论文总字数：28259字

摘 要

随着中国走向世界，正确精准的翻译就显得至关重要。而所坚持的翻译理论的不同，会给翻译带来不同的结果和文本。本文以国外著名的功能对等理论和中国早期提出的可看作中国传统翻译理论的“信达雅”为基础，根据以两种理论为标准的不同译本，尝试对两种理论进行比较，希望可以找到更适合中国翻译学者的翻译理论和翻译方法。

关键词：翻译理论；功能对等；信达雅；异同

Contents

1. Introduction 1

2. Literature Review 2

3. A Comparison on Yan Fu’s Theory and Hawkes’s Theory 4

3.1 Introduction of the Novel and the Poem 4

3.2 A Comparative Study on Two Translation Versions of the Poem 6

3.3 Summary 11

4. Conclusion 11

Works Cited 12

1. Introduction

With the rapid development of China，we need to better communicate with the world through translation. Under this circumstance，many foreign translation theories and translation methods rush into China and are gradually accepted by more and more scholars. One of these translation theories is the famous theory of functional equivalence，which is pointed out by Nida and widely spread in Chinese translation field. While in China，there are many schools of translation theory throughout the history，Yan Fu’s theory of the faithfulness，expressiveness and elegance is the most meaningful and influential among all the translation theories. Translation theories can not develop without the translation practice. We adhere to different translation theories in accordance with various texts. That is to say，different translation theories are different expectations of readers. Therefore， Chinese and western translation theories develop in separate ways. But the core of them is similar to some extent. Each theory promotes the development of the whole theoretical system of translation.

It is clear that Chinese and English are two completely different languages. That is why the thesis picks out these two theories. They represent the achievement in Chinese and western translation. Here the author studies the functional equivalence and Chinese traditional theory，at the meanwhile，the thesis want to make a comparison on the two translation theories through the translation of the poem in A Dream of Red Mansions. The thesis also studies the differences and the similarities through comparison and contrasts. Through the research，translators who insist on different translation theories can benefit from the comparative study of the two translation theories. At the same time，translation theories could get better and better. Then translators can do the translation better with the guidance of the translation theories. In addition，translators at home and abroad will better understand how to translate the source language to target language.

This thesis is divided into four parts. Chapter one is a brief introduction of my study，introducing the basic point of the thesis. Chapter two is a literature review of the two translation theories，Nida’s functional equivalence and Yan Fu’s faithfulness，expressiveness and elegance，as well as the development of translation throughout the history. Chapter three is the comparison on the study of the two theories between the two versions of the translation of one poem in A Dream of Red Mansions. The findings and conclusion will be presented in the last chapter.

2. Literature Review

Referring to translation，it is partly different or even totally different due to the different translation theories. Take the translation of literary works as an example, some translation pursue entirely consistent with the original, including the accuracy of the forms and the words, while others hope the translation conveys the meaning of the expression itself.

The article，Exploration of the Development of Chinese Traditional Translation Theory, written by Wang Chunyan talks about the four periods in Chinese translation history. The first period is from Han dynasty to Song dynasty. In this period，all of the translation is directly related to religions. Next period is the translation at the beginning of Qing dynasty. This period is meaningful because it jumped out of the barriers of religious translation. Then the Opium War came，the translation developed fast. It is the third period. The last is the prosperous time of translation. In this period，the translation was the most influential not only in quantity but also in quality. When it refers to the third period，here comes the most famous and meaningful translation theory，that is the faithfulness，expressiveness and elegance.（Wang Chunyan，2009:63） In The Importance and Influence of “Faithfulness Smoothness Elegance”in Chinese Translation History，Ma Zhiyuan argues that the theory of the faithfulness，expressiveness and elegance is originated from the ancient but formed in modern times. The theory is so meaningful that no theories can be compared with at that time. What’s more，Ma thinks that the theory is becoming more mature throughout its development. And she believes that the theory continues to enrich itself and develop without stop.（Ma Zhiyuan，2012：120） Lin Zhang explained the relationship of the three points of the theory in his paper named The Study on Faithfulness Expressiveness and Elegance. He thinks that the faithfulness，expressiveness and elegance are not paratactic. He means that the faithfulness is the core while the expressiveness and elegance symbolizes means in Yan Fu’s opinion. There are two aspects of faithfulness，one is to the text，the other is to the translators. It seems that Yan Fu is more focused on the latter. The expressiveness expresses the original thinking through translation techniques. And the elegance is actually a stylistic feature to present political essays.（Lin Zhang，2000:4） In Yan Fu’s book theory of natural selection，he best described the faithfulness，expressiveness and elegance. He thought that the faithfulness requires the translation to be consistent with the original text，expressiveness requires smooth diction and the elegance requires literary talent. （Yan Fu，2010）

