Translator’s Subjectivity From Theperspective Of Rewriting Theory

In the traditional translation studies,the translator,as a passive recipient of the original text,is in a neglected position.After the Cultural Turn in translation studies,therewriting theory has provided a new perspective for translation studies.The focus of translation studies has no longer been confined to the linguistic level,but turned to the influence of non-linguistic factorssuch as social,historical and cultural influences on translation.Therefore,the role and status of the translator acting as a rewriter,which has been marginalized in culture,was beginning to attract the attention of researchers,and thus there have been more and more researches on the subjectivity of the translator.Up to now,there have been researches on the subjectivity of the translator from various angles,but people tend to focus on how translator’s subjectivity is represented,while neglecting the limitations on translator’s subjectivity.The rewriting theory states that translation is a kind of rewriting,which affirms the translator’s position and function,and also points out the factors that affect the translator’s subjectivity.It is helpful to study the translator’s subjectivity from the perspective of rewriting theory because it will not only deepen the understanding of the cultural factors that affect the representation of translator’s subjectivity,but also make it evident how the translator’s subjectivity is exerted,thus offering a relatively comprehensive understanding of the translator’s subjectivity.With the rewriting theory as the theoretical framework and using the two Chinese versions of Sister Carrie as the research examples,which are the version co-translated by Qiu Zhuchang and Shi Ling and the version by Pan Qingling respectively,this thesis explores the influence of the three elements in the rewriting theory,namely,the influence of ideology,poetics and patronage on the translator’s translation activities,as well as the representation of their subjectivity.Through the study,this paper finds that the translator is neither a “translation machine”,nor a creator who can play at his will.On the one hand,the translator’s subjectivity is influenced by the dominant ideology and poetics in the social environment intheir times,which is reflected in the choice of original texts to be translated and the translation strategies adopted.On the other hand,the translator can give a play to his subjectivity to a certain extent,which is reflected in his attitude towards things,language style and treatment of culture-loaded words and so on.The study of the translator’s subjectivity will help the translator better play the main role in the translation activities so as to promote the improvement of the quality of the translation.