Translation Report Of What Should A Clever Moose Eat?-Natural History,Ecology,and The North Woods(Foreword&Chapter One)

This translation report is based on the translation project of the extract of a scientific book What Should a Clever Moose Eat?-Natural History,Ecology,and the North Woods.First of all,the translator has chosen the topic on Ecology out of her own interest in and concern about nature,as her source text for this translation project.Though this translation practice,the translator especially contrasts the differences between the source language and target language in words,sentences and styles,and masters the ecological text characteristics.Meanwhile,she has enhanced her translating skills and capacity.Besides,this translation project would contribute to the spread of knowledge about natural history and ecology in North Woods.Also it would encourage people to get close to nature and keep away from paced urban life for a while.In this paper,the translator not only introduces the background and significance of the translation project,she also describes the North Woods eco-system,which plays a great role in the study of natural history.It also includes the preparation that the translator has make before the actual start of this project,such as sorting out special and technical terms,reading parallel texts,and searching the Internet with the help of Wikipedia,Baidu Encyclopedia to gather more information about North Woods,natural history,and ecology.Additionally,the translator interprets what kind of theory applied to guide the translation process.The translator has chosen the Skopos Theory,a widely applied one among the German functional theories.Hence,the translator discusses the Skopos Theory from three perspectives,including the development of Skopos Theory,the three rules of Skopos Theory,and how to put the theory into translating practice.Moreover,the translator presents several weighted cases for in-depth analysis within the guidance of Skopos Theory.For instance,how the book title and long difficult sentences should be translated with the help of the principle of skopos rule;how should the translating skills like omission and amplification be applied based on the principle of coherence,or how to translate metaphors and terms under the principle of fidelity.Furthermore,the translator summarizes the enlightenment and problems unsolved in this translation practice.