On The Translation Of English-Chinese Learners' Dictionaries

As a bridge between two languages and cultures, the bilingual dictionary is related to translation by nature. The quality of translation has a crucial influence on that of the dictionary, both from the user perspective and from the perspective of intercultural communication. However, in order to explicate the role of dictionary translation, the present author has questioned the validity of some assumptions about the uses of dictionaries, that is, ECLDs will strengthen the negative transfer of mother tongue, monolingual dictionaries have advantages over bilingual dictionaries, and bilingualized dictionaries are advantageous over bilingual dictionaries in aiding language learning.Dictionary translation is different from literary translation in seven aspects: translation backgrounds, translation units, pragmatic aspect, translation referentiality, expressive means, expressive contents, and aesthetic principles. The translation of entry units is that of interlinguistic symbols which requires generality whereas the translation of illustrative examples is that within restricted context. Therefore, criteria and manipulation techniques of dictionary translation should be different from those of literary translation.Meaning-text theory, equivalence theory, foreignizing and domesticating strategies all have a role to play in the theoretical foundations of dictionary translation. Basically, translation is the mapping from the semantic structure of the source language to the surface structure of the target language, but for texts of different styles, there are different expressional means. Nevertheless, whatever stylistic requirement, equivalence must be achieved at different levels plus the consideration of cultural transmission, thus foreignizing and domesticating strategies should be adopted to retain the foreignness of the source language and show the expressive power of the target language.In view of the above considerations and on the basis of six translation patterns proposed by Wu Jianping (2005: 29), the present author has attempted eight translation patterns by integrating the translation of entry units and that of idioms based on the semantic classification of idioms into standardized, united and fusional categories, that is, S=T; S≈T₁+T₂+…+T_n ; S≈(t) T (t); S≈T₁ T₂……T_n ; S≈[t] T; S≈T₁×T₂ ; S≈T₁+ T₂ ; S≈E/A (e). Different categories of entry units and idioms can be translated by using these formulaic patterns. As to example translation, the author maintains that example translations should live up to the functions of examples, give prominence to cultural disparities and pragmatic implications when necessary.