1

A B S T R A C T OF G R A D U ATI ON T H E S I S

On the Functional Equivalence

in Literary Translation

Abstract:

The thesis carries out some research on the applicability of Nida’s

functional equivalence theory to literary translation. The functional equivalence

theory initiated by Nida is regarded as his greatest achievement in his

translation studies. It provides a brand new criterion for the evaluation of

translation and underlies the basis of practical translation strategies, especially

for literary translation, which has distinct characteristics of its own. Rich in

ambiguities in meaning, cultural information and stylistic features, literary

translation is a hard nut for translators to crack. Functional equivalence theory

sheds light on this field. On the basis of three main aspects of Nida’s functional

equivalence theory and the characteristics of literary translation, the

applicability is discussed and illustrated in this thesis. The three main aspects

of Nida’s functional equivalence theory are reader’s response, cultural

transplantation and stylistic equivalence, which are corresponding to the three

characteristics of literary translation respectively.

Key Words: Eugene A. Nida Functional Equivalence Literary Translation

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Index

Chapter Ⅰ Introduction ............................................................................................ 3

Chapter Ⅱ Literature Review .................................................................................. 3

Chapter Ⅲ Theoretical Framework ........................................................................ 4

Part Ⅰ The Development of Nida’s Functional Equivalence Theory ........ 5

Part Ⅱ Key Aspects of Functional Equivalence Theory ........................... 7

Section Ⅰ Reader’s Response ................................................................. 7

Section Ⅱ Cultural Transplantation .......................................................... 8

Section Ⅲ Stylistic Equivalence ................................................................ 9

Part Ⅲ Significance of Functional Equivalence Theory .......................... 10

Chapter Ⅳ Functional Equivalence in Literary Translation ............................... 11

PartⅠ Basic Aspects Involved in Literary Translation ............................. 11

PartⅡ Applicability of Functional Equivalence in Literary Translation ..... 12

SectionⅠ Functional Equivalence in Meaning ...................................... 12

Section Ⅱ Functional Equivalence in Culture ....................................... 17

Section Ⅲ Functional Equivalence in Style ........................................... 20

Chapter Ⅴ Strategies of Literary Translation in the Light of Functional

Equivalence ........................................................................................ 24

PartⅠParaphrase .................................................................................... 24

Part Ⅱ Cultural Substitution ................................................................... 27

Part Ⅲ Partial Translation ...................................................................... 30

Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 33

Bibliography................................................................................................................ 34

Acknowledgements ................................................................................................... 36

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Chapter Ⅰ Introduction

The present study probes into the applicability of Nida’s functional

equivalence theory to literary translation which serves as the basis of several

practical strategies of translation put forward in the last part of this thesis. The

whole thesis centers on three main aspects of Nida’s functional equivalence

theory: reader’s response, cultural transplantation and stylistic equivalence.

The thesis consists of five chapters.

Chapter one gives a brief outline of this paper. In Chapter Two, the

literature review presents the study achievements of functional equivalence

theory at the present stage in China. Chapter Three serves as the theoretical

framework in which three main aspects of functional equivalence theory are

elaborated in details. Chapter Four firstly discusses the characteristics of

literary translation and secondly the applicability of the theory to literary

translation from three aspects, trying to prove that literary translation should

follow Nida’s functional equivalence theory. And in the last chapter several

practical strategies for literary translation are provided in light of Nida’s

functional equivalence theory.

Chapter Ⅱ Literature Review

Before the functional equivalence theory was introduced to China,

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Chinese translation studies were mostly confined to translation techniques.

Nida’s equivalence theory has made a great impact on translation studies in

China since the 1980s when it was firstly introduced to China. Quite a few

scholars and theorists have conducted studies on Nida’s theory.

Lin Shuwu is the first scholar introducing Nida’s translation theory to China

by writing an article in 1981. In the light of Nida’s book Toward a science of

Translation, Lin set forth many aspects of Nida’s theory, but as a whole, Lin’s

introduction was quite general.

Tan Zaixi’s book Nida on Translation is regarded as the Chinese version of

Nida’s Toward a Science of Translating and The Theory and Practice of

Translation. Tan’s book divides the evolution of Nida’s translation theory into

three phases: phase of descriptive linguistics, phase of intercommunication,

and phase of social semiotics. Tan further elaborates on the main aspects of

Nida’s theory.

In 1989, Jin Di’s book In Search of the Principle of Equivalent Effect made

Nida’s thoughts and theories more familiar to Chinese scholars.

Since 2000, Nida’s translation theory has been often referred to by many

scholars in their books, such as Liao Qiyi, Guo Jianzhong, and Liu Miqing.

