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Chapter 1 Introduction

This thesis is about a comparative study of Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya and three western

translation theories. The study was based primarily on the review of existing literature on

Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya and the three western translation theories. This first chapter of the

dissertation presents the background of the study, specifies the problem of the study,

describes its significance, and presents an overview of the methodology used. The

chapter concludes by providing an outline of the thesis structure.

1. Background of the study

Yan Fu (1853-1921) is one of the outstanding ideologists and translators in the history of

recent China. In 1898 his translated version of “Evolution and Ethics” by Thomas Henry

Huxley was first published in China. It was the first in its type to introduce Western

ideas and knowledge to China (Shen 2000: 1). In the preface to his translation of the

book he declared that “there are three things hard to achieve in translation: Xin

(faithfulness), Da (comprehensibility), Ya (conformability).” Since Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya

was introduced, it has been in a dominant position in the field of translation in China for

over a century and become a focal point of many discussions (Shen 2000: 209).

In the last decade or so, following the deepening of the reform and opening up of China,

inter-cultural exchange is increasing steadily; as a result, translation is becoming more

important in China. Translation theories as part of the translation studies have received

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more attention than ever before as they are supposed to provide guidance to the practice

of translation. In order to promote and advance the course of translation in China,

different institutions have directly introduced or translated series of western works on

translation studies in recent years. This provided Chinese scholars and translators with

new perspectives on approaches to both translation studies and translation practice.

Under this situation the debate on Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya was resumed. This time it is

against western translation theories, such as Nida’s formal and dynamic equivalence,

Newmark’s semantic and communicative translations and Vermeer’s skopos theory.

Questions raised include: Is Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya still relevant to today’s translation

practice? Are western translation theories better than Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya? How can

translation theories be better applied to the translation practice?

In order to answer these questions the study is going to examine the questions from the

perspective of translation practice. In this study translation practice is restricted to

document translation only, unless indicated otherwise, for translation is such a broad

notion which can be understood in many different ways. For example, one may talk of

translation as a process or a product, and identify such sub-types as literary translation,

technical translation. In this study the document translation refers to “the translation of

various kinds of documents which are largely based on factual information, such as

brochures and newsletters of various organizations, government policy papers and reports,

legal documents, business correspondence, public notices, information sheet, operating

manuals and instructions” (Ko 2005: 49). Furthermore, Ko indicated that “in document

translation, translators are required to maintain a high level of accuracy while also

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maintaining the natural flow of expression in the target language”. A basic principle to

be followed in document translation is that everything that carries meaning in the source

language must be conveyed without significant distortion, unjustified addition or

omission; at the same time the expression in the target language must be natural and

idiomatic. Furthermore, other important elements such as style and register should be

preserved if possible (Ko 2005: 49).

2. Thesis statement

In this study I will argue that both Ya Fu’s Xin Da Ya and the three western translation

theories are all relevant to document translation and have contributed to the development

of translation theories in general. They are complimenting each other rather than

contradicting each other. However, no one theory can be universal as one theory often

approaches translation from a particular perspective and has its own limitation. In

practice, translators should distinguish individual situation and apply relevant theories

properly to achieve the best possible result.

3. Rational and objectives

Based on the above background information, the current study aims to examine Ya Fu’s

Xin Da Ya, as well as Nida’s, Newmark’s and Vermeer’s theories from the perspective of

document translation and find out each theory’s strength and weakness. Moreover, this

study also aims to find out if there are any similarities between Ya Fu’s Xin Da Ya and

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the three western translation theories, as well as how all these translation theories can be

better applied to the practice of document translation.

Although, there are studies which have examined Ya Fu’s Xin Da Ya against some

western translation theories, such as Zhong Xi Yi Xue Pi Ping (Criticism on Chinese and

Western Translation Theories, Zhang 2004）, Mian Xiang Er Shi Yi Shi Ji De Yi Xue

Yan Jiu (Translation Studies in the 21st Century, Zhang & Xu: 2002), Fan Yi Xin Lu（A

Series of Translation Studies in China, Yang & Liu: 1994), most of them are from the

perspective of translation studies, and for the sake of studying the theory only. Instead,

this study will attempt to examine Ya Fu’s Xin Da Ya and the three western translation

theories in detail, and try to get a better understanding of these theories from translators’

point of view, therefore to help translators to better apply these theories in their practice.

The reason why only Nida’s, Newmark’s and Vermeer’s theories were chosen is that they

represent different approaches towards translation.

Apart from the above reason, other professional significance of the study include: firstly,

Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya, as a fundamental Chinese translation theory (Chan 2004), has been

in a dominant position in the translation field in China for more than a century. A

comparative study of Xin Da Ya and the three western translation theories would provide

new perspective to evaluate it more comprehensively, therefore to apply it to the

translation practice more appropriately. Secondly, translation theory is an area of

concern of translation studies. Any meaningful findings from this study would contribute

to the development of the discipline. Thirdly, inherited in the relationship between

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translation theory and translation practice, any meaningful results from this study would

have implications on translation practice, therefore would be of value to translators.

4. Overview of methodology

This study will examine in detail literature both on Chinese translation theories and

western translation theories. The research is to be carried out in stages. First of all, it

will involve literature review about the selected translation theories, namely, Yan Fu’s

Xin Da Ya, Nida’s formal and dynamic equivalence, Newmark’s semantic and

communicative translations and Vermeer’s skopos theory. It will examine the primary

source where a particular theory was originally introduced, to get an overview of the

background information about a particular theory. This will help to understand why a

particular theory was introduced, and under which situation or in what context it was

introduced. In return, it will help to avoid studying a particular theory in isolation,

therefore to help better understand a particular theory and its possible implications to

document translation. Next, when it comes to examine the existing views about the

selected translation theories, the study will also try to examine the original source if

possible where a particular view about a particular theory was voiced. It will examine

views both for and against a particular theory in order to present an objective picture

about a particular theory and its implication to document translation. Finally, the study

will compare Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya with Nida’s, Newmark’s and Vermeer’s theories in the

framework of Holmes’ map of translation studies, and find out how they can be

integrated and better applied to the document translation.

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5. Outline of the thesis structure

This thesis will be arranged into five chapters. Chapter one will provide general

information about the current study. This includes thesis statement, research objectives,

rational for the choice of topic and research methods.

In chapter two, the study will examine Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya and the existing views about

it, then discuss the possible implications it might have on document translation.

In chapter three, the study will examine first Nida’s formal and dynamic equivalence,

Newmark’s semantic and communicative translations and Vermeer’s skopos theory, and

then existing opinions about these three theories, finally discuss the possible implications

they might have on document translation respectively.