Comparing to Yan Fu’s theory，in the late 1960s, American scholar Eugene Nida pioneered functional equivalence theory, which is also known as dynamic equivalence theory. Nida believes that translation purpose is to maintain the nature between source language and target languages, and to better restore the connotative meaning in the culture of source language. Because of the differences in region and culture, complete equivalence in form and semantics does not exist.（Eugene A. Nida，1998） According to a paper An Analysis on Three Versions of Song of a Roamer from the Perspective of Functional Equivalence written by Hao Yanyan，Nida thinks that translation acquires the equivalence not on only the meaning of words，but also on the meaning of text，style and deeper cultural information hidden in the superficial meaning of words. Through his translation of the Bible，Nida summed up its own set of translation theory from actual condition. In his book Studies on Translating Science in 1964，Nida proposed the concept of dynamic equivalence，which was later interpreted as functional equivalence. Nida wrote，“Translating consists in reproducing in the receptor language the closest natural equivalent of the source language, first in terms of meaning and secondly in terms of style.” （Hao Yanyan，2015:114） It means that translators should try to present the style while translating.

As stated above，what is clear is that there are many different opinions towards these translation theories，ranging from the agreement to the disagreement. Yan Fu’s theory of the faithfulness，expressiveness and elegance was a translation theory in the early stage. But it is also widely recognized by many scholars owing to its rationality. As for Nida’s functional equivalence，it is clear that the theory is a heated focus in translation field both in China and western countries. In order to further develop translation theories，more studies should be done because translators can translate better with a better translation theory.

3. A Comparison on Yan Fu’s Theory and Hawkes’s Theory

There must be intricate relationship between functional equivalence theory and our traditional translation theory. This thesis attempts to study and sum up the differences and the similarities between the two translation theories with the different English versions of one poem in A Dream of Red Mansions on the basis of the two famous theories. Meanwhile，this paper tries to find out the shortcomings of them and a more suitable translation theory and translation method for China.

Chinese poetry seeks for a harmony of level and oblique tones，neat antithesis and fluent reading. Although there is no level and oblique tones in English poems, but there are stressed reading and weak reading performed as iambic rhythm and so on. Chinese and English poetry has different sets of rhythms，thus it is difficult for translators to reproduce original rhythms of poetry. What’s more，the translation of poetry is tough due to the unique phonology，artistic conception and style of Chinese poetry. The thesis picked out two different English versions of The Song of Burying the Fallen Flowers to make a comparative study on the two theories. The introduction of the poem will be given first.

3.1 Introduction of the Novel and the Poem

3.1.1 Introduction of the Novel

A Dream of Red Mansions is a smiling tragedy. The book describes a feudal aristocratic family of three generations from its glory to its decline. The story focuses on the daily life in Rong House and has a clear line of the tragic marriage of Baoyu，Taiyu and Baochai，as well as the trivia in Grand View Garden. The story has a dark line that four Jinling aristocratic families declined in history. It also reveals the collusion and conflicts in the palace and complicated relationships among men and women in addition with mundane daily chores，vividly painting a picture of the declined history of a noble family. At the meanwhile，it points out the inevitable demise of nearly dead feudal society. Besides，the book also denounces the shameless depravity of the feudal aristocracy，pointing out their hypocrisy, fraud, greed, corruption and evil. It is noted that this family has its inevitable collapse and death，at the same time，it also implies the inevitable collapse of the class and the society that the family belongs to. The book is said to be of great historical significance and high artistic value. The story is completely converse to the old novels with the ending of reunion，creating a high value of aesthetic tragedy. Meanwhile，it is known as the encyclopedia of Chinese feudal society because of its vague expression, desolate emotional style and strong lofty thoughts heritage as well as its irreplaceable value of research in some fields such as our ancient folklore，the feudal system，the social landscape and architecture，reaching the peak of Chinese classical novels.

