The Translation Of Children’s Literature From The Perspective Of Skopos Theory

This thesis probed into using Skopos Theory in the translation of literature for children, by an analysis of two Chinese versions of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Skopos Theory offered another viewpoint for the studies of translation, since it regarded translation as a purposeful activity, focusing on the function of the texts and translations, especially the target-text’s function. It believed that the intended function of the target text should determine the methods or strategies in translation.From the perspective of Skopos Theory, the study was committed to analyzing English to Chinese translation of children’s literature from four aspects with ample examples of two Chinese editions of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Skopos theory, as the core theory of the German functionalism theory, played a guiding role in the translation of children’s literature. The thesis acknowledged the rationality for which the translators employed different translation strategies for various purposes.With its own distinctive features, children’s literature, as a branch of literature, has the same characteristics as literature. The Skopos Theory can be applied to the translation practice of children’s literature as well. With the unique features of children’s cognitive development and the linguistics features of children’s literature, the thesis did a study in detail and compared the differences between the two Chinese versions of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, analyzing the diction, syntax, rhetoric devices, and other aspects so as to serve the translators’Skopos. And the translation of children’s literature is a developing course, which is greatly influenced by the times. Translators should understand children deeply and follow the times as Mr. Zhao and Mr. Wu. Thus, translation of children’s literature can achieve its goals, and to serve children.The author hopes that people may draw more attention on the translation theory and practice of children’s literature.