Chapter Ⅲ Theoretical Framework

Eugene Albert Nida is a distinguished American translation theorist. In

1943, he got his Doctorate under the supervision of the prominent American

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linguist Leonard Bloomfield. Shortly after his graduation, he was designated by

the American Bible society to undertake the translating task of Bibles. As one

of the most prolific translation theorists in the world, Nida completed more than

200 articles and authored or co-authored over 40 books on linguistics,

anthropology, translation and so forth, of which nearly half related to language

and translation theory.

According to Tan Zaixi, the evolution of Nida’s translation theory

underwent three phases. In the first phase, he was mainly engaged in

descriptive linguistics, while in the second phase, he turned to the study of

translation from the perspective of intercommunication. And in the last phase

he applied social semiotics to the study of language. Among the three phases,

the second one turned out to be quite fruitful with Nida’s most influential

Functional Equivalence put forward in this period.

In this thesis, a brief discussion about the evolution and main aspects of

Nida’s functional equivalence theory will be made in the following part.

Part Ⅰ The Development of Nida’s Functional Equivalence Theory

In 1959, in the article “Principles of Translation as Exemplified by Bible

Translating”, Nida characterized his new concept of translation like this:

“Translating consists in reproducing in the receptor language the closest

natural equivalent of the source message, first in terms of meaning and

second in terms of style.” 1It was in this article that Nida first mentioned the

1 Nida: Principles of Translation as Exemplified by Bible Translating

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idea of dynamic equivalence. The key words in this definition are “the closest

natural equivalent” which indicates the very essence of Nida’s dynamic

equivalence theory. It can be understood from two aspects: one is that when

the message is reproduced, equivalence, rather than identity should be

achieved; the other is that the target version should be as native as that of the

source one. Without equivalence, rendering will be too free to be faithful while

faithfulness is an invariant standard to evaluate a translation. Moreover, Nida

attaches more importance to meaning than form and emphasizes the

significance of style at the same time. He later calls this kind of equivalence

“dynamic equivalence”. Thus Nida’s brand new view of translation marks birth

of dynamic equivalence.

Later in 1964, in his “Towards a Science of Translating”, Nida put forward

the principle of dynamic equivalence in explicit terms. He pointed out that

dynamic equivalent is mainly the dynamic relationship between receptor and

message which should be substantially the same as that between the original

receptors and the message.

In 1969, Nida worked with Charles R. Taber on The Theory and Practice

of Translation, in which he developed the contents of Towards a Science of

Translation. Nida further clarified the definition of dynamic equivalence:

“Dynamic equivalence is therefore to be defined in terms of the degree to

which the receptors of the message in the receptor language respond to it in

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substantially the same manner as the receptors in the SL.” 2This statement

shifted the focus of translation from the message itself to the response of

receptor which created an epoch-making brand new perspective of studying

translation.

In 1986, Nida replaced the term “dynamic equivalence” with “functional

equivalence” in his From One Language to Another so as to avoid

misunderstandings of the word “dynamic”. But the essence of the theory is the

same. He divided the functions of language into nine categories: expressive

function, cognitive function, interpersonal function, informative function,

imperative function, performative function, emotive function, aesthetic function

and metalingual function. And translation should realize the equivalence on

these functions with the receptor’s response as the evaluating criterion.

In 1993, Nida pointed out that cultural differences were barriers in

translation in his Language, Culture and Translating. Cultural differences play

a significant role in meaning-interpreting of the receptor. In order to achieve

functional equivalence, the form of SL should be put second in some cases to

reduce the cultural differences to the lowest level.

It was not until then that the functional theory initiated by Nida became

complete, which proved to be a great success in translating field.

Part Ⅱ Key Aspects of Functional Equivalence Theory

Section Ⅰ Reader’s Response

2 Nida & Charles R. Taber: The Theory and Practice of Translation

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The term, reader’s response, is an important concept in Nida’s functional

equivalence theory and a great contribution to translation research field. Nida

states that functional equivalence should be stated primarily in terms of a

comparison of the degree to which the original receptors understood and

appreciated the text and the target receptors do.

From Nida’s point of view, translation is aimed at the readers, namely

target language receptors. Therefore, reader’s response serves as a desirable

criterion for evaluating the quality of translation. He states that the validity of a

translation does not just consist in lexical meanings or grammatical structure.

the degree to which receptors appreciate the source language should be taken

into consideration and serve as the judging criterion.

Section Ⅱ Cultural Transplantation

Nida clarifies culture as “the totality of beliefs and practice of a society.”

He points out that language is an important part of culture. It reflects culture

and contributes a model of the culture. Cultural difference exerts a great

influence on the transformation between two languages, especially for two

languages which belong to different language families. Cultural gap is a big

challenge for translators. As everyone knows, Chinese and English cultures

are distinct. Owing to the different cultural backgrounds, the same objects may

have totally different meanings. For instance, in most Western cultures, dragon

symbolizes an evil and fiendish creature. But quite the contrary in Chinese

culture, dragon has a profound effect on Chinese history, which is a symbol of

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Chinese national spirits. It is regarded as sacred, noble and propitious. So “亚

洲四小龙” is translated as “four Asian tigers” rather than “four Asian dragons”.

