A Research Into Metaphorical Image Transference In English Translation Of Tang Poetry

Chinese classical poetry is known for its condensed words with deep connotations. Tang poetry, as the representative of Chinese classical poetry, has a pivotal position in Chinese literary field. In Tang poetry, the poets have applied plentiful metaphors and these metaphors are mainly presented by the images in the poems. Tang poetry has various forms as well as styles and almost every poem has applied rich images. The images in Tang poetry not only carry on the emotion of poets, but also record the change of history, the situation of social life and also the development of culture in Tang Dynasty. Thus it can be seen that appreciating a poem of Tang poetry is just to comprehend the connotations of images in that poem. Images are the soul carriers of poetry. To some extent, how images are transferred properly is determined by whether the connotation of images is comprehended correctly.The study of metaphor is a hot area of cognitive linguistics. Lakoff and Johnson’s works Metaphors We Live By has brought the research of metaphor into the cognitive field. With the continuous studies and supplements of metaphor theories, Fauconnier has put forward Mapping Theory, applying projection mapping, pragmatic function mapping and schema mapping to revealing the three different ways of the transmission of meaning. In this thesis, the author analyzes the image transference in English translation of Tang poetry based on Fauconnier’s Mapping Theory, which presents three different cognitive ways in the process of image transference.From this research angle, the author finds that image transference is a process of interaction between cognitive structures of translators and readers in target language. When choosing a proper concept to interpret images, the translators should consider whether the concept chosen can match with the cognitive structures of readers. In other words, the concept chosen by translators should exist in cognition of readers. As the receiver of image transference, the readers in target language are also the important participators in image transference. When connotations of poetry images are transferred to cognition of readers correctly, the image transference is just completed. Therefore, in order to have a better transference of an image, the characteristics of readers should be taken into consideration, such as cultural background or knowledge structures, because all these factors have influence on the readers’ cognition. As the sponsors of image transference, whether the translators comprehend the connotations of images accurately plays a decisive role in transference, so the cultural background and literature cultivation of translators also have a great effect on image transference.The combination of Fauconnier’s Mapping Theory and studies of image transference gives a better presentation of the cognitive process in image transference and provides a new prospective and method for cross-cultural studies on traditional literature, which also promotes the international communication of Chinese traditional literature.