On Reader-oriented C-E Translation of Buzzwords and Catchphrases【毕业论文】.doc

1、毕业论文 文客久久 本科 毕业论文 (设计 ) 题 目： On Reader-oriented C-E Translation of Buzzwords and Catchphrases 学 院： 学生姓名： 专 业： 英语 班 级： 指导教师： 起 止 日期： 毕业论文 文客久久 Contents Abstract . 2 Introduction. 3 1. Status Quo of the Translation of Chinese Buzzwords and Catchphrases. 3 1.1 Buzzwords and Catchphrases . 3 1.2 Signifi

2、cances and Status Quo of Buzzwords and Catchphrases Translation . 5 2. Nidas Theory of Receptors Response and Translation . 6 2.1 Nidas Theory of Receptors Response. 6 2.2 Referential and Connotative meaning . 7 2.2.1 Referential Meaning . 7 2.2.2 Connotative Meaning. 7 3. Reader-oriented C-E Transl

3、ation of Buzzwords and Catchphrases . 8 3.1 Classifications of Chinese Buzzwords and Catchphrases . 8 3.2 Problems with the Current Translation and Causes . 9 3.3 Reader-oriented Translation. 10 3.4 Approaches to Reader-oriented C-E Translation of Buzzwords and Catchphrases .11 3.4.1 Literal Transla

4、tion. 12 3.4.2 Free Translation . 12 3.4.3 Interpretation. 13 3.4.4 Back Translation . 14 Conclusion . 15 References . 16 毕业论文 1 摘要 流行词是社会生活的风向标，大众心理的晴雨表。它作为一种词汇现象，反映了一个国家 、 一个地区在一个时期内人们普遍关注的问题和事情。流行语的出现极大地丰富了汉语的词汇，掌握流行语的动态，可以更好地了解文化的流行趋势。同时，对流行语做出恰当的翻译也有助于外国读者了解中国社会的发展，生活方式和最新的文化动向。 而目前中国流行语的翻译存在 很

5、多不足 ，影响了我国汉英翻译的质量，也妨碍了中西方文化的交流。 在前人研究的基础上，分析目前汉语流行语的英译现状，笔者 发现，影响汉语流行语翻译质量的一个关键原因是译者对读者接受度的关注有待加强。因此，本文认为， 奈达的读者反应论对 汉语流行语的英译具有实际 指导意义，译者在操作过程中 应以读者为中心，向外国读者准确传达汉语流行语的意义，并尽可能使其 获得与中文读者同样的感受 。 本文首先介绍了流行语产生的主要原因，引起关注的渠道，流行语的分类以及各个类别的特点。接着大体概括了当前汉语流行语英译的现状，在此基础上以奈达的读者反应论为指导，分析在汉语流行语翻译过程中的有待改进之处，指出有必要强化

6、对读者及其文化背景的关注，并进一步从读者为 中心的视角，具体探究了汉语流行语翻译中应用的 策略和技巧。 关键词 ：流行 语 ；英译；读者中心视角 毕业论文 2 Abstract Buzzwords and catchphrases are the vane of the social life and the barometer of peoples psychology. As a kind of vocabulary phenomenon, they reflect the common concerns that people focus on in a nation or in an

7、area. Buzzwords and catchphrases greatly enrich the Chinese vocabulary. Whats more, they can help us better understand the popular trend of culture, and appropriate translation of buzzwords and catchphrases, also helps foreign readers understand the social development, way of life and the latest cul

8、tural trends in China. But at present, there are still problems with the translation of buzzwords and catchphrases, affecting Chinas C-E translation quality and hindering the cultural exchange between China and the western world. This thesis, on the basis of former experts research, analyzes the sta

9、tus quo of Chinese buzzwords and catchphrases C-E translation. A key problem we have discovered is that readers acceptability should be more focused on. Therefore, this thesis insists on that the C-E translation of buzzwords and catchphrases can draw inspiration from Nidas theory of Readers Response

10、. In the process of translation, translators should be reader-oriented to convey accurate meanings of Chinese buzzwords and catchphrases to foreign readers. More desirably, the translation should try their best to ensure that foreign readers can appreciate Chinese buzzwords and catchphrases the same