Take the red color as another example. Chinese take red as happiness and

blessings, so we have 开门红(get off to a good start), 满堂红(success in every

field) and it is also the main color in traditional Chinese wedding ceremony. Yet

in Western culture, red is a derogatory term. It is more associated with blood or

obscene things, such as “red revenge”, “a red light district”. There are so many

examples of translation relating to cultural difference between Chinese and

English.

Therefore, if cultural factors are not transplanted well in translation, it is

fairly likely to arouse misunderstandings among receptors. Just as Nida states

that verbal inadequacy is not the main cause of the most serious mistakes

made in rendering, but the wrong or inaccurate understanding of cultural

information. Cultural transplantation is an essential necessity to achieve

functional equivalence, in particular in literary translation.

Section Ⅲ Stylistic Equivalence

In light of his definition of translation, Nida points out that though style is

secondary to content, it is nevertheless important. Therefore, Nida makes

exception of rules for some literary translation, poetry, for example. From

Nida’s point of view, style itself is indeed a part of the message, especially in

literary translation, which cannot be totally separated from content. Stylistic

equivalence is also an important way to achieve functional equivalence.

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Part Ⅲ Significance of Functional Equivalence Theory

Nida has proposed an illuminating perspective of how to look upon

different languages and cultures and promoted mutual communication and

understanding of people from different language backgrounds.

The proposal of functional equivalence theory shifted the focus of

translation from meaning to reader’s responses. Before Nida’s theory was

proposed, there were two conflicting poles in translating field: free translation

and literal translation; emphasis on form or on content. No systematical

analysis was made on this two core subjects of translation. This epoch-making

perspective from which translation is studied provides a new approach to

resolve the conflict between literal translation and free translation. Just like

what Newmark states that Nida’s theory bypasses conflicting views on whether

a translation should side with the source language or the target language in the

nineteenth century, and the consequent faithful versus beautiful, literal versus

free, free versus content dispute.

Nida’s theory embodies ideas from the contemporary research findings,

especially from the achievement of linguistics to date, and offered scientific

explanation to many phenomena not well-explained in the traditional

translation theories. The idea of functional equivalence sheds light on literary

translation, the most demanding type of translation.

In the following part, the characteristics of literary translation will be

discussed and the applicability of functional equivalence theory to literary

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translation will be proved from three main aspects.

Chapter Ⅳ Functional Equivalence in Literary Translation

PartⅠ Basic Aspects Involved in Literary Translation

Translation is roughly classified into literary translation and non-literary

translation. Unlike non-literary translation such as science and technology

translation, literary translation is regarded as a unique form of creativity and an

act of research. Literary work is an art of language, so the corresponding

translation is to translate the art of language, rather than the texts only. It is a

most significant trait and principle of literary translation.

Mao Dun gave his definition of literary translation in one of his report that

literary translation is to reproduce the original artistic images in the target

language so that readers of the version can be emotionally touched and

aesthetically entertained in the same manner as the original readers do. In

terms of literary translation, Fu Lei clarified his point of view in a letter to Luo

Xinzhang that he attaches great importance to the equivalence of spirit of the

original work rather than form in literary translation.

Apparently, meaning equivalence serves as the most significant aspect

in literary translation. Furthermore, to fulfill the “aesthetically-entertained”

function, stylistic equivalence is another necessity to be taken into

consideration.

And in respect that cultural images abound in literary works and cultural

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difference play a significant role in meaning-interpretation, translators have to

deal with cultural transplantation well in literary translation.

In the following part, in terms of the characteristics of literary translation,

the three basic aspects involved will be discussed in detail.

PartⅡ Applicability of Functional Equivalence in Literary Translation

On the basis of Nida’s functional equivalence theory, an applying analysis

will be conducted in this part in terms of meaning, culture and style to confirm

the applicability of this theory in literary translation.

SectionⅠ Functional Equivalence in Meaning

Because of linguistic and cultural differences, translation should be an

intermediary to communicate the original meaning to the receptor in another

language environment. The applicability of functional equivalence in literary

translation practice with regard to meaning will be illustrated in the following

part.

Novels: Example 1

The original: “苏小姐理想的自己是艳如桃李，冷若冰霜…屈伏地求爱。”3

Translation: “Miss Su, who pictured herself in the words of the familiar saying,

as delectable as peach and plum and as cold as frost and ice…and then

prostrate himself to beg for her love.” 4

The above example vividly depicts Miss Su’s narcissism and

self-intoxication. She believes that she is endowed with good looks just like

3 钱钟书《围城》2003:32 4 Jeanne Kelly and Nathan Mao 2003:33

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bright-colored and beautiful peach and plum. She regards herself excellent

and charming enough to draw Fang Hongjian’s attention and deserve Fang’s

affections from the bottom of his heart. Being indifferent and icy to Fang, she

just wants his obsequious court. “艳如桃李” is literally translated as “as

delectable peach and plum ”.

