A Translation Report On The Chapters (1-3) Of Third Culture Kids:Growing Up Among Worlds (Revised Edition)

The term TCK(Third Culture Kid), was first coined by Ruth Hill Useem, an American sociologist. It refers to the kids of a group of global nomads, mainly including missionaries, diplomatic officers and military personnel. In the last half of the twentieth century, the number of people involved in international careers grew dramatically and more and more children accompanied their parents into new lands. The number of TCKs has increased as well as their significance. They have formed a visible, identifiable group. In China, more and more children are sent to international schools or study abroad by their parents for a better education. They also belong to TCKs. Having lived in many different countries and had contact with many different cultures, TCKs could deal with the international affairs and adapt to the globalizing world in a better way. But they also face such challenges as cultural conflicts, self-identification, sense of belonging, etc. Looking at the TCK world can not only help us prepare for the global cultural mixing, but also help TCKs take advantage of their gifts to deal effectively with the challenges. As a result, it is necessary to translate TCK English texts into Chinese.The thesis consists of two parts. The first part is the translation practice of an English text of 15,000 words. The source text is selected from Third Culture Kids: Growing up Among Worlds (Revised Edition), written by sociologist David C. Pollock and Ruth E. Van Reken. The translation practice could not only help Chinese readers learn more about the world of TCKs, but also provide references to the translation of other parallel texts.The second part is the translation report which consists of four chapters, making a comment on the translation practice. The background information, theoretical foundation and significance of the translation project are stated in chapter one. The author, content and language features of the source text are introduced in chapter two. The most important part is chapter three, discussing difficulties in the translation process and presenting corresponding methods. Based on Nida's dynamic equivalence, the translator mainly adopts free translation with amplification, omission, conversion and division etc. in the translation. Finally, chapter four is a conclusion on the whole report, summarizing experience and lessons from this translation practice and putting forward problems to be solved.The translator has learned more about TCKs and acquired some experience through this practice. The translation version could help Chinese readers have a better understanding of TCKs so that Chinese children could draw lessons from TCKs and grow up better in the globalizing world.