11、 as Chinese readers do. The first part introduces buzzwords and catchphrases: how they come into Chinese vocabulary, the way they work on our social lives, and their classification and the characteristics, with a summary of the status quo of translation. Part two will discuss Nidas Readers Response

12、and the theoretical ideas helpful to improve the translation of buzzwords and catchphrases. Part three will analyze the defects in translation of buzzwords and catchphrases that should be improved, and point out that it is necessary to strengthen peoples attention to readers receptivity and cultural

13、 background. Further more, from the readers perspective, the paper explores the appropriate reader-oriented translation strategies applied in the translation of Chinese buzzwords and catchphrases. Keywords: buzzwords and catchphrases; C-E translation; readers-oriented 毕业论文 3 On Reader-oriented C-E T

14、ranslation of Buzzwords and Catchphrases Introduction Nowadays, China plays an increasingly important role on the global stage. More and more people from other countries want to have a better understanding of China, especially the culture of this great country. The rapid development of the Internet

15、will certainly bring about more communication between China and the outside world. Foreigners are given more opportunity to personally surf the Internet to learn about various aspects of Chinese culture. Since recent years, Chinese buzzwords and catchphrases have played a significant part in Chinese

16、 cultural system, being the intensified reflections of society and culture of modern China and demonstrating contemporary pop culture and the trends with depth and vividness. Therefore, the translation of buzzwords has become necessary to help foreigners deep understand Chinese culture, lifestyle an

17、d values. Consequently, the correct translation of buzzwords is really important. This thesis focuses on the buzzword and catchphrase translation from the perspective of the readers, with Nidas Theory of Receptors Response as guidance. It is believed that Chinese buzzwords and catchphrases are highl

18、y worthy of being translated and English translation of these words needs further study. Good translation of buzzwords and catchphrases contributes a lot to the successful communication between people from home and abroad. It will bring people much closer and remove the obstacles raised by misunders

19、tanding between people from different cultures. 1. Status Quo of the Translation of Chinese Buzzwords and Catchphrases The translation of Chinese buzzwords and catchphrases faces challenges but it is quite demanding. Even if the time for the popularity of Chinese buzzwords and catchphrases has not b

20、een very long, many translators and researchers have been engaged in the translation and made great contributions to the practice and research. However, some problems still exist in the current translation of Chinese buzzwords and catchphrases. 1.1 Buzzwords and Catchphrases 1.1.1 Definition of Buzz

21、words and Catchphrases With the spread and development of the Internet and pubic media, there come up a lot of buzzwords and catchphrases. Buzzwords, also known as fashion words or vogue words, are sweeping the whole world. Some buzzwords and catchphrases survive for just a short time in our society

22、 and soon pass into obscurity after a period of feverish popularity. While some are those faddish, ubiquitous words that have something new about them. Often they will become popular and universal idioms. 毕业论文 4 Our society changes with each passing day, therefore, whenever a fresh thing happen, new

23、 words and sentences will come into use. There is no fixed form in emerging buzzwords and catchphrases. A buzzword or catchphrase comes from an emergency, a strange person or a social phenomena; it also comes from an idea which just sparks in ones mind. When the buzzword comes into being, it becomes

24、 very popular with the spread of mass media or the Internet. Buzzwords and catchphrases can first be used as a technical term by a group of specialists to ease the communication among them. And then it grasps an opportunity, a special event and becomes the heated point in the talk of the public medi

25、a. Meanwhile, this event is related to the term and needs much jargon of the field to describe the event. Then the buzzwords and catchphrases can naturally enter into the world of those who ever know nothing about the field and know vaguely what the word means exactly. People will afterwards use it

26、to express their opinions about the same category of the people and the events. This word or sentence will come into popularity with the help of the easy access of the Internet. We call these popular words or sentences buzzwords or catchphrases (Ge, 2011:12). 1.1.2 Features and Functions of Buzzword

27、s and Catchphrases Buzzwords and catchphrases have three major features. One is creativity which is also the most obvious feature. Buzzwords and catchphrases are often created by young people who have active and flexible minds. Most buzzwords and catchphrases are created in response to the rapid cha

