backgrounds of the translators that are related to their choice of translation strategies.This thesis proves that domestication and foreignization is an enduring pair of opposition in the field of translation and the importance of which can never be overstressed. The study of such strategies should go beyond the confines of linguistic level and be targeted at the underlying factors that decide why certain translation strategy is chosen. Only when all these factors are taken into consideration, can a reasonable judgment be made as to which one is the better choice under certain circumstances. Domestication and foreignization are not binary opposition. Instead, they are complementary to some extent. Overstressing one while neglecting another should be avoided. The translator should strive to strike a balance between them.
Keywords/Search Tags:domestication, foreignization, Fu Donghua, Li Meihua, comparative study
PDF Full Text Request
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