On The Translation Of Puns In English Advertisement A Functionalist Approach

The present study explores the translation of puns in English advertisement from the functionalist approach. The functionalist translation theory holds that different text types may require different translation strategies and that the translation of any text should be guided by its Skopos. Puns are characterized by their structural mode of "one form, more than one concept". This structural mode, together with their unique linguistic features, makes puns rather difficult to translate, especially those in the advertisement. Puns are used in the advertisement to achieve three functions, to convey information, to create effect and to make advertisement concise and to the point. Among the three, the second function is the most important in helping realize the persuasive objective of the advertisement. The advertisement, according to the functional text typology, belongs to the operative text type, which calls for a translation strategy of equivalent-effect recreation. The Skopos of pun translation is to reproduce the same or similar effect for target advertisement receivers as that in the source advertisement. To reproduce an equivalent effect, the ideal solution is to render puns into puns. And this can be further divided into two subcategories: to puns of the same nature and to puns of a different nature. If this attempt fails, the translator might as well sacrifice the pun form to convey the information and compensate for the loss by resorting to other rhetoric devices.