The Polishing Of "Self-image" In The Translation Of Shark’s Fin And Sichuan Pepper From Appraisal Perspective

Appraisal theory is composed of three systems: attitude,graduation and engagement and each of them involves several subsystems to study the emotion,value and preferences shown in languages.It was proposed when functional linguistics had flourished and has been widely used in various types of discourse analysis.Imagology,as a branch of comparative literature,studies the group image of foreigners in literature works and the implicit values reflected by them.Such “hetero image” is transformed into “self-image” in the work of translators who belong to this group.When it is presented to readers,translators’ subjective imagination or values will inevitably be attached.Therefore,the study of imagology shined brightly as research on comparative literature gained momentum.For a long time,the research on the above two directions have been separated,but translation research can build a bridge between the two.This thesis is exactly written with a combination of the two theories and based on examples selected from the book Shark’s Fin and Sichuan Pepper and its Chinese translation.It pays attention to the role of the translator,analyzes the translator’s perception of the self-images involved in the book based on her use and modification of appraisal resources,and then interprets these images from multiple perspectives,including traditions,history,culture,reality and the translator’s personal preference.The combination of quantitative analysis and qualitative analysis is the research method used in this thesis.The former is presented in example collection and categorization,while the latter is embodied in the contrast between source texts and target texts,the study of self-images polished,appraisal resources modified and their effects as well as possible reasons for the polishing.It was found that,at the macro level,the book involves three images of China and Chinese people: the image of China as a “gourmet’s paradise” and the image of Chinese people of hospitality and China’s negative image in politics;while at the micro level,there are four sub-images typical of Sichuan Province,Hunanese,Beijing and Huaiyang area shaped by its author.The translator strengthened the image of China as a “gourmet’s paradise” and the image of Chinese people of hospitality,while weakening China’s negative image in politics.As for the sub-images divided by region,the translator respectively strengthened the leisure and comfort of Sichuan Province,hot temper and straightforwardness of Hunanese,solemnity and cultural thickness of Beijing,and exquisite and poetic nature of Huaiyang area.This thesis is also designed to find out the value differences behind such images through the analysis of their polishing and the possible reasons for that,provide some reference for other translators and promote the combination and development of appraisal theory and imagology.