Equivalence In The English Translation Of Chinese Folk Wise Cracks In Hong Lou Meng

Based on the equivalence theory and the translating strategies adopted by the Yangs and David Hawkes in translating Hong Lou Meng, this thesis is going to study the translation of Chinese folk wise cracks from different aspects in order to find the instruction significance of the equivalence theory in Chinese folk wise cracks translation.Translation is an activity that aims at conveying meaning or meanings of a given-linguistic discourse from one language to another; and the comparison of texts in different languages inevitably involves a theory of equivalence. Equivalence, therefore, can be said to be the central issue in translation although its definition, relevance, and applicability within the field of translation theory have caused heated controversy.Equivalence theory has shed light on Chinese folk wise cracks. This theory emphasizes the translation equivalence of the target text in the target culture. In order to fulfill the translation equivalence of Chinese folk wise cracks, forms of the original texts could be changed to adapt to the target settings. Under this theory, translators are encouraged to make full use of various sources of information and they are entitled to choose whatever translation strategies he thinks appropriate to achieve the expected equivalence of the translation. Equivalence approach to translation has opened up a new perspective to translation studies. It provides a theoretical basis for some unconventional translation strategies such as abridgement, adaptation, imitation and so on. So, it can serve as the forceful theoretical support for those which do not accord with the traditional translation criteria especially the heavy cultural-loaded Chinese folk wise cracks, since culture-loaded words and expressions have always been "a hard nut to crack" in translation.The study object of this thesis is the translation of Chinese folk wise cracks (xie hou yu), with examples from the world-famous Hong Lou Meng and two of its renowned English versions, one by Yang Hsien-yi & Gladys Yang and the other by David Hawkes & John Minford.Chinese folk wise cracks have some distinctive features. Many questions remain to be answered, such as how to translate Chinese folk wise cracks to make them easy to understand, how to translate them to set up a similar or even same image in the minds of target readers, how to achieve equivalent effect in the rendering, etc. This thesis will try to find answers to the above questions.In Chapter one, the thesis gives an overview of theoretical background and the significance of the study are situated. Chapter two is mainly the studies on translation equivalence. Chapter three is the study of Chinese folk wise cracks. Chapter four is the focus of the thesis, which elaborates the seven strategies of translating Chinese folk wise cracks adopted by the Yangs and Hawkes in the translation of Hong Lou Meng. The seven strategies are principle of the organic combination of seeking faithfulness and functional equivalence. Chapter five makes a systematic analysis of the approaches to image rendering in translating Chinese folk wise cracks in the light to equivalence theory. Chapter six points out the possible ways to achieve functional equivalence in the translation of Chinese folk wise cracks.In conclusion, the thesis restates the significance of the equivalence theory in the translation of Chinese folk wise cracks and points out that functional equivalence based on the equivalent effect plays a very crucial role in Chinese folk wise cracks translation.