Translatability Of Style In Literary Translation

It is universally acknowledged that every writer has his style and the style is reflected in his writing, including the language he chooses and the way he arranges to depict. Accordingly, style can never go without language and paragraphs, sentences and words are the basis to form the style and essential to the study of style (Liu Zhongde, 1998: 68). Style plays an important role in literary works. Since the style is an inseparable part of the whole work, Liu Zhongde designs a three-word criterion of translation, namely, faithfulness, expressiveness, and closeness. The principle of faithfulness involves faithfulness to the style. Hence the issue of translatability of the original style is very important and necessary in literary translation. In this thesis, the study focuses on the style of the original text itself, i.e. the text-oriented style.Because of the similarity of human experience in difference nations and the cultural infiltration, the translation of style is possible. Style is not intangible. From the perspective of literary stylistics, this thesis classifies the stylistic markers to make it recognizable. Taking the model of Semantic Triangle by Ogden and Richards and the principle of Isomorphism as the theoretical bases, the thesis analyzes styles in different genres. The analysis shows that literary style is translatable. However, owing to interference of some linguistic and cultural factors, the translation of style should also be put within some limitation.The first chapter makes an overview of the definition of style at home and abroad. Then the scope of style in this study is given. The stylistic markers are classified into linguistic markers and non-linguistic markers. Chapter Two makes the theoretical study of translatability of style, and then gives a detailed exploration of untranslatability of style from both external factors and internal factors, i.e. linguistic limit and factors of translator. In Chapter Three, analyses of examples are conducted in translatability of style in different types of literature, poetry, fiction and prose. After the analyses of examples, the relationship between translatability and untranslatability is clarified in Chapter Four. It is a dynamic process between them. Style is relatively translatable. With the time going, the limits can be eliminated and untranslatability can change into translatability. In the last chapter, the methods of corresponding, recasting and decoloring are put forward and suggested for compensation for the limits of translatability of style.In conclusion, style is translatable relatively. The more the stylistic information is transferred, the more the translation transfers for bicultural communication. In addition, viewed in macroscopic perspective, it is not only required that source text be studied carefully, but that the translator should try his utmost to give up his own style in order to reproduce the original style.