In chapter four, the study will compare Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya with Nida’s, Newmark’s and

Vermeer’s theories in the framework of Holmes’ map of translation studies and find out

if there are any similarities and differences between Xin Da Ya and the three western

translation theories, and how they can be integrated into the translation process and

applied to the document translation through a case study.

In chapter five, the final chapter, the study will summarize what have been studied in this

project and draw a conclusion.

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Chapter 2 Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya

There are different interpretations or understanding about Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya, probably

because it was written in classical Chinese when it was first introduced by Yan Fu in his

preface to the translation of Tianyanlun (Evolution and Ethics) in 1898. Moreover, it was

summarized in only three Chinese characters from which one can derive different

meanings even within the context it was proposed. As a consequence, there are different

English versions of Xin Da Ya as well. However, determining which interpretation of

Xin Da Ya or which English version of Xin Da Ya is the most appropriate is not within

the scope of this study. The current study is based primarily on Shen’s modern Chinese

version (Yan in Shen 2000: 35-37) and Hsu’s English version (Yan in Chan 2004: 69-71)

of Yan Fu’s preface to the translation of Tianyanlun (Evolution and Ethics). In this study,

Xin means “faithfulness”, Da means “comprehensibility” and Ya means “conformability”.

This chapter will study the essence of Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya first, and then examine the

existing opinions about Xin Da Ya; finally it will discuss the possible implications that

Xin Da Ya might have on the document translation.

1. Essence of Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya

Based on his experience on the translation of western scientific works from English to

Chinese in the late nineteenth century, Yan Fu proposed Xin Da Ya in his preface to the

translation of Tianyanlun (Evolution and Ethics) in 1898. Yan Fu declared that

“translation involves three requirements difficult to fulfill: Xin (faithfulness), Da

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(comprehensibility) and Ya (conformability). Faithfulness is difficult enough to attain

but a translation that is faithful but not comprehensible is no translation at all.

Comprehensibility is therefore of prime importance (Yan in Chan 2004: 69).” Since

then Xin Da Ya has been advocated as the translation criteria or standard in the

translation field in China. Based on Shen’s modern Chinese version (Yan in Shen 2000:

35-37) and Hsu’s English version (Yan in Chan 2004: 69-71) of Yan Fu’s preface to

Tianyanlun (Evolution and Ethics), as well as Shen’s study (2000: 35-40), the essence of

Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya can be summarized as follow:

• Translation should fulfill three requirements which are Xin (faithfulness), Da

(comprehensibility), Ya (conformability).

• Among the three criteria Xin (faithfulness) is the most important. It means

that the target text should be faithful to the source text.

• Da (comprehensibility) means that the target text should be coherent and can

be fully understood. The purpose of being comprehensible is to achieve Xin

(faithfulness) as if a translation which is not comprehensible would not be a

translation at all.

• Ya (conformability) means that the target text should conform to the target

language norms. Conforming to the target language norms is to achieve Da

(comprehensibility) as well as to meet the needs of intended readers.

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• In order to achieve Xin (faithfulness), Da (comprehensibility), Ya

(conformability), sometimes it is necessary to reorganize the order of words

and sentences of the source text, the sentence structure can be adjusted as well,

on the condition that the idea of the source text is not to be deviated.

• With regard to the translation of new terms in English, a translator can only

use his/her own judgment to coin a term in Chinese according to the sense.

2. Existing opinions about Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya

Xin Da Ya, as one of the Chinese translation theories (Chan 2004), has caused three

rounds of discussion and debate in the field of culture and translation. The first was in

1920s and 1930s, the second round occurred in 1950s, and the third round started in

1980s and has continued to present (Shen 2000: 1). These three periods are times when

translation activity is flourishing as a result of China trying to introduce and absorb

foreign thoughts, culture, and technologies. Consequently, the increasing of translation

activity demands for the guidance of translation theories.

In his study of Xin Da Ya, Shen used quantitative method to analyze existing opinions

about Xin Da Ya. He listed more than one hundred of extracts about Xin Da Ya dated

from 1920s through to 1990s. Among them there are fifty eight which agree with or

support Xin Da Ya, twenty seven which agree with Xin Da Ya in principle but have some

conservation, only twenty four which against Xin Da Ya (Shen 2000: vii). The following

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are some extracts selected from Shen’s study which was published in 2000 and translated

by myself.

(1) Opinions which support Xin Da Ya

• Yan Fu’s Xin is to express the meaning of the source text in a faithful translation;

Da means the target text should be intelligible and comprehensible, without

awkwardness and ambiguity; Ya means the target text should conform to the

target language and be aesthetic; the target text not only transfers the meaning of

the source text, but also convey the beauty of the source text, sometimes it can

surpass the source text on the beauty of the language. However, not everyone can

achieve Xin Da Ya, besides not every translation can meet these three criteria.

But the minimum requirement a translation should meet is Xin (Li, cited in Shen

2000: 58).

• Xin Da Ya has long before become traditional Chinese translation criteria, even

today we should not give it up. In a lay term, Xin is to be faithful to the content

of the original text, Da requires the translation to be fluent, and Ya means the

translation is to be elegant. These cover roughly three areas which are content,

language and style. This orderly listed criterion of Xin Da Ya is still applicable

today in analyzing a translation in general (Bian et al. cited in Shen 2000: 61).

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• Xin Da Ya is a standard which can be used for translation evaluation. Xin means

faithful to the original text in meaning, fact, tone and style; Da means the reader

of the target text can read and understand the translation correctly without too

much thinking; Ya means the language used is fluent, precise, vivid and rich in

vocabulary. Xin Da Ya indicates the two sides of a problem, is a unity of conflict.

Xin talks about the relationship between the target text and the source text; Da Ya

talk about the relationship between the target text and readers of the target text.

Being responsible to the source text is consistent with being responsible to readers,

the relationship between the two is not one dictates the other. We advocate that

translators should try to take all these three criteria into consideration (Foreign

Language Press, cited in Shen 2000: 61).

• The strength of Xin Da Ya is that it only provides translators a very general

principle. It is not a model, but only a macro requirement for translators. This is

based on the characteristics of Chinese language. With regard to translation

between English and Chinese, Xin Da Ya is still considered as a good standard

(Lin, cited in Shen 2000: 71).

