On The Translation Of Detective Fiction From The Perspective Of Dynamic Equivalence Theory

Literary translation, as an artistic form, is to render the artistic image and style withthe close and natural expression in the target language (TL) and convey the same aestheticfeatures for the TL readers. Detective fiction is a sub-genre of literature, so the translationof detective fiction should make the TL readers feel the suspense and mystery. As Nida’sdynamic equivalence theory focuses on readers’ response and the reproduction of theclosest natural equivalent of the source language (SL) message, the dynamic equivalence issuitable to guide the translation of detective fiction.One major contribution of the research is the author, in line with the dynamicequivalence theory and on the basis of his translation of Fire Tongue, explores thetranslation strategy of detective fiction. The translation of titles should convey the suspenseand mystery and draw readers’ interest; the translation of dialogues should be consistentwith the people’s status, character and the special occasion, and the language should becolloquial; the domestication strategy should be adopted to the translation of detectivefiction where appropriate. These contributions can find their applications in the translationof detective fiction.The report is divided into five chapters. Chapter One touches upon the taskdescription, including the brief introduction of the background of the translation project,the original author, the plot of Fire Tongue. Chapter Two is the literature review, presentingthe translation and study of detective fiction in China. Chapter Three are concerned withthe preparations before translating, including the unification of terminologies, therequirements of translation of detective fiction and the introduction of Nida’s dynamicequivalence theory. Chapter Four presents the translation process and delivers the analysis of the translation strategy, including the introduction of nine steps in the translation of FireTongue and such case analyses as the translation of titles and dialogues and the adoption ofthe domestication strategy. Chapter Five presents a summary of the report, introducingwhat the author has learned and what remains to be improved in future study.