原型理论与翻译研究

Prototype Theory and Translation Studies

传统的语言学派翻译理论跟结构主义语言学一样,是建立在经典范畴观之上的,有着很大的局限性。自20世纪80年代以来,国外不少翻译研究者开始把原型理论引入翻译研究,取得了可喜的成就。他们通过理论演绎和实证研究表明:翻译是一个原型范畴,对源语语篇及译语语篇采取原型分析更为有效,翻译评价标准决不能理解为必要充分条件,而最好理解为原型范畴的各个属性特征。此外,后殖民翻译研究中的杂合理论也从一定程度上为翻译研究的原型观提供了佐证。把翻译看成是原型范畴的原型翻译观有助于拓宽我们的研究视野,深化我们对翻译本体的认识,从而打破一些人为设定的藩篱,指导我们的翻译研究,尤其是描写—解释性翻译研究,并最终指导我们的翻译实践。

Traditional linguistically oriented translation studies, like structural linguistics, is based upon the classical theory of categorization, thus having obvious deficiencies. Since the 1980s, however, some translation scholars abroad have introduced Prototype Theory (PT) into translation studies, which resulted in gratifying achievements. They demonstrate, through theoretical deduction and/or empirical studies, that translation is a prototype category, that it is more effective to make prototype analysis of the original texts as well as of the translated texts, and that translation criteria had better be understood as properties of a prototype rather than necessary and sufficient conditions. Moreover, research on hybridity in postcolonial translation studies in a certain sense also support the prototypical view of translation. A prototypical perspective of translation can broaden our horizon, deepen our understanding of the object of enquiry, guide our research of translation, particularly the descriptive-explanatory study, and finally guide our translation practice.