Cultural Image Translation Viewed From Adaptation Theory

This thesis investigates and examines cultural image translation as well as image translation strategies from the perspective of Verschueren's adaptation theory. It manifests by theoretical deduction and data analysis the adaptation of the translator in cultural image translation, which offers a new theoretical perspective for cultural image translation.The author first explores the compatibility between adaptation theory and cultural image translation. Verschueren's Adaptation Theory offers a new pragmatic perspective for language use and translation research. He proposes that due to the three properties of language, namely variability, negotiability and adaptability, using language must consist of the continuous making of linguistic choices. Translation is a process of using language, and in the meantime the process of making choices, thus making it possible to study cultural image translation based on the culture adaptation theory. Meanwhile, the notion of communicative context proposed by Verschueren provides theoretical reference for the cultural image translation study.Next, based on data analysis, the author of the thesis describes the adaptation and selection of image translation strategies that translator makes according to communicative needs. Inspired by adaptation theory, this part focuses on the translator's adaptation in cultural image translation from three aspects: cultural context, translator's psychological motivation and the target readers'cognition.Through theoretical deduction and data analysis, some major findings are summarized as follows:(1) It is proved by theoretical deduction in this thesis that the adaptation theory provides a new theoretical perspective to the research of cultural image translation.(2) In the process of cultural image translation, the translator consciously makes linguistic choices from different aspects of cultural context and use the target language to convey the author's intention. By adaptation to cultural context, the translator chooses to use appropriate image translation strategies to express the author's communicative purposes to the greatest extent. In other words, it is the translator's responsibility to choose appropriate image translation strategies and to make linguistic choices to express the author's intention based on adaptation to cultural context of the target readers.(3) In the process of adaptation, the translator is proposed to be aware of his or her communicative intentions as well as the readers'cognition in order to choose appropriate translation strategies and make adaptation.