28、nge and appearance of new items or events. The young love new things, advocate new ideas and are not willing to accept the restrictions in life, including the restrictions of language criteria. On the other hand, the development of the Internet supplies a platform for young people to create new idea

29、s and new words, to spread information and to speed up the transmission of those words and sentences. And then those words will be modified to be more popular. When an innovation catches the sight of the population, people are eager to name it in a creative way to match and memorize the inspiration

30、the inventor contributed. The expression of the event or thing will be creative, which will help it to spread and soon it will be modified, which contributes to make it common and popular. In the process of forming a buzzword or catchphrase, the Internet plays an important role. Thousands of buzzwor

31、ds and catchphrases gain popularity through this way. For example “房奴 ” and “山寨 ”. Second, what buzzwords and catchphrases have is a strong culture flavor. Apart from creativity, changing the meaning of the old words is another way to form a buzzword or catchphrase. People tend to attach some superf

32、icial or other novel meaning to an existing word. This process is like a transplantation operation or we can say “to fill the old bottles with flesh wine”. We transfuse fresh blood to the sterile organ to make it come to recover vitality, while the function of the organ which is compared to the new

33、毕业论文 5 meaning of the words will be vastly different from their original meaning. Similarly, the tastes of the fresh wine vary from that of the old one. However, what should be remembered is the basic meaning of the words for the reason bears the tradition, history and culture. The new meaning just

34、defines the word on the base of the old one. Therefore, the buzzwords which are formed in this way carry the elements of a culture, which makes them bear a flavor of culture. For example, the word “杯具 ” and “打酱油 ”. “As the world merges, language borrowing or language loan becomes robust. A borrowed

35、word tightens the tie of the two countries concerning the situation” (Ge, 2011:17). Therefore, some of the buzzwords and catchphrases bear an international color. When we borrow a word from other country to make it part of our own culture, the premise is that we should accept the former word. So the

36、 translation of the word is given before we borrow it from the other culture. Here is an example like “微博 ” is originally from “Micro blog”. It is ridiculous to translate it into English versions in light of that it is from English. And if people who have no knowledge of the Internet would like to k

37、now the exact meaning of “微博 ”, they should accept the foreign word “Micro blog”. In the mean time, language is the reflection of the times. Colorful and rich language reflects the glorious and various aspects of a time. Buzzwords and catchphrases, as the intensified reflection of a society and cult

38、ure, demonstrate contemporary pop culture and the trends with depth and vividness. “The wave of vogue words started to greet China increasingly in line with the increasing international status China is taking” (Ge, 2011:17). Zhang Mingjie points out that internet popular language is a reflection of

39、times, closely related to modern peoples lifestyles and thoughts, while buzzwords in peoples common life is the mirror of modern times (2011:81). In that case, buzzwords and catchphrases are of great significance for people to communicate with each other and to know more about the quintessence of so

40、cial life and culture. 1.2 Significances and Status Quo of Buzzwords and Catchphrases Translation In the former part, features and functions of buzzwords and catchphrases have been introduced. With the globalization of the world, there will be more and more foreigners coming to China in order to lea

41、rn Chinese history and culture. Language, especially buzzwords and catchphrases, as the centralized reflection of culture holds the important post of fast access to more knowledge about the country and the society. Consequently, the correct translation of buzzwords is quite important. As Nida puts i

42、t, “anything spoken in a language can be spoken in another.” (1964:4) Nevertheless, some elements, for example the culture which is included in the language can not be completely translated into another one. And because of that the spread of buzzwords and catchphrases depends on the Internet which h

43、as developed rapidly just in recent years. Thus, research on translation of buzzwords and catchphrases is not very 毕业论文 6 comprehensive. Gu Jing is one of the experts who first pay attention to the translation of buzzwords and catchphrases. She points out that “Chinese vogue words often lack of read

44、y equivalent to make it clear and understandable.” And “American newspapers generally take transliteration or literal translation as first choice to translate Chinese vogue words” (2005:57). Yu Dejing gives a number of examples of internet buzzwords translation and generally summaries translation techniques of internet buzzwords. Recently, Foreign Language Education Press recompiles the new Chinese-English dictionary, collecting the buzzwords and catchphrases which lately sprung up in our so