Functional Equivalence In Literary Translation

In light of Nida's "functional equivalence",this thesis makes a comparative study of corresponding extracts from two Chinese versions of Mark Twain's The Prince and the Pauper with the aim to prove the applicability of the theory to the evaluation and guiding of the translation.Unlike traditional translation theory,the principle of functional equivalence proposed by Nida provides a new set of criteria for translation criticism.According to the principle,a translator should aim at producing a translation that is the closest natural equivalent of the original message,so as to be as distinctly understood and felt by the target language receptor as by the source language receptor.Children's literature,as a form of literature,shares the common characteristics of literature and yet bears its own distinctive features.The theme and form of children's literary works need to be easily understood,and helpful to children's moral and intellectual development.The paper consists of three chapters in addition to an introduction and a conclusion.Chapter One is an introduction to children's literature and its translation,and the novel The Prince and the Pauper and and its two Chinese versions studied in this thesis.Chapter Two introduces Nida's "functional equivalence" and discusses its applicability to the translation of literature.Chapter Three,the main body of the thesis,is a comparative study of the two versions from two perspectives:first in terms of meaning,second in terms of style.In terms of meaning,two kinds of meaning(referential meaning and connotative meaning ) are distinguished and illustrative analysis is conducted.In terms of style,four aspects are emphasized:sound,lexicon,syntax,and rhetorical devices. Chapter Four,based on the comparison and analysis of the two versions, the conclusion sums up the major findings and their implications,and puts forward suggestions for further study.This study has theoretical significance in that it tests the validity of functional equivalence in the translation of children's literature through comparative analysis of the two Chinese versions of the same work.This study is also of practical significance in that it summarizes valuable lessons about how to achieve functional equivalence in the translation of children's literature.