A Skopos-based Approach To C-E Hard-news Translation

Hard-news and its translation assume an important role in international news distribution. Skopos theory, introduced into translation theory in the 1970s by Hans J. Vermeer, provides us with a powerful tool to manufacture hard-news translation. This theory focuses above all on the purpose of the translation, which determines the translation methods and strategies that are to be employed in order to produce a functionally adequate result.This thesis, backed up by skopos theory, is designed to address the specific questions raised for this research, i.e. how is hard-news translated and what and how skopos-based translation strategies have been taken in this process; how satisfied are the readers with the skopos-based hard-news translation and what aspects should be paid attention to in applying these skopos-based translation strategies?This thesis argues that translators should always take into account and maintain hard-news's inverted pyramid structure and other general features while translating to facilitate readers' reading and translators' own work as well. Based on the analysis of a number of authentic hard-news texts, this thesis summarizes the major skopos-based translation strategies employed in C-E hard-news translation, namely, literal translation, reorganization, deletion, addition and substitution, in terms of the headline, the lead, and the body respectively. The statistical result of the questionnaire study reveals that most readers are quite satisfied with the skopos-based translation; hence, the acceptability of the translation has been verified to some degree. The readers' feedback also shows that possible mistakes, such as, refocus, over deletion, inaccurate addition and over-scope should be avoided in applying these skopos-based translation strategies. It is hoped that these findings may offer some guidance for news translation practitioners and may shed light on future journalistic translator training, but at the same time, this research has its disadvantages. Efforts and contributions from all who interested in this front that could push the study into a more comprehensive and thorough stage are encouraged.