(2) Opinions which are against Xin Da Ya

• In the past many translators often discuss about one translation principle that is

Xin Da Ya, but how to achieve these three criteria and what are the relationship

between these three has never been agreed upon. I believe that Xin Da Ya as a

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very abstract principle will never be able to solve the problem. If we take the

problem (translation and writing which is more important) to the ideological level,

that is to integrate it with politics, and translators also follow this direction in their

work, then the problem of whether a translation fulfils Xin Da Ya or literal

translation verse meaning based translation will be solved (Jin, cited in Shen 2000:

77)

• Yan Fu’s proposition is incomplete and non scientific, at most it requires

translators to translate the general meaning of the original work with beautiful

Chinese. The fundamental mistake of Yan Fu and his followers made is not

dividing the translation criteria into three, but not understanding the difference

between translating and writing at all. Invariable, absolute, sacrosanct standard

for measuring the accuracy of translation does not exist and is not possible. The

standard for measuring the accuracy of translation depends on the purpose of

translation, nature of the original text and readers of the target text. Furthermore,

the purpose of translation and readers of target text, in most cases are determined

by the nature of the original text (Dian, cited in Shen 2000: 87).

• Yan Fu’s idea can be summarized as follow: Xin is the basic criterion for

translation, Da is the necessary complement to Xin, through Da the value of Xin

is to be realized, and Ya is a means to achieve Da. Early in 1920s and 1930s, the

semantic meaning of Ya has changed and become the synonym of literary polish.

From the theoretical perspective, Xin Da Ya can not coexist logically. Xin

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indicates that the target text is restricted by the source text, however Da and Ya

indicate that the target text do not have to be restricted by the source text. From

the perspective of practice, because the meaning of Xin has been reduced,

therefore, trying to achieve Da and Ya in addition to Xin inevitably result in the

target text deviating from the source text to certain degree, consequently cause the

target text become inaccurate. To measure the quality of literary translation there

is only one standard which is Xin. Xin this word is very rich in meaning, it also

includes the meaning of Da and Ya. Xin Da Ya is a theoretically confusing,

practically detrimental principle, the translation field is suggested to have a

serious discussion about it. (Chang, cited in Shen 2000: 89)

3. Possible implications on document translation

So far in this chapter the study has studied the essence of Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya and

examined existing views about it. It has been noticed that most discussions on Xin Da

Ya are restricted to comments only, hardly any discussions touch upon its implications on

document translation. This study will attempt to approach Xin Da Ya from translation

practitioners’ perspective and find out its possible implications on translation practice.

As stated in the first chapter, document translation refers to the translation of various

kinds of documents which are largely based on factual information, such as business

correspondence, legal documents, operating menu and instructions. A basic principle in

document translation is that everything that carries meaning in the source language must

be translated without significant distortion, unjustified addition or omission. Based on

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the definition and requirement of document translation, Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya as a general

translation principle can provide guidance at macro level to translation practitioners in

document translation.

First of all, Xin focuses on the source text and requires the target text to be faithful to the

source text. This indicates that the sources text is the basis of translation and the target

text is the product of translation. In document translation, translators need to bear in

mind that all the factual information in the source text needs to be translated faithfully.

Secondly, Da and Ya focus on the target text and readers of the target text. In document

translation translators need to make sure that the target text is comprehensible and

conforms to the target language norms, so the readers of the target text can fully

understand the intended message, and the communicative purpose of translation can be

achieved. Thirdly, the relationship between Xin Da Ya is dialectical and unified. The

purpose of translation is communication, therefore Xin is fundamental as it tries to

preserve what is to be communicated. In addition to Xin, Da and Ya are also essential to

achieve the purpose of translation, for only the target text is comprehensible and

conforms to the target language norms, the readers of the target text can fully understand

it. Without any one of the three (Xin Da Ya), the communicative purpose of translation

would not be fulfilled. Therefore, in document translation, translators need to pay

attention to both Xin and Da Ya.

In addition to Xin Da Ya, Yan Fu also mentioned some techniques either explicitly or

implicitly which are helpful to translators as well. Such as, the word order and sentence

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structure can be adjusted to express the original meaning, in other words, to achieve the

faithfulness to the target text; choosing the appropriate form of language according to the

text type and the needs of intended readers; coining a new term in the target language

according to its meaning. However, there are other factors of translation not covered by

Xin Da Ya, such as the author’s intention, the text categories, the function of the target

text and etc, this shows that Xin Da Ya has its limitation.

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Chapter 3 Three Western Translation Theories

In this chapter the study will examine three western translation theories, namely Nida’s

formal and dynamic equivalence, Newmark’s semantic and communicative translations

and Vermeer’s skopos theory, following the layout of the previous chapter. It will study

first the essence of each theory, and then examine the existing opinions about each theory,

finally, discuss the implications that each theory might have on document translation.

1. Nida’s principles of correspondence

Based on his own practical work on the Bible translation, Eugene Nida put forward the

notion of “formal equivalence and dynamic equivalence” in his book “Toward a Science

of Translating” published in 1964.

(1) Essence of Nida’s principles of correspondence

The essence of Nida’s principles of correspondence can be summarized in his own words

as following:

• Since no two languages are identical, either in the meanings given to

corresponding symbols or in the ways in which such symbols are arranged in

phrases and sentences, it stands to reason that there can be no absolute

correspondence between languages. Hence there can be no fully exact

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translations. The total impact of a translation may be reasonably close to the

original, but there can be no identity in detail (Nida 1964: 156).

• Differences in translations can generally be accounted for by three basic factors in

translating: (1) the nature of the message, (2) the purpose or purposes of the

author and, by proxy, of the translator, and (3) the type of audience (Nida 1964:

156). However, an adequate translation should meet four basic requirements: (1)

making sense, (2) conveying the spirit and manner of the original, (3) having a

natural and easy form of expression, (4) producing a similar response (Nida 1964:

164).

• In terms of “equivalence”, there are two types of translation. One is formal

equivalence oriented translation, and another is dynamic equivalence oriented

translation (Nida 1964: 159). Between the two poles of translating (i.e. between

strict formal equivalence and complete dynamic equivalence) there are a number

of intervening grades, representing various acceptable standards of literary

translating (Nida 1964: 160).

• Formal equivalence focuses attention on the message itself, in both form and

content. Viewed from this formal orientation, one is concerned that the message

in the receptor language should match as closely as possible the different elements

in the source language. This means, for example, that the message in the receptor

culture is constantly compared with the message in the source culture to

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determine standards of accuracy and correctness (Nida 1964: 159). Formal

equivalence translation is basically source oriented; that is, it is designed to reveal

as much as possible of the form and content of the original message (Nida 1964:

165).

