A Report On The Translation Of Selected Excerpts From Western Images Of China

The author of Western Images of China (first published in1987), Colin Patrick Mackerras, is a distinguished sinologist, a member of the Australian Academy of the Humanities, and a chair professor of Renmin University of China. His research fields include Chinese minorities, Chinese opera, and Sino-Australian relations. His work is of great significance in understanding the changing images of China in the Western world.This report is on the project of translating two excerpts,"Introduction" and "Early Western Images of China", from Mackerras’ Western Images of China, under the guidance of Skopos theory. It is composed of five parts, namely, Introduction, Skopos theory, Background of Western Images of China, Case analysis, and Conclusion. The part, Introduction, includes four sections, which are background of the project, objectives, translation tools, significance and structure of the report. The section on Skopos theory introduces the origins and development of Skopos theory, as well as its three principles and evaluation criteria. Background of Western Images of China gives a brief introduction to the original author Colin Mackerras and two excerpts from Western Images of China,"Introduction" and "Early Western Images of China". The key part is the case analysis, where twelve specific examples are used from the translation under the guidance of Skopos theory, and the translator’s reflections on different aspects of the translated text are offered. The last part, Conclusion, is a summary of the author-as-translator’s findings in this project.