3.1.2 Introduction of the Poem

Lin Taiyu burying flowers is an important part of this remarkable character. It is also to highlight the performance of sentimental tone in A Dream of Red Mansions. The plot represents the climax of the love relationship between Baoyu and Taiyu. In the story，a dispute bumped out between Taiyu and Baoyu. In addition，many coincidences put Taiyu into deep sorrow. Taiyu misunderstood that her only confidant could not understand herself well. She thought of her miserable life experience while noticing the fallen flowers. With great grief，she buried the fallen flowers and composed the famous The Song of Burying the Fallen Flowers. People may have optimistic or pessimistic attitudes towards the natural phenomenon of fallen flowers while Lin Taiyu thinks it differently. From where she stands，she thought that the buds in bud are the best time of flowers and she hoped that this state could last forever. Her poetry is the true portrayal of the ancients’ sentiment，which puts the emotion into the scene and expresses emotion through the scene. She mourned her own youth, love, and happiness. They were like flowers in late spring，ignored, forgotten, or even ruin. She spent her grievance for flowers and for herself. She knew the unfortunate fate of fallen flowers. They would be trampled on or floated with waves. She wanted to change their fates. Taiyu burying the fallen flowers is not just looking for the ultimate destination for the fallings，in fact，she is finding her own spiritual home for herself. For Lin has a poetic temperament，she is sensitive to the changes of external environment，she is not simply making a funeral for the fallen flowers. She is making a simile for herself as the fallen flowers.

3.2 A Comparative Study on Two Translation Versions of the Poem

There are many different translation versions of The Song of Burying the Fallen Flowers，even the translation of names is different. Here the thesis chooses two translation versions. One is Lin Yutang’s translation version，the other is David Hawkes’s translation version.

The analysis of two different versions of The Song of Burying the Fallen Flowers is given and the following paragraph is about the comparison on two different versions of translation. The comparison will be given in the following aspects，including the translation of titles，lexicons，phrases and so on.

3.2.1 From the Authors

Lin Yutang is a famous writer and translator in modern times at home and aboard. He is talented and prolific，and he has written more than 60 books and thousands of articles in his lifetime. His work is translated into almost all the languages and widely spread. He made great contributions to human nature. Lin Yutang loved his hometown and he kept mentioning his hometown in his autobiography and his other books. “His transition of the poem Taiyu Predicting Her Own Death in A Dream of Red Mansions demonstrates his beautiful style and ability in poem translation．In his translation，Lin Yutang successfully transfers the meaning of the poem in beautiful English.” （Huang Ningxiaamp;Yang Ping，2010:97）

David Hawkes is a famous sinologist. He is the first who translated A Dream of Red Mansions into English. His English translation of A Dream of Red Mansions dominates in the western translation field，greatly promoting the spread of A Dream of Red Mansions overseas. It is said that The Song of Burying the Fallen Flowers in his translation of A Dream of Red Mansions can be seen as the best edition ever. “His translation，A Dream of Red Mansions，is great achievement to a translator. It is said one of the biggest mistakes of translating A Dream of Red Mansions is the name of Lin Taiyu. Most of the translation made Taiyu Black Jade. Hawkes first translated her name as Taiyu with the assistance of his friend.”（Baidu baike，2013）

3.2.2 From the Translation of Titles

First of all，a comparative study on the translation of titles will be given. The translation of the title translated by Hawkes is The Song of Burying the Fallen Flowers. Hawkes’s translation of title is consistent with the title in Chinese completely. It is faithful to the original title and conveys the original meaning perfectly while Lin Yutang put deep understanding into the title. The title of the poem is 葬花吟 in Chinese. The word song Hawkes used here expresses 吟 and the word bury here expresses 葬. Referring to the title in Lin Yutang’s version，he translated the title into Taiyu Predicting Her Own Death. He translated the title like that because he knew it well that Taiyu compared herself as the fallen flowers and saw her own destiny from the fallen flowers. Although Hawkes also had a deep understanding on A Dream of Red Mansions，he did not translate the title in a deep way. What he did is also remarkable. If a person who do not know anything about the book，he will not understand that Taiyu is comparing herself as the fallen flowers from the single poem. In addition，the target readers of the version translated by Hawkes are foreigners. Translating the text in a deep way only adds the misunderstanding on the book for the foreigners who do not know A Dream of Red Mansions.

