Pragmatic Approach To C-E Translation Of Public Signs

The research topics of this thesis focus on Chinese public signs and the English translation. The purpose of this thesis is to invite wider concerns for a better quality of English translation of Chinese expressions. With China's entry into the WTO, the communication between China and foreign countries becomes more frequent. Since the quality of English versions of expressions in public use represents the image of a city, even the whole country, an improvement on this aspect is becoming important and urgent. With new expressions emerging unceasingly, it is. an arduous and long-term task requiring every translator concerned to work hard on it.Altogether, the thesis consists of six parts:Chapter One is the overall introduction of the definition of public signs, their function, current situation and the purpose and significance of research on them, the necessity and urgency to translate them into English.Chapter Two illustrates Nida's functional equivalent theory, Newmark's communicative approach as well as Vermeer and Nord's Skopos theory.Chapter Three compares the similarities and differences between Chinese and English expressions and deals with the linguistic features as well as the figures of speech: Chinese tends to express in negative way and use more 4-character phrases, dynamic verbs, imperative structures; while English is inclined to express in positive way and use more static verbs, gerund and noun phrases and abbreviations.Chapter Four, the main body of this thesis, analyzes some causes for the pragmatic failure in the cross-cultural . translation and discusses the relationship between translation, culture and communication.In the Chapter Five the author sums up some common errors existing in the process of translating Chinese expressions into English, from the perspective of language as well as culture, including how to deal with the words and expressions with Chinese characteristics and figures of speech. Besides translation processes, causes for the errors are pointed out and classified.On the basis of abundant examples, suggested principles for general guidance are put forward in Chapter Six, such as receptors' understandability, communicative translation, conversion and restructuring.The last part concludes that functional theory can really offer the translators a new sight, thought and method in the practice of the public signs' translation.