Reporting verbs are not only an important means of presenting characters’speeches,but also an important means of characterization in narratives.The original and the two English versions of Eileen Chang’s novella“St...Reporting verbs are not only an important means of presenting characters’speeches,but also an important means of characterization in narratives.The original and the two English versions of Eileen Chang’s novella“Steamed Osmanthus”are used as a corpus to conduct a comparative analysis focusing on the reporting verbs of the heroine Ah-Xiao.The analysis shows that the two translators-Eileen Chang herself and Simon Patton-have different styles.Patton favors the use of structuring verbs(especially“replied”)and neutral verbs in serial verb constructions while Chang tends to use neutral verbs glossed by an adverb,an adjective or a prepositional phrase.Descriptive verbs,especially prosodic verbs,also predominate in Chang’s version.As a result,both versions may have shaped a different Ah Xiao.展开更多
文摘Reporting verbs are not only an important means of presenting characters’speeches,but also an important means of characterization in narratives.The original and the two English versions of Eileen Chang’s novella“Steamed Osmanthus”are used as a corpus to conduct a comparative analysis focusing on the reporting verbs of the heroine Ah-Xiao.The analysis shows that the two translators-Eileen Chang herself and Simon Patton-have different styles.Patton favors the use of structuring verbs(especially“replied”)and neutral verbs in serial verb constructions while Chang tends to use neutral verbs glossed by an adverb,an adjective or a prepositional phrase.Descriptive verbs,especially prosodic verbs,also predominate in Chang’s version.As a result,both versions may have shaped a different Ah Xiao.
