A Study On The English Translation Of The Three-body Problem From The Perspective Of Reception Theory

The Three-Body Problem is the first Chinese science fiction to receive Hugo Award,and it is also a work full of Chinese features. It sets the Cultural Revolution as the background, containing a Chinese history of over 5,000 years.Based on concepts including horizon of expectation and fusion of horizons from reception theory, this thesis attempts to analyze translation strategies adopted by the translator. The main contents of the translation study in this paper include how the translator shows concern for target readers, satisfies readers' horizon of expectations and helps readers to achieve fusion of horizons. The specific studying subjects consist of translation of culture-loaded words, science related information and description of characters. When researching on the English translation of above subjects, this paper analyzes plenty of examples from The Three-Body Problem. It not only discusses the translating strategies but also analyzes how they embody reception theory. In addition, the thesis studies the reception status of the English version in the western world by analyzing feedback from target readers.After analyzing the translation of the three aspects above, the writer of this thesis draws the conclusion that the translator has flexibly adopted various strategies to show concern for target readers' horizon of expectations and to facilitate fusion of horizons. For example, the translator uses strategies of literal translation and literal translation combined with free translation, which not only retains the distinctive Chinese culture of the source text, but also shows that the translator has taken into account the acceptance ability of target readers. When necessary, the translator adds footnotes to meet target readers'expectations to Chinese culture. Moreover, the translator adopts strategies of addition and omission when considering the target readers' cultural background and reading habits. As for the coined terms in the source text, the translator creates words which convey meanings faithfully and help readers to recall existing horizons to understand the target text.Therefore, the English version receives much praise from western readers. When compared with works by other representative Chinese writers, the English version of The Three-Body Problem enjoys a greater extent of reception among western readers.In a word, this paper aims at drawing scholars' attention to the English translation of Chinese science fictions, offering a new perspective for the translation as well as serving as a reference to future related researches.