The Application of Literal Translation in Movie English——A Case Study of Downton Abbey

In recent years, a large number of overseas TV dramas appear in domestic screens. Downton Abbey, as the most popular English drama in the recent ten years, manifests the numerous aspects of the world of English upper nobles and their servants under the severe hierarchy. It is praised by the whole world. This thesis attempts to analyze the application of literal translation in Downton Abbey from the aspect of formal equivalence and meaning equivalence so as to explore the suitability and effectiveness of literal translation and find out if a literal translation can be applied to the English film's translation. The thesis first reviews the research status of movie English and points out the significance of learning it from the side of literal translation.And it gives literary translation and general introduction to key concepts that can be used in later analysis. Then, it analyzes the application of literal translation in subtitle translation of Downton Abbey from formal equivalence and meaning equivalence in order to find out the usability and validity of literal translation in movie English. Finally, it sums up the findings and limitations of the thesis.

The Application of Literal Translation with the Annotation in Translation of Idioms

Idioms contain most of the rich cultural background and cultural identity,especially those formed by the historical allusions idioms and phrases.English and Chinese idioms are closely related to culture and convey different cultural features and messages of their own nation,reflecting their own rich culture.Translator should try their best to translate these differences in idiom translation.

Comments on Nigel Wiseman s A Practical Dictionary of Chinese Medicine(Ⅰ)——On the“Word-for-word”Literal Approach to Translation

Comments were made on the ＂word-for-word＂ literal translation method used by Mr. Nigel Wiseman in A Practical Dictionary of Chinese Medicine. He believes that only literal translation can reflect Chinese medical concepts accurately. The so-called ＂word-for-word＂ translation is actually ＂English-word-for- Chinese-character＂ translation. First, the authors of the dictionary made a list of Single Characters with English Equivalents, and then they gave each character of the medical term an English equivalent according to the list. Finally, they made some minor modifications to make the rendering grammatically smoother. Many English terms thus produced are confusing. The defect of the word-for-word literal translation stems from the erroneous idea that a single character constitutes the basic element of meaning corresponding to the notion of ＂word＂ in English, and the meaning of a disyllabic or polysyllabic Chinese word is the simple addition of the constituent characters. Another big mistake is the negligence of the polysemy of Chinese characters. One or two English equivalents can by no means cover all the various meanings of a single character which is a polysemous monosyllabic word. Various examples were cited from this dictionary to illustrate the mistakes.

Literal and Free Translation of Chinese-English Brand Names

The present paper is intended to describe the two normal methods—free and literal translation used in translating brand names; in the meantime, some common mistakes are discussed in the process of translation. As to the free and literal translation, the paper discusses some common approaches, or techniques used in the process, which affect the effects of the brand names a lot and have direct influence on the results of the target brand names. In view of the common mistakes, the paper points out some customs, habits, religious beliefs, living environment and cultural factors, which may lead to failures in translating brand names.

＂Literal Translation＂ and the Materiality of Language： Lu Xun as a Case

With his insistence upon the literal rendering in Chinese of foreign texts, especially regarding syntax, Lu Xun＇s understanding of＂literal translation＂ strikes a rather distinct note in the modern Chinese literary scene. The intention behind this method, namely, the aim to ＂retain the tone of the original,＂ reveals a generative perception of language that takes language as not just the bearer of the already existent thought, but as the formative element of thought that has meaning in itself. This paper seeks to delineate the structural constitution of the materiality of language as grasped by Lu Xun. By comparing the notion of the ＂tone＂ to Wilhelm yon Humboldt＇s notion of the ＂inner form ~of language＂ and situating it within the genealogy of qi, as well as tracing its link with Zhang Taiyan＇s idea of＂zhiyan,＂ I will attempt to reveal the philosophical and historical basis of Lu Xun＇s principle of ＂literal translation＂ and its significance for Chinese literary modernity in general.

On the Translation of Chinese Four-Character Idioms in Selected Modern Chinese Essays 1

Chinese idioms are vivid and meaningful,which are the essence of national language.However,due to the great differences between Chinese and western cultures,the translation of Chinese idioms is an extremely complex task.In view of the importance and complexity of its translation,with the translation of Chinese four-character idioms in Selected Modern Chinese Essays 1 as its theme,the paper aims to investigate the application of different translation methods in C-E translation,and adopts Yan Fu’s theory of“faithfulness,expressiveness,and elegance”to judge the translation effects.Through a summary and study of the form and translation effect of idioms,the paper finds that literal translation is often used for straightforward idioms,while free translation is often used for idioms with an extended meaning,and context should be considered when selecting translation methods.

On the Appropriateness of Translation Strategies from the Perspective of Renjian Buddhism’s Translations

This paper discusses the appropriateness of the free translation and literal translation on the basis of the study of Renjian Buddhism’s translations.The result shows that there are more than ten free English translations of Renjian Buddhism in China while only six versions can be found in the English world.Different free translations only focus on one aspect of Renjian Buddhism,which cannot show the whole scene of Renjian Buddhism.For example,translation“humanistic Buddhism”focuses on its humanity,showing the contrariness between“humanism”and“Buddhism”;translation“engaged Buddhism”focuses on its sociality,mistaking“Renjian Buddhism”which is not so engaged as the same Buddhism of Dalai Lama.Due to Renjian Buddhism’s complexity,the phonemic translation of“Renjian Buddhism”is more appropriate to promote its communication with the English World.

On the English Translation of Chinese Internet Catchwords from the Perspective of Functional Equivalence Theory

Due to the long history of China,the special features of the Chinese Internet catchwords and the few translations of the Chinese Internet catchwords at home and abroad,it is very hard for the foreigners to comprehend the Chinese Internet catchwords.Functional Equivalence Theory is put forward by an American translation theorist,Eugene A.Nida,which casts great influence on the translation circle.This paper applies the literal translation and the free translation to translate the Chinese Internet catchwords in the light of functional equivalence theory.

Brief Discussion on Translation Strategies of EST Words

The 21 stcentury is an era of information technology, and the languages of transmitting information are developing as well. In the past 50 years, a large number of new meanings of new words have been emerged in English learning. This phenomenon is particularly shown in EST words. As to the translation of EST words, it is becoming more and more important, and a clear and effective method is required to the translation of EST words. From the angle of English Lexicology,this paper first gives a detailed introduction of the sources, the word formations and features of EST words. Then the translation strategies of the Literal and the Free Translation, in EST words translation. Because there exists various of limitations, a more perfect translation is needed to be discussed.

Concerning the Use of Western Medical Terms to Represent Traditional Chinese Medical Concepts——Answer to Prof. XIE and His Colleagues

This paper strongly rejects the notion that the use of biomedical terms to represent traditional Chinese medical concepts is helpful to the internationalization of Chinese medicine. It further argues that this practice destroys the integrity and independence of Chinese medical concepts. Taking the term 风火眼 fěng huǒ yǎn as an example, it shows that the biomedical term ＂acute conjunctivitis＂ often suggested as the translation for this term is unsatisfactory, because （ 1 ） the clinical reference is not identical, （2） it introduces the concepts of ＂conjunctiva＂ and ＂inflammation＂, which are not Chinese medical concepts, and （3） destroys the Chinese medical concepts ＂wind＂ and ＂fire＂ expressed in the Chinese, which reflect the way the disease is traditionally diagnosed and treated. While for English readers not familiar with Chinese medicine, ＂acute conjunctivitis＂ may be immediately intelligible, for those seeking a deep understanding of the subject, the literal translation （loan translation） ＂wind-fire eye＂ is much more helpful. This paper supports these arguments with numerous other examples.