3.2.3 From the Translation of Lexicons

Secondly，a comparative study on the translation of lexicons will be given. The person they used is different from each other. Lin Yutang used the first-person while Hawkes used the third-person. In addition，in the last two sections，the translation given by Lin Yutang is faithful to the original text. The translation better describes the scene of burying fallen flowers. For example：

Now I take the shovel and bury your scented breath，

A—wandering when my turn shall be．

Let me be silly and weep atop your grave，

For next year who will bury me？

This section is Taiyu’s monologue. She sighed for the death of beautiful flowers and buried them with sorrow. Meanwhile，she thought of her own time of death and wondered when it was. She knew that others might laugh at her because she was sobbing for flowers and making a funeral for flowers foolishly. Hawkes applied third-person in the translation of the poem. This can make foreigners better understand the poem. For example：

The maid，grieved by these signs of spring’s decrease……

……Why care，maid，where the fallen flowers blew.

In addition，the words Hawkes used is more faithful to the original text while the words Lin Yutang used is more beautiful and suitable to the original environment. In section one，the poem mentioned 游丝. The word means many tiny things like catkins floating at sixes and sevens in the air. The word Hawkes used is floss while Lin Yutang chose the word gossamer. Floss means a soft loosely twisted thread used in embroidery. Gossamer means a gauze fabric with a fine texture or cobweb. It seems that both of the words they used do not express the original meaning best but they do convey the gauze in some ways. Besides，sometimes Hawkes chose a better word while sometimes Lin Yutang did. For example，when translating the word 青灯，Hawkes chose the word lamplit while Lin Yutang chose the word flickering. Both of them expressed the meaning of light but the word Lin Yutang chose is better because it shows that the light is weak and faint and points out the hopeless environment. Meanwhile，when translating the word 冷雨，Hawkes chose a better word：a chill rain. Chill is more than coldness or loneliness，it also presents the tough environment to the readers. What’s more，Hawkes paid attention to the use of vocabulary in his translation. The words he chose basically corresponded with western minds. For example：

Floss drifts and flutters round the Maiden’s bower……

……Three hundred and three-score the year’s full tale

From swords of frost and from the slaughtering.

The word bower means a shady，leafy shelter in a garden or wood. The word is slightly different from the meaning of 榭 in the original text. But it can be understood well by western people. Then，Hawkes used three-score to express sixty which was acknowledged and familiar to foreigners not to Chinese. He also used the word slaughtering to illustrate the hardships of the environment. Slaughter is a bloody word which means a lot of murders and kills. It shows that western people who do not understand the original text can also imagine the tough environment in the original text.

3.2.4 From the Translation of Phrases

Next，a comparative study on the translation of phrases will be given. Lin Yutang put the faithfulness of the translation in the first place always while Hawkes’s translation still focus on the communicative function. For example：

The frost and cutting wind in a whirling cycle

Hurtle through the seasons’ round.

Here Lin Yutang used the frost and cutting wind to express 风霜刀剑in Chinese. Frost represents 霜 in Chinese，wind means 风 in Chinese and cutting and hurtle here represent 刀剑 well. At the meanwhile，whirling cycle and seasons’ round express 一年三百六十日 vividly. Meanwhile，Hawkes used swords of frost to express 风刀霜剑 in Chinese. Although he did not translate the tough wind，he translated the swords of frost well. It reveals again that the vocabulary Hawkes used is more suitable to western people.

3.2.5 From the Styles

Then，a comparative study on the styles will be given through the study on the translation of sentences. The translation of Lin Yutang is not completely consistent with the original text word by word while the translation of Hawkes is more faithful to the original text when comparing with the translation of Lin Yutang. Hawkes translated almost each single word specifically. However，the translation of Lin Yutang gives a deep explanation of not only the poem but also the book. What is the most important is that the translation of Lin Yutang is elegant and gorgeous with beautiful decorations. For example：

桃李明年能再发

When next they bloom in their new-made spring dress

明媚鲜妍能几时

How but a while ago these flowers did smile

In the examples，the personification such as in their new-made spring dress and smile both highlight the translation. However，when it comes to the translation of Hawkes，things are different. For example：

独倚花锄偷洒泪

The solitary Maid sheds many a tear

一朝春尽红颜老

One day，when spring has gone and youth has fled

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