The Application Of The Skopos Theory In The Translation Of "Big Magic:Creative Living Beyond Fear"

The skopos theory was firstly put forward by Katharina Reiss and Hans J. Vermeer in the late 1970s. It emerged and developed after a serial references to the action theory, the communication theory, the reception aesthetics and the discourse pragmatics, highlighting purpose and function in translation studies.The thesis presents how the selected memoir has been converted under the guidance of the three rules included in the skopos theory. Classified issues together with the corresponding strategy and techniques are sketched, as well. The author points out the guiding significance of the skopos theory in literary translation in the examples analysis process.The author works out the ultimate purpose:to manifest the characters in the source text and accomplish the appealing effects by referring to the skopos theory. In order to realize this intention, the author applies the domestication strategy and techniques involving amplification, conversion, sentence restructuring and combination. A literature review on the skopos theory is made in the beginning of the commentary, followed by an integrated and logical analysis of the theme, major function and language features of the original and a detailed illustration about how the four problems, ellipsis, abstracts, subordinative compounds and short sentences, are settled.The skopos theory is theoretically well-developed and enriched after thorough and integrated research of certain practical theories. Therefore, it is practically valuable. Translators are supposed to build up a sense of the overall objective and target readers group to choose the most adequate strategy. However, the theory turns out to be somehow idealistic since sometimes it is not quite simple to reach the destination due to translators’ enormously differentiated professional competences and qualities. Nonetheless, the author still believes the "purpose" plays a guiding role in any translation action and serves to urge translators to figure out their deficiencies and make every effort to fulfill the task and self-improvement.