A Report On The E-C Translation Of Unruly Waters:How Rains,Rivers,Coasts,and Seas Have Shaped Asia’s History(Excerpts)

This report is completed on the basis of the English-Chinese translation project of Chapter Seven of Unruly Waters,in which a total of 31,000 Chinese characters are translated.The book,written by Sunil Amrith,a professor of history at Yale University,is considered authoritative and focuses on the environmental history of Asia.Chapter Seven,selected by the translator,mainly discusses the conflicts between India and Pakistan caused by geopolitical factors after the Partition of India and introduces the large-scale water conservancy projects built by India and China,and other Asian countries.In addition,the author also discusses the impact of the above conflicts and projects on local residents.The whole book is rigorous in style and possesses certain academic value.The original book is commissioned by Guangdong People’s Publishing House for translation,and the translated edition is expected to be published after review in June,2023.The published Chinese version is of great significance to the spread of Asian environmental history,and at the same time has certain reference value for researchers studying related Asian history.Inspired by Peter Newmark’s theory of text typology,the translator used two methods,semantic translation and communicative translation,to complete the translation practice.According to various linguistic functions and based on the three functions of language proposed by linguists Bühler and Jakobson,Newmark puts forward that texts are generally classified into three main categories accordingly,i.e.,expressive,informative,and vocative text.In light of the different text types,appropriate translation methods are to be adopted.Based on the text-types,therefore,Newmark develops two translation methods: semantic translation and communicative translation.The former emphasizes that all the meanings of the ST are to be translated,while the latter stresses that the TL readership is expected to have the same feedback as the SL readership.The translator,by analyzing the ST,classifies Chapter Seven as a hybrid text,which means it is generally informative,but mixed with expressive texts.According to the characteristics of the SL text,the translator predominantly adopts communicative translation,trying to translate it into authentic Chinese,thus producing a concise,direct,fluent,and readable translation.