On Functionalist Approaches To Chinese-English Diplomatic Interpretation

Ever since the 1980s, with the deepening of China's reform and carrying out of opening up policy, particularly since China's entry into WTO, cultural and economic exchanges between China and the rest of the world have become more frequent than ever before. As the bridge of communication, interpretation is playing an increasingly important role. As a special oral communication tool and an indispensable part of diplomacy, interpretation has the function of breaking language and cultural barriers and conveying information effectively. In recent years, China's engagement in international political and economic affairs has reached an unprecedented level. Our government officials frequently exchange views with political figures of other countries on various international issues. What's more, the press conferences held by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs during the NPC (National People's Congress) and the CPPCC (National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference) sessions every March have become an important channel for foreigners to learn about China. All these have not only set much higher requirements for interpreters, but also provided a significant field for translation studies.The solemnity and sensitivity of diplomatic subjects require special qualities of interpreters. On the one hand, interpreters work as a "bridge" between the speaker and the audience. China's communication with the rest of the world would be impossible without interpreters' work. Under the circumstance of globalization and China's deepening of reform and opening up policy, it is of great significance to study the Chinese-English (C/E) diplomatic interpretation. On the other hand, the study of interpretation in today's China is far from satisfactory, as the previous researches mainly focused on the translation of individual words, phrases, sentences and some unsystematic translation skills. Studies on the translation strategies and theoretical guidance have not yet received adequate attention. C/E diplomatic interpretation aims at providing relevant information for foreign audience and the intended function of the target language in the target situation is the key factor in the interpretation process. The functionalist approaches are characterized by its target-orientedness as it stresses the intended function of the target text in the target language and culture. In this theory, translators are entitled to choose whatever translation strategies they think appropriate to achieve the skopos of the translation. Thus it is greatly feasible to study diplomatic interpretation in the perspective of functionalist approaches. Choosing C/E diplomatic interpretation as the object of study, this thesis explores the guidance of functionalist approaches to diplomatic interpretation practice.According to functionalist approaches, translation can be viewed as an intentional, interpersonal and intercultural interaction based on a source text. In the translation process, translator/interpreter plays a crucial role. According to functionalism, the target text receiver/audience is a crucial factor in the act of translation, and the interpreter should take into account their requirements and demands first. The source text is only regarded as an offer of information. But in diplomatic interpretation practice, working as a government employee, the interpreter should concern the speaker's requirements first and try to safeguard his interests. Based on the analysis of numerous successful interpretation examples, this thesis explores the roles of an interpreter in diplomatic activities from the perspective of functionalist approaches: observing translation brief rigidly, analyzing source texts carefully and mediating the relationship between the addressor and the audience. The thesis focuses on the analysis of the interpreter's role of mediating the relationship between the addressor and the audience.Based on the analysis of examples of successful interpretation, this thesis comes to a conclusion that functionalist approaches play a vital role in the theoretical research and practice of interpretation. In diplomatic interpretation activities, the interpreter should not be confined to the content and form of the source language too rigidly. He or she should bear in mind the intended function of the target language and try to produce a comprehensible and acceptable version to the target audience.