It is easy for the target receptors to appreciate how beautiful Miss Su is. At

the same time, they are able to feel her coldness to Fang when reading the

“frost and ice”, because these two images are linked with uncomfortable and

arrogant manners in most cases. Therefore, this translation version brings the

target readers the same understanding and feeling as the original readers.

Literal translation is adopted here which conveys the meaning and

feelings expressed by the author to the receptors. On this occasion, literal

translation is more favorable which, for one thing, expresses the closest

natural equivalence of meaning, for another, retains the original images and

expressions as faithful as possible.

In reference to Nida’s functional equivalence theory, meaning-interpreting

is put in the first place in translation. When the original images are not the

barriers to the meaning-interpreting, they can be kept in the source language

with faithfulness as the invariant criterion of translation.

Example 2

The original: “…I gazed over the sea bluer than the sky: the old world was

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beyond…”5

Translation: “…眺望着比天还蓝的海：旧世界在那边…”6

The historical background is a must for translators to get a correct and

clear understanding of “the old world beyond”. In the general, “the old world”

can express two meanings. One refers to Europe, corresponding to the “the

new world” called by Columbia when he discovered America. And the other

refers to the past and unpleasant experiences.

The first meaning prevailed in the 19th century during which the novel was

written. Rochester stayed in North America which belonged to “the new world”.

And in the light of the context and logical reasoning, “the old world” here refers

to Europe. Therefore, “旧世界在那边” is better than “旧世界已经远去” which is

ambiguous and fuzzy.

This case exemplifies the prerequisite of making the closest natural

equivalence of meaning which is the accuracy in understanding and

authenticity in expression. Lacking of the knowledge of background, some

translators are misled by the literal meaning of the source language which

results in vagueness or inaccuracy. In particular in literary translation,

knowledge of history plays an important role. In some cases, there maybe

exist some unintentional mistakes in the original text, which do not conform to

the historical reality. Yet as a qualified translator, the accuracy of the historical

information should be guaranteed in the translation version.

5 Charlotte Brontë Jane Eyre 6 李霁野文集 简爱:380

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Example 3

The original: 塞翁失马，焉知非福。

Translation: Misfortune may prove a blessing in disguise.

The allusion originates from a famous Chinese story in history with a

strong cultural background. If the original image is retained, annotation is

necessary to add. The translator chooses to leave out the source language’s

image and merely render its implied meaning. Meaning equivalence is

achieved here and the understanding of the version is not impaired.

Essays: Example 4

The original: “…极嫩的黄绿色里透着一派天真的粉红…”7

Translation: “…with their tender yellowish green tinged with an artless pink.” 8

This case is another example of emphasizing the significance of the

accuracy of understanding. In English, “天真的” is corresponding to “naive” or

“innocent” which mean that people who do not have much experience of the

bad things in the world, so that they are easily deceived. Yet, none of them are

appropriate to express the original author’s feelings to the “tiny buds”.

According to the context, “天真的” here means the natural and inartificial

quality. “Artless” used in Zhang’s translation version convey the natural

loveliness of the “tiny buds”, which brings the target readers the same feelings

as the original readers.

Specialty of literary works lies partly in the flexibility of its language which

7 张晓风.《我喜欢》 8 张培基《英译中国现代散文选》

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vividly exhibits the aesthetics reflected in the works. Yet at the same time, it

also leads to difficulty to grasp the true meaning of images or words in

literature. Therefore, sensitivity of languages and feelings expressed in the

source languages is needed in rendering literature works.

Example 5

The original: “Jars of beach china line our mantel; the new album of summer

photos helps to chronicle our combing.”9

Translation: “从海滩收集来的一罐罐瓷片在壁炉上排列成行，新的夏日影集串

起我们寻宝过程的点点滴滴。”10

In the E-C translation, more contextual information is added to the “jars of

beach china” and “help to chronicle our combing”, which makes it much easier

for the Chinese readers to understand the meaning of the original.

The “chronicle” and “combing” are extended as “串起” and ”寻宝过程的点

点滴滴”, which accords with the context and grabs the exact meaning of the

original. By adding extra information, the accurate meaning is well expressed

and the receptors are easier to catch the spirit of the author and appreciate the

rendering version as the original readers do.

It is one of the most commonly used methods of translation which

complies with the principle of meaning coming first. Literary vocabularies are

rich in meaning, which results in some difficulty in transformation between two

languages. We can deal with this situation by means of adding some extra

9 第十一届韩赛原作”The Treasures in Store at the Shore” 10 选自第十一届韩赛参考译作

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information to make the meaning clearer.