• Dynamic equivalence is based upon “the principle of equivalent effect”. In such a

translation one is not so concerned with matching the receptor-language message

with the source-language message, but with the dynamic relationship, that the

relationship between receptor and message should be substantially the same as

that which existed between the original receptors and the message (Nida 1964:

159). Dynamic equivalence oriented translations focus on not so much the source

message, but the receptor response (Nida 1964: 166).

(2) Existing opinions about Nida’s dynamic equivalence

Since the introduction of the concept of “formal equivalence and dynamic equivalence”,

it has exerted great influence on both translation practice and translation studies. Some

Chinese scholars, such as Jin, believe that one of Nida’s major contributions is the

introduction of “dynamic equivalence”. This concept has provided an answer to the

centuries of circular debates around literal and free translation. On the one hand, literal

translation stresses faithfulness, and focuses on the formal equivalence of languages

while the effect on the target text receiver is neglected. On the other hand, free

translation stresses the beauty of the target text and focuses on the effect that the target

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text created on its receivers while the equivalence is neglected. However, dynamic

equivalence focuses on the equivalent response between the source text receivers and the

target text receivers, and has solved this seemingly unsolvable problem (Jin 1994: 346,

translated by myself).

Another Chinese scholar Zhang pointed out that there are two presumptions attached to

Nida’s principle of “dynamic equivalence”. The first condition is “that the translator has

purposes generally similar to, or at least compatible with, those of the original author.”

The second one is that the aim of the translation is to “reproduce the message”. Only

under these two preconditions the “dynamic equivalence” is achievable and desirable

(Zhang 2004: 74-75, translated by myself).

Some western translation scholars, like Peter Newmark, also questioned the principle of

“equivalent effect”. He believes that the “equivalent effect” is the desirable result, rather

than the aim of any translation, because it is unlikely to be achieved in two cases: (a) if

the purpose of the source text is to affect and the target text is to inform or vice verse; (b)

if there is a pronounced cultural gap between the source text and the target text

(Newmark 1988: 48).

(3) Possible implications on document translation

In examining Nida’s approach to translation and reviewing the existing opinions about

“formal and dynamic equivalence”, it has been noticed that Nida’s formal equivalence

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and dynamic equivalence represent two basic types of translation. Formal equivalence

oriented translation focuses on the source text and its author while dynamic equivalence

oriented translation focuses on the target text and its reader. Nida did not claim one is

better than the other, instead he stated that between the two poles of translating (i.e. strict

formal equivalence and complete dynamic equivalence) there were a number of

intervening grades, representing various acceptable standards of literary translating

(1964: 160). He even indicated further that some types of strictly formal equivalence

oriented translations are of great value. For example, translations of foreign language

texts prepared especially for linguists rarely attempt anything but close formal

equivalence renderings. In such translations the wording is usually quite literal and even

the segments are often numbered so that the corresponding units may be readily

compared (1964: 166). Therefore, according to Nida, both formal equivalence oriented

and dynamic equivalence oriented translations are valid depending on the individual

situation, but in Bible translation, dynamic equivalence should be sought after.

With regard to the document translation, Nida’s formal equivalence and dynamic

equivalence can be both applied at operational level. On the one hand, the document

translation requires the target text to maintain a high level of accuracy comparing with

the source text, from this perspective the translation is to be source text oriented, and

Nida’s formal equivalence can come to play. On the other hand, the document translation

requires the target text to maintain the natural flow of expression in the target language as

well, from this point of view, the translation needs to be reader oriented, and Nida’s

dynamic equivalence can be applied. However, as the main focus of the document

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translation is to convey the factual information from one language to another, and there is

less cultural interference from each other, therefore, Nida’s formal equivalence is

probably more applicable than the dynamic equivalence to certain extent in the practice

of document translation.

Another possible implication that Nida’s dynamic equivalence might have on document

translation is that one particular source text might have different versions of target text

depending upon the intended readers group, it is possible that one version for general

public group, and another version for scholars in a particular field. When translators

carry out translation with readers in mind, the target text would be more close to the

target language and culture and can be more easily understood by the intended readers,

therefore is able to fulfill the purpose of cross language and cross culture communication.

However, Nida’s dynamic equivalence has its own limitation as it has two presumptions

attached to it. The first is “that the translator has purposes generally similar to, or at least

compatible with, those of the original author.” The second is that the aim of the

translation is to “reproduce the message”. As Zhang (2004: 74-75) pointed out that only

under these two preconditions the “dynamic equivalence” is achievable and desirable.

With regard to the document translation in the real world it is not always the case. For

example, the translation of Hukobu (the Household Registration Booklet) from Chinese

to English for proving of date of birth would have different purpose from the original

Chinese document; therefore there would be no dynamic equivalence achievable.

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2. Newmark’s Text Categories and Translation Methods

Based on his own experience on translators training, Peter Newmark proposed two

translation methods for three main types of texts in his books of “Approaches to

Translation (1981)” and “A Textbook of Translation (1988)”. The three main types of

texts are expressive texts, informative texts and vocative texts. The two translation

methods are semantic translation and communicative translation; namely semantic

translation for expressive texts, communicative translation for informative and vocative

texts.

(1) Essence of Newmark’s semantic and communicative translations

The essence of Newmark’s semantic and communicative translations can be summarized

as the following:

• Communicative translation attempts to produce on its readers an effect as close as

possible to that obtained on the readers of the original. Semantic translation

attempts to render, as closely as the semantic and syntactic structures of the

second language allow, the exact contextual meaning of the original. (1981: 22,

39, 1988: 46, 47).

• Only semantic and communicative translations fulfill the two main aims of

translation, which are first accuracy, and second economy. In general, a semantic

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translation is written at the author’s linguistic level, a communicative at the

readers’. Semantic translation is used for ‘expressive’ texts, communicative for

‘informative’ and ‘vocative’ texts (1988: 47).

• Generally, a communicative translation is likely to be smoother, simpler, clearer,

more direct, more conventional, conforming to particular register of language,

tending to under translate, i.e., to use more generic, hold-all terms in difficult

passages (1981: 39, 1988: 47).

• A semantic translation tends to be more complex, more awkward, more detailed,

more concentrated, and pursues the thought-processes rather that the intention of

the transmitter. It tends to over translate, to be more specific than the original, to

include more meanings in its search for one nuance of meaning (1981: 39, 1988:

47).

• There is no one communicative nor one semantic method of translating a text –

there are in fact widely overlapping bands of methods. A translation can be more,

or less, semantic – more or less communicative – even a particular section or

sentence can be treated more communicatively or less semantically (1981: 40).

• In communicative translation, the translator has the right to correct or improve the

original. All such corrections and improvements are usually inadmissible in

semantic translation (1988: 47).

