Register Features:A Priority In C-E Business Contract Translation

With the globalization of the world economy and China’s accession to the World Trade Organization, the business contract and its translation of dominant language Chinese and English, the major means of transacting businesses, are attracting much more attention of researchers.The text of the contract is produced by distinctive culture. The degree of generation and acceptance varies by cultural differences. This is why some differences exist between Chinese and English contracts, among which, to the observation of the author of this thesis, the most distinctive is the difference in register features.After a general survey of business contract in Chapter One, the author will first try to sort out some differences in Chinese and English contracts and then summarize some characteristics typical of register in both English and Chinese contracts in Chapter two.In Chapter3, with a view to all register features under systemic functional linguistics by M.A.K. Halliday, the author of this thesis, to her own observations, tried to find instances dominating in the business contract reflected the register features field, tenor, mode. Such field feature dominates in the business contracts as formal in wording, unique terminologies and archaisms, the usage of shall etc. The four perspective levels on tenor formality, politeness, impersonality, acceptability and the mode are all elaborated by examples from business contract.These discussions are put on the register features dominate in the business contract and try to get the general discipline of register varieties in the translation process of business contracts.As a collection illustrated in Chapter2and a foundation given in the Chapter3, Chapter4would like to find effective principles and methods as a prior in the business translation work. Professional in wording, epistolary in format, formal in style are suggested as general principle in the translation. Amplification based on TT epistolary patterns on field level, repetition of TT synonym juxtaposition and revision based on TT epistolary patterns on tenor level, arranging well the logical order on mode level are concluded as major methods with the register priority in the translation process.