Section Ⅱ Functional Equivalence in Culture

Language symbolizes and reflects culture. On the basis of functional

equivalence, in order to make sure the cultural information can be translated

from the source language to target language exactly, the translator has to have

a good understanding of the two cultures. Only by doing so, the translation

version can realize a cultural equivalence.

Novels: Example 1

The original: “闹了出去，人家总说姓方的饭碗打破，恼羞成怒。”11

Translation: “If the story got out, people would say that when Fang lost his job,

his shame turned into resentment.” 12

This instance is a mental depiction of Fang when encountering Kao, which

expresses Fang’s cautiousness vividly. ”饭碗打破” here was not translated as

“break the bowl”, which will definitely makes the target readers feel bewildered.

In China, “fanwan” is regarded the thing which supports their living, in

other word, their jobs. In the West, the situation is quite different. Therefore,

the translation “losing their job” is a good way to fulfill the cultural

transplantation and make the target readers feel much easier to understand.

Therefore, the translation of the image with typical cultural characteristic is well

dealt with by explaining the meaning of that word, rather than transliterating it

directly.

11 钱钟书 2003:544 12 Jeanne Kelly and Nathan Mao 2003:545

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In some cases, both two methods, namely explanation and transliteration,

are adopted at the same time, by which both of the cultural factors and the

original meaning are maintained.

Example 2

The original: “What happy combination of the planets presides over her

birth…”13

Translation: “什么样的福星一同高照她的诞生呢？”14

In Chinese, people would like to use “福星高照” to show someone’s good

luck. Yet, situation is different in Western countries. Westerners have a faith in

Christianity and they believe that the combination of the planets is a sign of

good luck and happiness. The translator transplants a traditional Chinese

expression to the E-C translation, which brings the same feelings to the target

readers just as the original readers.

Essays: Example 3

The original: “大家见面，招呼声‘吃了吗’？”透着和气。”15

Translation: “When people meet, they pass the time of the day with each other,

just to show their good neighborly feelings.”16

“To pass the time of the day with each other” refers to “exchanging

greeting with each other”. It is a proper counterpart of “吃了吗” in Chinese. “吃

了吗” in China is of typical cultural characteristic which has nothing to do with

13 Charlotte Brontë Jane Eyre 14 李霁野文集 简爱:449 15 老舍：《柳家大院》 16 冯庆华主编：《文体翻译论》，上海外语教育出版社，2002 年，p436－441

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its literal meaning, say “Have you had meal?” It is just a typical way to

exchanging greetings.

By cultural transplantation, the effects of cultural barriers can be stepped

across and the bridge can be built to communicate different cultures. Rich in

information of typical cultural characteristics, literary works are harder to be

rendered into another language which evolves in totally different culture.

Cultural transplantation is a good way to deal with the difficulty of rendering the

cultural information from one culture to another one.

Example 4

The original: “Here well-fed foreigners could live in their own little never-never

land of …”17

Translation: “在这里，饱食终日的外国人，可以在自己的小小的世外桃源里过

着…的生活”18

In the translation version, the “never-never land” is rendered properly. In

Barrie’s fiction Peter Pan “never-never land” refers to an imaginary, idyllic or

dream land. The translator use “世外桃源”, a phrase with vivid Chinese

character, as its version. Both of the phrases are allusions to famous literary

works in their own languages respectively. It fully realizes one hundred percent

equivalence in the meaning and culture, thus making the readers have the

same feelings just like reading the original. Cultural transplantation is well

exemplified in this case.

17 Edgar Snow Red Star Over China 18 董乐山译 《西行漫记》

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Section Ⅲ Functional Equivalence in Style

Nida defines translation as “reproducing in the receptor language the

closest natural equivalence of the source-language message, first in terms of

meaning and secondly in terms of style.”19 Therefore, functional equivalence

involves not only meaning and cultural correspondence but also the stylistic

equivalence.

Only when the meaning and style are conflicting with each other, the style

is put in the second place. Style is an essential part of the art of language and

an expressive form of the author’s thoughts and emotions. In the following part,

the translatability of style will be exemplified.

Novels: Example 1

The original: “In the first place, she persisted in disbelieving the whole of the

matter; secondly… thirdly… and fourthly, that the match might be broken off…”

20

Translation: “第一，她坚持不相信整个这回事；第二…第三…第四，这个婚约

也许会解除。”21

Pride and Prejudice is regarded as the typical representation of Jane

Austin’s style. The translation version preserves the irony effect by keeping “第

一”，”第二”，”第三” and ”第四” . If the original numbers are substituted by “起

先”，”跟着” and “最后”, the translation will lose the irony effect and cannot

reflect Jane Austin’s style.