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• However, in communicative as in semantic translation, provided that equivalent

effect is secured, the literal word-for-word translation is not only the best; it is the

only valid method of translation (1981: 39)

(2) Existing opinions about Newmark’s approach

Newmark’s approach to translation is based on the observation of different types of texts;

He classified texts into three main categories according to the main functions of language,

and attempted to match two translation methods with the three types of texts. It seems to

have a wider application to translation practice. However, there are some scholars who

believe that Newmark’s text categories and corresponding translation methods has its

own shortcomings.

One of the Chinese scholars Zhang believes that classifying texts into different categories

is very difficult, as the relationship between different language functions is not clear cut,

instead is interwoven. For example, legal statements are classified as expressive texts by

Newmark. One of the main functions of legal statements is to indicate what types of

behavior is intolerable and could result in punishment. From this perspective, legal

statements also have a strong expressive function; however, authorities probably wish

that the public could abide the law and there would be no need to use the punishment to

maintain law and order. From this perspective, legal statements have a strong vocative

function as well (Zhang 2004: 98).

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Zhang also believes that the text category is not fixed, instead is changeable. For

example, Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’ Travels was originally written as a serious

allegorical fiction, but in the contemporary society today, whether in the United Kingdom

or other countries, it has lost its allegorical function due to the change of cultural context,

ordinary readers consider it as an entertaining/amusing fiction (ibid: 100).

Furthermore, Zhang believes that translation method is not to be determined by the text

category only. Other factors need to be considered as well, such as the types of readers

and the function of the target text. If there is a big difference between the source culture

and the target culture, and the readers are not highly motivated to understand the source

text, then no matter how authoritative the source text is, if only semantic translation

method is used, the target text is doomed to fail. Moreover, if the function of the target

text differs from the source text, a flexible translation method is to be adopted. For

example, the translation of a piece of news. If the target text is to be used as news, then

the errors in the original text is to be corrected; but if it is to be used as studying material

or legal evidence, then the meaning of the original should be preserved (ibid: 104-105).

(3) Possible implications on document translation

Newmark’s text categories and corresponding translation methods can provide translation

practitioners with a new way in determining the translation method in their practice.

However, this new approach also has its limitation, because he only proposed two

26

translation methods for the translation of three categories of texts, namely semantic

translation for expressive texts, communicative translation for informative and vocative

texts (Newmark 1988: 47). It might be helpful in translators training when there is no

other information provided, and the original text is the only material that a translator have

been given. Under this circumstance, a translator can only rely on the text type to decide

what translation method to adopt. However, in reality there are many other factors need

to be considered in determining the appropriate translation method for a particular text,

such as the intention of the original writer, the purpose of the translation, and the needs of

the prospective readers.

With regard to document translation, the text type concerned in document translation

probably fits in Newmark’s category of informative texts. According to Newmark (1988:

40), the format of an informative text can be: a textbook, a technical report, a scientific

paper, an article in a newspaper, minutes or agenda of a meeting. Therefore, Newmark’s

communicative translation method is probably more applicable to document translation

than his semantic translation. However, as indicated by Newmark himself, few texts are

purely expressive, informative or vocative, most include three functions, with an

emphasis on one of the three (1988: 42). Therefore, a translation can be more or less

semantic – more or less communicative – even a particular section or sentence can be

treated more communicatively or less semantically (Newmark 1981: 40). In document

translation translators also need to apply semantic and communicative translation flexibly

as there is no absolute match between text type and translation method.

27

Furthermore, Newmark believes that “in communicative as in semantic translation,

provided that equivalent effect is secured, the literal word-for-word translation is not only

the best; it is the only valid method of translation” (1981: 39). As indicated by Newmark

himself the two main aims of a translation are accuracy and economy (1988: 47). In

practice, translators often try to produce maximum efficiency with minimum effort

(Toury 1995 cited in Monday 2001: 45). If the literal translation can achieve the purpose

of a translation and meet all the requirements of a client, then it ought to be the best

translation for that particular text. Therefore, in practice translators might try first the

literal translation, then the free translation as well as many other translation methods

between the two poles if necessary.

In addition, Newmark believes that in communicative translation if the original writing is

poor, the translator has the right to improve or correct it (1981: 6, 42). However, in

practice it is not likely to happen unless the client who commissioned the translation task

requests the translator to do so. The reason for this is that improving or correcting the

original text contradicts to the criterion of accuracy. According to the AUSIT Code of

Ethics, which is widely accepted by both the interpreting and translation practitioners and

the service providers in Australia, “interpreters and translators shall not alter, make

additions to, or omit anything from their assigned work”

(http://www.ausit.org/eng/showpage.php3?id=650, retrieved 18 October, 2006). At the

end of the day, in the real world the translation is to be faithful to the original is the

general expectation of clients.

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3. Vermeer’s skopos theory

The skopos theory is an approach to translation which was introduced by Hans Vermeer

in the late 1970s. Translation is viewed as a specific form of human action. Like any

other human action, translation has a purpose. The word skopos is used as a technical

term for the aim or purpose of a translation. The aim or purpose of a translation

determines the translation methods and strategies to be employed to produce a

functionally adequate result - target text.

(1) Essence of Vermeer’s skopos theory

The essence of Vermeer’s skopos theory can be summarized as the following:

• Translation is a particular type of translational action which is based on a source

text. Any action has an aim, a purpose. The word skopos is a technical term for

the aim or purpose of a translation. Furthermore, an action leads to a result,

translation leads to a translantum, the target text (Vermeer1989: 227).

• The aim of any translational action, and the mode in which it is to be realized, are

negotiated with the client who commissions the action. A precise specification of

aim and mode is essential for the translator to fulfill his task successfully (ibid:

227).

29

• A commission comprises or should comprise as much detailed information as

possible on: (1) the goal, i.e. a specification of the aim of the commission; (2) the

conditions under which the intended goal should be attained (naturally including

practical matters such as deadline and fee) (ibid: 235).

• The source text is a constituent of the commission. What role a source text plays

in a translational action is decided by the translator based on the purpose, the

skopos of the translation in a given situation (ibid: 228).

• The translator is “the” expert in translational action. He/she is responsible for the

performance of the commissioned task, for the final translatum, the target text

(ibid: 228).

• The notion of skopos can be applied in three ways, and thus have three senses. It

may refer to: (a) the goal of the translation process; (b) the function of the

translation result (target text); (c) the intention of the translation mode. (ibid: 230)

• The skopos theory merely states that the translator should be aware that some

goals exist, and that any given goal is only one among many possible ones. The

important point is that a given source text does not have one correct or best

translation only (ibid: 234).

