On Translating Chinese Tourist Information Text Into English-A Reception Aesthetics Perspective

A translated tourist information text is an important market promotion tool in introducing China's tourist attractions to potential overseas tourists and persuading them to purchase the tour.Translation of tourist information text falls into the pragmatic type. According to Peter Newmark's classification of text functions, a tourist information text is a vocative text since it does its utmost to persuade readers to purchase the product and service. The success of tourist information text translation relies on readers'response to the translation and the extent to which they accept the translation.Reception aesthetics, a literary theory, focuses on readers'reception of the text and their participation in literature works. Horizon of expectation is one of the most important concepts of reception aesthetics. It refers to the partial and moving perspectives of human experience and knowledge, which readers bring when entering a work. Reception aesthetics can be applied in the tourist information text translation since it gives top priority to readership in its research, and fully recognizes readers'horizon of expectation. This agrees with the key factors in tourist information text translation.This paper adopts an innovative angle of research, by integrating a literary theory with non-literary translation. It reveals the enlightenment of reception aesthetics in Chinese-English translation practice of tourist site guides, and has recommended applicable translation strategies.The introduction part briefs the significance of this research, literature review and the framework of this paper. Chapter One focuses on the main concepts of reception aesthetics as well as the correspondence between this theory and some Chinese and western schools of translation theory. Chapter Two expounds the language features and text type of tourist site guide. Chapter Three makes an elaborate comparison between English and Chinese tourist information text in terms of text orientation, linguistic pattern and aesthetic style. Chapter Four elucidates the illumination reception aesthetics has in translating tourist site guide, and proposes two general principles ---- principle of tourist orientation and principle of conveying source culture features. Chapter Five illuminates how reception aesthetics can guide translation practice of tourist site guides, and how the above two principles can be realized in practice.On the whole, a strategy of assimilation is recommended to comply with target text readers'horizon of expectation and enable easy comprehension. As for the language items indicating specific source culture contents, a dual level translation strategy is suggested, that is, to employ assimilation strategy on the linguistic level, but a certain degree of alienation on cultural level by preserving the content of source culture, and even, when necessary, provide additional source cultural information conventional for source text readers but fresh for target text readers. This paper will contribute to promoting Chinese tourist resources and culture to the outside world, and boosting China's tourist industry.