The Translation Of Narrative Voice In The Light Of Feminist Narratology

This thesis explores translation of narrative voice in the light of feminist narratology through a detailed case study of The Mill on the Floss by George Eliot.Within Susan Lanser's theoretical framework,narrative voice is divided into authorial voice,communal voice and personal voice.Therefore,the author,by drawing on narrative voice,has first summarized the characteristics of narrative voice in The Mill on the Floss.To further trace the narrative voice in inconspicuous way,the author has also analyzed the narrative voice in the construction of characters in detail as an example.Then all those characteristics have been compared with those in the Chinese version translated by Wu Houkai and published by Chongqing Publishing House in 2008.Through a detailed analysis,it has been found firstly the writer uses authorial voice and communal voice in the form of“I”and“we”,which are successfully retained mostly by translating or adding“I”and“we”to“?”and“??”.The narrator always inserts his comments on crucial occasion,which are realized by exquisite word choosing.But in Wu's translation,he doesn't transform all of them accordingly.Secondly,in The Mill on the Floss,Eliot's narrator speaks in a male's voice and she uses many gendered words and maxims deliberately to prove it.As for gendered words,Wu Houkai does a nice job in gendered words except for some words.When it comes to maxims,the tone is masculine and the thought behind is feminine.For example,in order to speak as logically as a male,Eliot uses lots of parallels,which are ignored in Wu's translation.Thirdly,Eliot praises female characters while depreciates male characters except Philip,which could be traced in direct description,speech presentation and their psychology.In terms of direct description,adjectives are the most important.Wu doesn't recognize Eliot's intention and consequently fails to choose the correct words in Chinese.As for speech,speech types and tone are equally crucial in depicting characters.To take Maggie's speeches as an example,he fails to create a brave and determined girl.In psychology,tone and words reflect a character's inner world.In translation,both should be maintained.To sum up,it is hoped that translators can first figure out what kind of narrative voice the writers use and the characteristics(both overt and covert).Based on this,translators need then choose the proper strategies accordingly and thus better reproducing the works' thematic connotation and aesthetic value when translating works of feminism.