19 Nida: Principles of Translation as Exemplified by Bible Translating 20 Jane Austen: Pride and Prejudice 21 王科一译《傲慢与偏见》

21

The analysis and assessment of style involves examination of a writer ’s

choice of words, his figures of speech, the devices, the shape of

paragraphs—indeed, of every conceivable aspect of his language and the way

in which he uses it. Therefore, to fulfill the equivalence of style, the tone and

voice of the writer himself must be accurately grasped and the expressing way

of the target language must be the closest natural correspondence to the

original one.

Example 2

The original: “My wife will be happy to see her ladyship. I’ve a very kind letter

here from your father, sir, and beg my respectful compliments to him.”

Translation: “我的太太欢迎爵士夫人到舍间来，承令尊的情，写给我一封信，

请你回去多多致意。”

Here, some typical sayings in Chinese to express respect and politeness

are used in the translation version, such as “舍间”and“承令尊的情”. “I’ve

a very kind letter here from your father” in the original is not literally rendered

into “我有一封来自你父亲的好心的信”, because it will remove the flavor of

ancient gentleness and hence violate the style of the original.

In this case, we can see that wording is an important component of style.

We should appreciate the original flavor firstly and express this flavor in the

translation. In order to realize the function of literary works, the translator is

responsible for keeping the style of the original which can be accepted and

appreciated by the receptors.

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Example 3

The original: Everything about him was old expect his eyes and they were the

same color as the sea and were cheerful and undefeated.

Translation: 他这人处处显老，唯独两只眼睛跟海水一个颜色，透出挺开朗、打

不垮的神气。

Hemingway’s works are characterized by their uncomplicated style. It is

universally acknowledged that Hemingway never used difficult words. The

translation version not only follow the original language features, but also

conveys the spirit and image of the old man by translate “cheerful and

undefeated” to “透出挺开朗、打不垮的神气”. It is colossally hard for a

translator to render the unyielding character of Hemingway’s, if he does not

have a full understanding of his personality, life experiences and his outlook on

life and the American society.

Essays: Example 4

The original:“杜诗锤炼精纯，李诗潇洒落拓；与其学杜之森严，不如学李之活

泼”22

Translation: “Tu’s poems,” she said, “are known for their workmanship and

artistic refinement, while Li’s poems are know for their freedom and

naturalness of expression. I prefer the vivacity of Li Po to the severity of Tu

Fu.”23

Evidently, the original sentences are concise and pithy. The difference

22 沈复《浮生六记》 23 林语堂译《浮生六记》

23

between Li and Du’s poetry style are precisely described in no more than ten

Chinese characters. The original sentences also use the parallel structures

with a beautiful rhyme. In Lin Yutang’s translation version, he follows the

original style, employing two verbal phrases to make a parallel structure and

making his sentences brief.

Example 5

The original: 荧光千点

Translation: myriads of fireflies

“荧光千点”here is rendered as “myriads of fireflies” rather than

“thousands of fireflies”. The style of prose is noticed and the aesthetic

requirement is met in the translation. The meaning of the translation is faithful

to the original one. Meanwhile, the translation brought the same aesthetic

feelings to the receptors.

Example 6

The original: “Books,” said Hazlitt, “wind in the heart; the poet’s slides in the

current of our blood….We breathe but the air of books.”24

Translation: 哈兹利特曾经说过：“书潜移默化人们的内心，是个熏陶人们的气

质品性…不啻我们呼吸的空气。”25

The original is profound and concise, with several parallel clauses. The

translation version follows the concise style and conforms to the rhythmical

effect, with many four-syllable phrases. Though the rhythmical patterns are

24 Smuel Smiles, Companionship of Books 25 王科一译《论学习》

24

different, it complies with the Chinese convention and gives the Chinese

readers the same aesthetical enjoyment. The translation version fully realizes

the advantage of the source language, which not only guarantees the

readability of the translation version, but also conveys the exact meaning of

the source language.

So far, the applicability of functional equivalence to literary translation is

discussed and exemplified from three aspects: functional equivalence in

meaning, functional equivalence in culture and functional equivalence in style.

In the next part, three practical strategies will be illustrated on the basis of the

applicability discussed above.

Chapter Ⅴ Strategies of Literary Translation in the Light of

Functional Equivalence

In the former part, the thesis has discussed the applicability of Nida’s

functional equivalence into literary translation from three aspects: meaning,

culture and style. From the illustrations used in the above part, it can be easily

noticed that there are some similarities in the dealing methods in literary

translation conforming to functional equivalence. In the following part, the

practical strategies will be discussed in the light of functional equivalence.

PartⅠParaphrase

Paraphrase is a translation strategy which explains the meaning of the

original text to the target readers rather than translating it word for word and

25

sentence for sentence. Paraphrase attaches importance on explaining culture

by means of introducing the traditions, customs and historical allusions. When

the proper cultural substitution can not be found, this method can be adopted.

