Blended Space Theory Approcah To Cognitive Projection Process In Translation Of Metaphors

Blended Space Theory (or Conceptual Integration Theory), which was developed from Mental Space Theory, was proposed by cognitive psychologist Fauconnier in1998. Being an important branch in cognitive psychology in recent years, Blended Space Theory (BST) has been further developed and widely employed in a variety of linguistic studies. According to BST, there are a series of integration processes in one’s mental space, when he performs cognitive activities. Metaphor translation into English from Chinese classic poems also deals with the cognition process of the translator. So it will be of significance to use BST in interpreting the translation of metaphors in Chinese classical poems as well as in examining the cognitive process of the translator.Based on Blended Space Theory proposed by Fauconnie&Turner,300Tang Poems translated by XU Yuanchong is chosen in the analysis since XU’s translation version is influential among other versions. A qualitatively based descriptive case-study method and analytical techniques are used to the scrutiny of XU’s translation of metaphors in300Tang Poems. Metaphors related to plants, animals and weather are selected into the cognitive interpretation with the aim to see what kinds of strategies have been employed by XU Yuanchong in his translation of these metaphors, based on which, the thesis will go further to look into the conceptual integration in cross-mapping domain and cross-space domain in XU’s metaphor translation, and to explain the process of the cognitive recognition and mechanism beyond the translation activities.The study demonstrates that, metaphor translation in classical poems involves two phases: the comprehension of the source text and the forming of the target text. These two phases, which are independent from each other and related to each other, are the results of conceptual blending themselves. Namely, the two input spaces establish cross-space mappings and selectively project to the blending, which will be achieved by composition, completion and elaboration. The study also reveals that metaphor translation is in principle reflections and constructions of concepts, attitudes, mentalities and ideologies on the part of the translator, and that Blending Space Theory has its cognitively-oriented explanatory power to metaphor translation of Chinese classical poems.The author of the thesis hopes that this research can broaden the content and scope of translation studies on300Tang Poems, and can provide some references to related translation study on other Chinese classical literary works.