A Study Of The Manipulation Theory And Its Application

Boasting a long history, western translation studies could be divided into two categories; namely, linguistic translation studies and literary and artistic translation studies (Tan Zaixi 2004:6).While the former takes the language equivalence at all levels as its core, the latter recognizes the creativity in translation (Ibid.,6). The flourishing theories in translation studies in recent thirty years, especially in literary and artistic translation studies, encourage the multiplication of comments on them. But few academic works are devoted to a systematic analysis of the latest translation theories, let alone their application. The present study will, therefore, methodically examine those theories and their application.Manipulation theories have taken a leading role in translation studies; they introduced new approaches to the process of analysis. The present study offers an overview of the manipulation school, including the emergence of the school, the major events in its life and works, as well as its considerable influence around the world. This paper treats the manipulation theories in three stages; that is, from prescriptive approach to descriptive approach, from language level to cultural level, and from the original text and author to the translation and translator. Highlighted is the breakthrough in translation studies the manipulation school accomplished. The present study likewise demonstrates the validity of the manipulation theories through the analysis of seventy-six examples at the level of words and expressions. Descriptive and systematic approaches of the manipulation theories are adopted, and the roles of translations and translators are singled out for attention. The analysis helps to prove that "all translation implies a degree of manipulation of the source text for a certain purpose" ( Hermans 1985:11 ) and thus contributes to the development of the latest translation theories.This thesis is composed of four chapters. Chapter One introduces the background of current translation studies and the aim of the present study. A review of the latest translation theories lays a foundation for the chapters that follow.Chapter Two submits an overview of the manipulation school and the manipulation theories. Section One proves that the "manipulation school'is the appropriate name for the scholars employing certain translation theories; Section Two highlights the theoretic achievements of the manipulation school; Section Three points out that manipulation theories seldom deal with non-literary translations at the level of words and expressions.Chapter Three proves the validity of the manipulation theories through an analysis of translations at the level of words and expressions. With the guidance of the manipulation theories, the present study analyzes the non-linguistic factors that manipulate the translations through the tool of translation techniques. Examples are drawn from literature, Shanghai supermarkets and shopping malls.Chapter Four concludes the thesis with a summary, the major findings, limitations of the present study, and suggestions for further study.