(2) Existing opinions about Vermeer’s skopos theory

30

With regard to the significance of the skopos theory, Vermeer himself (1989: 237) has

pointed out that skopos theory has made contributions in the following area: (1) the

theory makes explicit and conscious something that is too often denied; (2) the skopos,

which is (or should be) defined in the commission, expands the possibilities of translation,

increase the range of possible translation strategies, and releases the translator from the

corset of an enforced – hence often meaningless – literalness; (3) it incorporates and

enlarges the accountability of the translator, in that his translation must function in such a

way that the given goal is attained.

With regard to criticisms on the skopos theory, Vermeer himself (1989: 230-234) and

Christiane Nord (Nord 1997: 109-122) have provided some discussions. Firstly, the

critics claim that not all actions have an aim; therefore not all translations have a purpose,

with reference mainly to the literary texts in general or at least some literary texts.

Vermeer stated that the expression of actions “having” an aim is imprecise. Rather it

would be more accurate to speak of an aim being “attributed” to an action, an author

“believing” that he is writing to a given purpose, a reader similarly “believing” that an

author has so written. Therefore, this criticism can be answered in terms of the definition

of an action: if no aim can be attributed to an action, it can no longer be regarded as

action. In terms of translation proper as one variety of translational action, the notion of

skopos can in fact be applied in three ways and thus have three senses. It may refer to:

(a) the goal of the translation process; (b) the function of the target text; (c) the intention

31

of the translation mode. If one of the three could be attributed to a given translation, then

that translation could be regarded as having a purpose (Vermeer 1989: 230).

Secondly, the critics claim that the skopos would restrict the translation possibilities, and

thus limit the range of interpretation of target text in comparison to that of the source text.

With regard to this criticism, Vermeer indicated that a given skopos may indeed rule out

certain interpretations because they are not part of the translation goal; but one possible

goal (skopos) would certainly be precisely to preserve the breadth of interpretation of the

source text. How far such a skopos is in fact realizable is not the point here (ibid: 232).

Moreover, the critics claim that the skopos theory does not respect the source text. This

is probably due to Vermeer’s claim to have “dethroned” the source text. However,

dethroning simply means that the source text, or more precisely, its linguistic and stylistic

features, is no longer regarded as the one and only yardstick for a translation (Nord 1997:

119-120). Instead, the purpose of a translation is the decisive factor in translation process.

(3) Possible implication on document translation

The skopos theory stresses that every translation has an aim or a purpose which is

assigned by the translation commission. The aim or purpose of a translation determines

the translation methods or strategies to be employed to produce a functionally adequate

translation – target text. This approach is significant to translation practitioners at macro

decision making level. First of all, the skopos can help translators to determine the

32

translation methods and strategies for a given translation task, i.e. whether the source text

is to be “translated”, “paraphrased” or even completed “re-edited”. For example, the

translation of a Chinese marriage certificate into English for immigration purpose in

Australia. The widely accepted translation is “extract translation”. Obviously as

indicated by the word “extract, this type of translation does not translate every word in

the original document. Instead, it only translates the main information required by the

immigration authority, namely the personal details of the two parties, the date and place

of the marriage, the issuing authority and issuing date. The remaining information on the

original document can be left out without affecting the fulfillment of the purpose. This

type of translation is still faithful to the original document in a sense that the selected

information has been translated faithfully. There are other Chinese documents that are

translated in this way as well in Australia, such as birth certificate, driver’s license,

immunization record and injection authorization sheet.

Secondly, the skopos theory makes it clear that for a given source text it could have more

than one best possible translation depending on the aim of the translation. This is

demonstrated by Vermeer’s own example (1989: 237). The translation of a will with

some ambiguity for a lawsuit and the translation of the same will in the context of a novel.

Under the first situation, the skopos would be to translate the document faithfully, so that

the judge would understand the ambiguity. As a result, the translator might provide a

note or comment to explain the possible interpretations with regard to the ambiguity.

However, when the same will happens as a minor incident in a novel, the translator

would not wish to interrupt the flow of the narrative with an explanatory comment, but

33

rather try to find a target language solution with a similar kind of effect, because the

skopos in the second context is differ from that of the first.

Furthermore, the skopos theory provides a new concept about the status of the source text

and assigns translators more responsibility in the production of the target text. According

to the skopos theory, the source text is only a constituent of the translation commission,

and the translator is the expert in translational action. It is up to the translator to decide

what role a source text is to play in the translational action; the decisive factor is the

purpose, the skopos of a translation in a given situation. Therefore, the status of a source

text is not static, it is a relative concept. It will change when the skopos of the translation

is changed.

Although, the skopos theory is very useful at micro level in the translation process, as

Vermeer himself indicated that the skopos theory could expend the possibilities of

translation, increase the range of possible translation strategies, and release translators

from the corset of enforced and often meaningless literalness. However, it does not touch

the aspect of the actual procedures at operational level. That has been entirely left to the

translator as an expert to decide how to translate a given text. In this respect, it might be

considered as a shortcoming of the skopos theory.

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Chapter 4 An Integrated Approach - a Case Study

In so far the study has examined Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya and the three western translation

theories, namely Nida’ principle of equivalence, Newmark’s semantic and

communicative translations and Vermeer’s skopos theory, as well as possible

implications they might have on document translation. In this chapter the study will

compare the three western translation theories with Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya in the frame

work of Holmes’ map of translation studies and find out if there are any similarities and

differences between them. Furthermore, the study will make use of a case study – the

translation of a driver license from Chinese into English to see how each theory can be

applied at different stages of the translation process.

1. Comparison of Xin Da Ya and the three western translation theories

The mapping of the field of translation studies is an on going activity. James Holmes is

credited with the first attempt to chart the territory of translation studies as a distinct

discipline in his paper “The Name and Nature of Translation Studies” (1972: 180-192).

According to Holmes, translation studies can be divided into two areas which are pure

translation studies and applied translation studies. Translation theory is one of the two

branches within the area of pure translation studies. It is interested in “using the results

of descriptive translation studies, in combination with the information available from

related fields and disciplines, to evolve principles, theories, and models which will serve

to explain and predict what translating and translations are and will be”(Holmes 1972:

35

185). Within the branch of translation theory there are two sub categories: general

translation theory and partial or specific translation theory. A general translation theory

is defined as “a full inclusive theory accommodating so many elements that it can serve

to explain and predict all phenomena falling within the terrain of translating and

translation, to the exclusion of all phenomena falling outside it” (ibid: 186). On the other

hand, the partial or specific translation theory is “partial or specific in their scope, dealing

with only one or a few of the various aspects of translation theory as a whole” (ibid: 186).

