A Study Of Translatability Degree Of Chinese Idiomatic Expressions

Language is the container and carrier of culture, and translation is a bridge linking the source language culture and target language readers. Both Chinese idiomatic expressions and English idioms are refined languages rich in cultural information. Therefore, it is of significance to study the translation of Chinese idiomatic expressions in the increasing cross-cultural communication. This thesis conducts a study of the translation of Chinese idiomatic expressions in Wu Jingzi’s The Scholars. Taking Eugene Nida’s dynamic equivalence theory as the theoretical framework, the thesis attempts to explore the translatability degree of idiomatic expressions in literary works.Chinese idiomatic expressions are regarded as the crystallization of Chinese wisdom and often embodies abundant cultural information. They are usually concise in structure but profound in meaning. The proper application of idiomatic expressions tells a writer’s good command of his native language. As a masterpiece describing the people’s ideology and life in Chinese feudal society, The Scholars enjoys a high reputation in classical Chinese literature. Wu Jingzi’s artistic use of idiomatic expressions is one of the sparkly points in language use of the work. Owing to the striking differences between Chinese and English. Chinese idiomatic expressions differ a lot from the English idioms in terms of structure as well as cultural settings. The translation of idiomatic expressions is a hard nut to crack for any translator. Attaching great importance to the process of communication, Nida’s "functional equivalence" features "proximity" rather than "equivalence" in its mathematical meaning of identity. The degree of proximity differs a lot in various texts."The closest natural equivalence" is a goal that translators pursue and Nida’s principles of functional equivalence are of strong applicability in guiding the translation of idiomatic expressions.Through an analysis of the translation of Chinese idiomatic expressions by the Yangs. a conclusion is drawn that the translatability of idiomatic expressions is limited, and the degree of translatability varies due to linguistic as well as cultural factors Chinese and English indeed share some similarities in terms of expression, which enables us to find ideal corresponding sayings of some idiomatic expressions in target language. However, the degree of translatability is weakened for most of them due to various factors. As a result, the expressiveness and literariness can not be fully conveyed in the English version. The translator should bear the context as well as the target readers in mind to make the version more accessible and expressive to target readers.