A Study On Translator Sun Zhili-an Advocate Of Translation Ethics

The translator is one of the subjects of translation studies as he plays a major role in translation activities. Study on translators is also necessitated by the development of translation and translation studies. Sun Zhili, a renowned translator, has been engaged in translation and translation studies for nearly thirty years, publishing a great many ethical translations well acclaimed by readers and theoretical works on translation with penetrating insights embracing concern for ethics implicitly and explicitly. The thesis sets out to conduct a descriptive study on translator Sun Zhili's translation and translation views from the perspective of translation ethics.Historically, translation studies have taken two turns. The first turn, linguistic turn, which took place in and after 1950s, with the appearance and thriving of modern linguistics. Translation studies of this kind mainly focused on the question of "correspondence" and "equivalence". The second turn- cultural turn started in the end of the 20th century, which was proposed by Andre Lefevere and Susan Bassnett. Transition theorists then approached translation problems from the angle of society, history and culture, etc. The major issues covered ideology, poetics, patronage and many other factors outside texts. The once much disputed term "faithfulness" then seemed to be out of date.With the development of science and technology and globalization, many heated issues are related to ethics. Translation studies are no exception. In 2001, Anthony Pym claimed in the introduction to the special issue of The Translator that translation studies have returned to questions of ethics. The return to ethics, unlike the former translation studies overlooking research continuity and being caught in dichotomies, helps translation theorists to synthesize the achievements of foregoing translation studies, to rethink about relationships of various kinds in translation from the perspective of translation ethics so as to regulate translation activities with ethics.In response to the call for return to ethics, made by Pym and other translation theorists in the same camp, this thesis attempts to study translator Sun Zhili from the perspective of translation ethics. Mainly, it will sort out the major events in his translation activities, trace the course of his translation views, which is made up of three phases-budding, taking shape and developing, elaborate on his translator's responsibilities or ethics and finally analyze his translation practice from the perspective of translation ethics.The research findings are as follows. For one thing, Sun Zhili rigidly adheres to his own principle, which manifests his strong sense of responsibility. For another, Sun Zhili's translation views, which not only stem from his rich translation practice but also from his assimilation of foreign and domestic translation theories, are ethical in nature. The findings explain why Sun Zhili has been acclaimed as an outstanding literary translator.It is highly rewarding to study Sun Zhili from the perspective of translation ethics. Sun Zhili's translation practice and translation thoughts can benefit younger translators and help to improve their theoretical accomplishment and practical ability. Furthermore, Sun Zhili's translation ethics can facilitate the inquiry into domestic translation ethics, which can ensure that Chinese translation and translation studies develop towards the correct direction.