Furthermore, the partial translation theory could be further divided into six main kinds:

(1) Medium-restricted translation theories (e.g. theories restricted to human translation as

opposed to machine translation or written translation as opposed to oral translation); (2)

Area-restricted theories (e.g. theories restricted to specific languages or cultures

involved); (3) Rank-restricted theories (e.g. theories dealing with specific linguistic ranks

or levels, i.e. word, sentence or text); (4) Text-type restricted theories (e.g. theories

dealing with the problem of translating of specific types or genres of texts (i.e. theories

on literary translation or Bible translation); (5) Time-restricted theories (e.g. theories

dealing with translating texts from an older period as opposed to contemporary texts); (6)

Problem-restricted theories (e.g. theories restricted to one or more specific problems in

translation, i.e. translation of metaphors or proper names);

From the above description of Holmes map of translation studies, it can be seen that Yan

Fu’s Xin Da Ya and the three western translation theories could fit into different

categories of the translation theory. First of all, it rules out the possibility that any one of

36

the four theories could be called a general translation theory, for none of them would

qualify the criteria of a general translation theory proposed by Holmes. Therefore, it is

probably more appropriate to classify the four translation theories as partial translation

theories as they only deal with only one or a few of the various aspects of translation

theory as a whole.

Secondly, based on the restrictions that each individual translation theory has, it might be

further classified as the following:

(1) Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya could be considered as medium restricted, area restricted and

rank restricted translation theory, as it deals with human translation only, is restricted to

the languages of Chinese and English only, and is concerned with the target text as a

whole at text level.

(2) Nida’s principle of correspondence could be considered as medium restricted, text

type restricted and problem restricted translation theory, as it deals with human

translation only, is restricted to the translation of Bible only, and is concerned with the

nature of equivalence in translation only.

Compared with Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya, on the one hand Nida’s “formal equivalence” is

similar to Xin as they are both source text oriented, stressing the faithfulness of the target

text in both form and content to the source text. On the other hand “dynamic

equivalence” is to certain extend similar to Da and Ya as both are receptor oriented (or

37

reader oriented). This indicates that Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya is far more forward thinking

than the western translation theories as Yan Fu put forwarded the reader-oriented

approach towards translation more than half of a century earlier.

(3) Nemark’s semantic and communicative translations could be considered as medium

restricted, text type restricted and problem restricted theory, as it deals with human

translation only, is restricted to the translation of expressive, informative and vocative

texts, and is concerned with the problem of matching text type with translation method.

Compared with Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya, it can be found that on the one hand, Newmark's

semantic translation is author and source text oriented, and in a similar vein with Yan

Fu’s Xin. On the other hand, communicative translation is target text and reader oriented,

and has the similar effect as Yan Fu’s Da and Ya. However, from a translation

practitioner’s point of view, Newmark’s approach to translation is more concrete and can

provide general guidance at operational level.

(4) Vermeer’s skopos theory could be considered as medium restricted and problem

restricted translation theory, as it deals with human translation only, and is concerned

with the decision making at macro level in the translation process.

Compared with Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya, the skopos theory is a completely different

approach to translation. It focuses on translation as a human action which has an aim or

purpose. The aim or purpose of the translation determines the translation strategies, and

38

ultimately determine the target text to be produced. The skopos theory is neither source

text nor target text oriented, rather it is purpose oriented. Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya focuses on

the end result of a translation, the target text. It requires a target text to be faithful to the

original text, at the same time to be comprehensible to the readers and conform to the

target language norms. According to the skopos theory, the target text is only the

outcome of the translational action; therefore the skopos theory could provide guidance at

a higher level than Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya do. Xin Da Ya could be regarded as one of the

many legitimate goals that a translation aims to achieve. In that sense, it is probably

more useful in the evaluation of the translation.

In summary, both Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya and the three western translation theories are

partial translation theories. Although they approach translation from different

perspective and there are some similarities and differences between Xin Da Ya and the

three western translation theories, they can be integrated to provide guidance to document

translation at different stages of the translation process.

With regard to the translation process, there are different approaches both in China and

the West. Shen (2000: 169) believes that there are three stages in the process of

translating: first, the comprehension and master of the original text; next, the expression

in the target text; last, the improvement of the target text (translated by myself). Nida

indicates that the translation process includes “analysis, transfer, restructuring, and

testing (1969: vii)”. However, the above two approached focus mainly on the actual

procedures employed in translating. In this study, if we incorporate Vermeer’s skopos

39

theory into the translation process, and view translation as a human action, then the

process of translation could be described as the following:

• Firstly, the decision making stage at which the decision is made as to what

translation method to be employed for a given text;

• Secondly, the operational stage at which the actual translating occurs, a given text

is being translated from language A into language B;

• Finally, the evaluation and revision stage at which the final product of the

translation, the target text, is being evaluated and revised if necessary.

The following is a case study which will demonstrate how Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya and the

three western translation theories could be applied at different stages of the translation

process in document translation.

2. An integrated approach - a case study

In this case study, the task is to translate a Chinese driver licence issued in the People’s

Republic of China into English for the purpose of changing a driver licence from

overseas to an Australian driver licence, in this case a Queensland driver licence. With

the permission of clients, one Chinese driver licence and one Queensland driver licence

have been reproduced in this study. However, the personal details have been changed to

protect clients’ privacy. The Chinese driver licence to be translated is as follow:

40

Front of the driver licence

中华人民共和国机动车驾驶证正证 证号 1201164048

姓名 郑秦 男 1968 年 10 月生 单位或住址 广州市中山三路 74 号 603 室 初次领证日期 1991 年 01 月 22 日 准驾车型 C E 有效期 2004 年 10 月 26 日至 2010 年 10 月 26 日 发证机关(章) 广东省广州市公安局交通警察支队

Back of the driver licence

准驾车型代号规定

A: 大型客车和 B B: 大型货车和 C, M. C: 小型汽车（包括方向盘式三轮机动车）和 G. D: 方向把式三轮摩托车和 E, L. E: 二轮摩托车和 F. F: 轻便摩托车． G: 大型拖拉机，四轮农用运输车和 H. H: 小型拖拉机． K: 手扶拖拉机． L: 三轮农用运输车． M: 轮式自行专用机械． N: 无轨电车． P: 有轨电车． Q: 电瓶车． 注：其他车型用汉字填写，不用代号． 除公安交通机关以外，其他单位或个人一律不得扣留此证．

(1) Vermeer’s skopos theory can be applied at the initial decision making stage of the

translation process as it is very useful in determining the translation strategy or methods

to be employed at macro level. The purpose of the translation in this case is to translate a

Chinese driver licence into English in order to change an overseas driver licence to an

Australian (Queensland) driver licence. According to Vermeer, the skopos can be further

41

clarified as the goal of the translation process, the function of the target text and the

intention of the translation mode. In this case, the goal of the translation process is to

achieve the dynamic equivalence on the intended reader – the Australian transport

authority; the function of the translation (target text) is to provide the Australian transport

authority with the factual information which are necessary for the issuing of an

Australian driver licence; the translation mode in which the translation is to be realized

could be Newmark’ communicative translation. Therefore, Nida’s dynamic equivalence

and Newmark’s communicative translation can be applied in the next stage of the

translation process.