Paraphrase is a typical method of putting the meaning-rendering at the first

place.

Case study: Example 1

The original: “假若不知道，祥子岂不独自背上黑锅？”26

Translation: “If Liu doesn’t know, how could he, Hsiang Tzu, get out of taking

the blame all by himself?”27

The Chinese phrase “背上黑锅”，whose literal meaning is “to carry a black

pot on one’s back”, will make westerners completely and totally confused.

Therefore, the translator provides the extended meaning of the phrase in terms

of its original cultural meaning.

This method is based on two important factors in translation, namely

meaning and culture. In order to achieve meaning equivalence and clarify

cultural concepts, paraphrase is a desirable method of translation of literary

works.

Example 2

The original: “余殷吃的差不多…我这地要出个状元。”28

Translation: “When Yu Yin had had about enough…This plot of ours will

26 老舍《骆驼祥子》 27 Translated by Jean M. James 28 吴敬梓，1988:282

26

produce a number one graduate!”29

“状元” is translated as “a number one graduate” here. In ancient China,

“状元” was a title granted to one who ranking first in all candidates taking part

in the palace examination. For Westerners who do not have a good

understanding of Chinese cultural knowledge, it will be quite hard for them to

catch the meaning of this cultural reference.

Through paraphrase, the meaning equivalence is realized. Sometimes,

we can also transliterate a specific cultural reference with annotations

following it. With Chinese culture spreading wider worldwide, many typical

Chinese references are increasingly accepted by more foreigners, which has

exerted a great influence on the translation methods.

Example 3

The original: “他写了一封黄伞格的信，托洋鬼子带上城。”30

Translation: “He had written an extremely formal letter, and asked the imitation

Foreign Devil to take it to town.”31

“黄伞格”refers to a type of letter which overmuch stresses on form. This

term is used by Lu Xun to emphasize Ah Quei’s civility. This kind of letter

format is unfamiliar to the receptors, actually even not yet known to native

Chinese. Therefore, “黄伞格”is paraphrased as “an extremely formal letter”.

In this way, the receptors can have a coherent understanding of the original

without any difficulty. In some cases, the cultural information in the original is

29 The Yangs 30 鲁迅：《阿 Q 正传》 31 Translated by Yang Xianyi and Gladys Yang

27

peculiar to the original culture. Notes or explanations turn out to be redundant.

Hence, paraphrase is a favorable method to deal with this situation.

Example 4

The original: 鸡年是我的本命年。

Translation: The year of the Rooster will bring me good luck or bad luck.

In China, people use 12 animals to represent twelve Earthly Branches and

symbolize the year in which a person is born.

For instance, people who are born in 1993 have the rooster as their life

symbol. The Spring Festival in Chinese lunar calendar marks the first day of

the Year of Rooster. All other years of Rooster are called “本命年” for people

who was born in 1993, which means their good or bad luck years. This

tradition is different from the west culture. Therefore, the translator

paraphrases this meaning of the source message to make the English reader

easily understand the meaning of it.

However, the method of paraphrase may make the translation dull and

lifeless. It also hinders the receptors from perceiving and appreciating the new

things form another culture. Therefore, when the images or other cultural

information are not the focuses in the source message, this method can be

used to cope with this situation.

Part Ⅱ Cultural Substitution

Cultural substitution refers to the equivalent replacement of

culture-specific images or expressions between different cultures, for instance,

28

“never-never land” in Western cultures and “世外桃源” in Chinese culture.

Case study: Example 1

The original: “他说男人底心，她不知道，谁也不愿意当王八”32

Translation: “he said she didn’t understand a man’s psychology. No one

wanted to be a cuckold.”33

“王八” , whose literal meaning is “tortoise” or ”turtle” does not have deep

meaning in Western culture. “王八 ” in Chinese is a bad name-calling

expression and here means an inconstant person. Originating from old French

“cuckoo”（布谷鸟）,“cuckold” is an insulting word for a man whose wife has

been having sex with another man. Hence, the replacement of the two cultural

images has the same effects among readers, original and target. Functional

equivalence is realized.

Example 2

The original: 原来天理昭然，佑护善人义士。

Translation: Actually, the gods who see everything and protect the good and

virtuous.

“天理昭然”is a typical phrase concerning traditional Chinese ethics. “天

理” here means Heavenly laws or divine justice. In terms of this situation, the

complicatedness is avoided, which has to take pains to explain the related

cultural background knowledge. Instead, the corresponding expression in the

Western ethics system is adopted in the translation version, which is far more

32 许地山：《春桃》 33 张培基《英译现代散文选》

29

familiar to the English receptors. Through cultural substitution, meaning and

cultural equivalence are achieved.

