Semantic And Communicative Translation Approaches To The E-C Translation Of An Unfortunate Woman:A Journey

Peter Newmark(1981)formulated the methods of semantic translation and communicative translation,attaching great importance to text type as well as providing guidance on translation practices in regards to how to treat aspects of words,syntactic structures and cultural contexts.However,Newmark did not put forward specific translation strategies.Adopting Newmark’s translation methods,the present author analyzes her own translation practice of An Unfortunate Woman:A Journey,and specifies appropriate literary translation strategies.The existing research on semantic and communicative translation indicates two findings.First,the translation goal,text genre,and target language(TL)readers are important considerations in the translation practice.Second,although the semantic method and the communicative method play a guidance role in the translation work,there is a lack of specific translation strategies.The thesis,therefore,explores literary translation strategies in the use of semantic and communicative translation methods.Given that the source text is rich in words of humor,rhetorical devices,and syntactic structures,the author analyzes specific sentential contexts so as to reach the original meaning and rhetorical effect.Specifically,in the cases of unique means of expression,the author chooses the semantic translation method by truthfully following the word use and rhetorical devices in the SL.In the cases of complex sentence structures,lack of cultural context,or a possible rigid logical relation,the author chooses the communicative translation method by changing sentence structures,adjusting cohesive devices,and supplementing information.Through analysis of this translation practice,the author finds that Newmark’s approaches of translation are useful,and that it is also important to adopt specific translation strategies in order to express implicit meaning of the original text and enhance readability.Admittedly,the strategies found in the present study may not be generalizable in other translation projects.Given that there is flexibility in terms of how to use the translation strategies to improve accuracy and readability of translation,translators in future practices need to explore more appropriate translation strategies on the basis of personal practices.