Example 3

The original: 巧媳妇做不出没米的粥。

Translation: “Even the cleverest housewife can’t make bread without flour.”34

This case reflected the different cooking styles in China and West. In

China, in particular in the southern part, rice serves as people’s main food and

rice cultivation flourishes, while the principle food in the Western world is bread.

Hawkes replaces “米”and “粥”with “flour” and “bread” in his version. The

linguistic equivalence is violated here to make his translation more acceptable

to the target receptors.

Example 4

The original:....贡入太学肄业…

Translation: …recommending him for the Imperial College…

In this case, “太学”refers to the royal school set up and run by the

emperor. It is rendered into “the Imperial College” which shares the same

connotative cultural meaning with “太学”. Through cultural transplantation,

the acceptability is enhanced for the target receptors. Meanwhile, the cultural

information contained in the original text is appropriately preserved. When the

culture-loaded words or expressions have the corresponding terms in the

target language, transplantation will be a desirable and direct strategy.

34 Hongloumeng, Translated by Hawkes

30

Part Ⅲ Partial Translation

Partial translation refers to omit the unimportant information to achieve

conciseness and give prominence to the important information.

Case study: Example 1

The original: “一灯如豆，罗帐低垂，杯弓蛇影，惊魂未定。”35

Translation: “The light of a rapeseed oil lamp was then burning as small as a

pea, and the edges of the bed curtain hung low in the twilight, and we were

shaking all over.”36

The Chinese phrase “杯弓蛇影” is hard to be translated into English. Since

“惊魂未定” has the similar meaning with “杯弓蛇影”，leaving out this cultural

phrase will not cost target readers much effort to understand and appreciate

the sentence. It is one of the characteristics of Chinese that expressing the

same meaning with several phrases to achieve a typical form aesthetics. Yet

as for English, brevity is more favorable which is tending to avoid repeating.

According to this, partial translation is a desirable way to achieve closest

natural equivalence.

Example 2

The original: 你端的智赛隋何，机强陆贾！

Translation: You’re a shrewd woman.

“隋何”and “陆贾”are famous for their wise and eloquence. In the

translated version, the two cultural-specific figures are omitted, instead the

35 沈复《浮生六记》 36 林语堂译《浮生六记》

31

common word “shrewd” is employed. If “隋何”and“陆贾”is showed in the

source text, relevant detailed explanation has to be made in order to make the

receptors have a clear understanding of the original. Moreover, partial

translation also makes the sentence smooth and accurate.

Example 3

The original: …高中广东乡试第七名亚元…

Translation: … has passed the provincial examination in Kwangtung, coming

seventh in the list…

The term “亚元”is omitted in the translation for it conveys excessive

cultural information. In ancient China, “亚元”refers a title awarded to the top

ten graduates passing the provincial examination except for the number one.

There is no corresponding term in Western culture. The text will be wordy and

awkward if the term is paraphrased in the target text. Instead, omission is

adopted here with capturing the whole cultural message. In some situation with

partial omission, the culture-loaded words are well dealt with.

Example 4

The original: 千秋功罪，系于一念之间。

Translation: Merits and demerits to be recorded in history hinge on the

decision made in a moment.

“千”“万”are often used in Chinese text to emphasize the large scale or

number without indicating the specific number. The meaning expressed by

these numbers is quite obscure. When rendered into English, they have to be

32

treated flexibly and omission is often adopted.

So far three translation strategies are illustrated, namely paraphrase,

cultural substitution and partial translation. The three strategies are applicable

to different cases respectively.

33

Conclusion

Up to now, the thesis has analyzed the significance and applicability of

Nida’s functional equivalence in literary translation and put forward practical

strategies of translation correspondingly.

In the second chapter, the three main points of Nida’s functional

equivalence theory are discussed in detail, which serve as the basis of this

thesis, i.e. readers’ response, cultural transplantation and stylistic equivalence.

In the third chapter, the characteristics of literary translation are discussed,

which paves the way for the analysis of the next chapter. On the basis of the

correspondence of the theory and features of literary translation, the

applicability is elaborated from three aspects：meaning, culture and style. And

in the fifth chapter three strategies are listed and exemplified.

To conclude, the functional equivalence initiated by Nida is of great

importance and profound significance in literary translation which is worthy of

being paid more attention to.

34

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Acknowledgements

I am extremely grateful to my supervisor, Associate Professor, Zhang Li,

for her generosity in spending her time giving me invaluable instruction and

revision during the course of composing my thesis.

My gratitude also goes to all teachers who gave me instruction during my

college life. I have benefited a lot from my teachers’ assistance and

consideration. My outlook on life has been profoundly influenced by their

respectable personality.

Finally, I would like to give my most sincere thanks to my parents and

friends for their selfless support in so many years. With their help and

encouragement, I become who I am today.