(2) At the operational stage of the translation process Nida’s dynamic equivalence and

Newmark’s communicative translation can be applied as they both provide macro

guidance at this stage as well as many practical techniques at micro operational level. In

order to achieve dynamic equivalence in the translation process it is necessary to study an

Australian (Queensland) driver licence and find out what information needs to be

translated from the original Chinese driver licence. The following is an example of an

Australian driver licence issued by Queensland Transport. The information shown on the

licence includes:

Front of the licence

Queensland Transport, Queensland Government

Licence No: 70 192 856

Name: Julie Smith

42

Address: 88 Ulinga Crescent, Parkinson 4115

Date of Birth: 06-06-1976 Sex: F Height: 170 Conditions:

Type: O Class: C

Effective: 21-04-2006 Expiry Date: 26-04-2011

Back of the licence

Class/Conditions of Licence: You must comply with those condition code/s shown on

your licence whilst driving. A description of the relevant class/es of vehicle and

condition/s of issue shown on your licence was provided to you at the time of licence

issue. For further information contact Queensland Transport.

Affix official change of details label/s here.

By comparing the information on the Chinese driver licence with that on the Australian

(Queensland) driver licence, it is found that the Chinese driver licence provides more

information than its Australian counterpart in certain area. As the function of the

translation in this case is to provide the Australian transport authority with the factual

information shown on the Chinese driver licence for the purpose of changing the Chinese

driver licence into an Australian driver licence, it determines that the target text (final

product) does not have to be a full translation, an extract translation could be sufficient as

far as it can provide essential information which meets the requirement of an Australian

driver licence. Basically, it is to translate the equivalent of what is on an Australian

driver licence. Therefore, some of the information on the Chinese original are optional

43

and can be left out in the translation, such as 准驾车型代号规定 (the motor vehicle

category code).

Obviously, there are many other translation methods available under the skopos theory,

from the word-for-word translation to the sense-for-sense translation and any methods

between the two poles. Nida’s formal and dynamic equivalence and Newmark’s

semantic and communicative translations are just two general terms refer to the source

text oriented translation method and the target text oriented translation method, but the

strength of these two approaches is that they both provide detailed procedure to achieve

the desired result of the two translation methods. Therefore, it is helpful to translators at

the operational level.

Following the Vermeer’s skopos, Nida’s dynamic equivalence and Newmark’s

communicative translation, the translation of the Chinese driver licence could look like

the following:

Extract Translation of Driver Licence (interim) Licence Number: 440102681024561 Country of Issue: People’s Republic of China Surname: Zheng Given Name(s): Qin Sex: Male Date of Birth: October 1968 Residential Address: Unit 603, 74 Third Zhongshan Road, Guangzhou Category of vehicle for which licence is issued: Car and Motorbike Valid from: 26 October 2004 Valid until: 26 October 2010

44

The Date when the licence was initially issued: 22 January 1991 Issuing Authority (Seal): The Traffic Control Branch of the Public Security Bureau of

Guangzhou City, Guangdong Province

(3) Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya is useful in the operational stage of the translation process to

certain extend, but is probably more useful at the evaluation and revision stage of the

translation process. After the target text is produced, the translator can apply Xin Da Ya

to the evaluation of the target text. On the one hand, comparing the English translation to

the Chinese original to see if the information selected from the original Chinese driver

licence has been translated faithfully; on the other hand, checking the English translation

to see if it is comprehensible and conform to the English language norms. From the

perspective of Xin Da Ya, the above translation may be modified and the final translation

could look like the following (the underline indicates the changes have been made):

Extract Translation of Driver Licence (final)

Licence Number: 440102681024561 Country of Issue: People’s Republic of China Surname: Zheng Given Name(s): Qin Sex: Male Date of Birth: October 1968 Residential Address: Unit 603, 74 Third Zhongshan Road, Guangzhou Licence Type: Car and Motorbike Valid from: 26 October 2004 Valid until: 26 October 2010 The Initial Issuing Date: 22 January 1991 Issuing Authority (Seal): The Traffic Control Branch of the Guangzhou Police Bureau, Guangdong Province

45

From this case study, it can be found that each translation theory has played a role in the

whole process of translation. Without any one theory the whole process might become

incomplete as no one theory could deal with all the problems which might occur in the

translation process. Only the application of each theory at relevant stage, can a desirable

result be achieved.

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Chapter 5 Conclusion

In this project I have studied Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya and three western translation theories,

namely Nida’s principle of correspondence, Newmark’s text categories and translation

methods, as well as Vermeer’s skopos theory. I also examined the existing views about

each theory and discussed the possible implications that each theory might have on

document translation. In so doing I aimed to: firstly, find out each theory’s strength and

weakness from translators’ perspective; secondly, find out if there are any similarities and

differences between Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya and the three western translation theories;

thirdly, find out how to better apply each translation theory to document translation.

Through the study of each translation theory and the examination of existing opinions

about each theory, the comparison of Xin Da Ya and the three western translation

theories, as well as a case study on the translation of a driver licence from Chinese to

English for the purpose of changing an overseas’ driver licence to an Australian driver

licence, the study has produced the following findings:

1. Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya and the three western translation theories are partial

translation theories, and as such, each theory has its own strength and weakness.

Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya as a general translation principle can provide guidance at

macro level to document translation, but it is highly summarized, very abstract

and fails to take other factors of translation into account when determining the

quality of a translation. Nida’s formal equivalence and dynamic equivalence can

47

both be applied at operational level, as in document translation translators are

required to maintain a high level of accuracy whilst maintaining the natural flow

of expression in the target language. However, Nida’s dynamic equivalence has

its own limitation as it assumes that the translator has similar purposes with the

original author and the aim of the translation is to “reproduce the message”, but in

the real world it is often not the case. Newmark’s text categories and

corresponding translation methods provides translation practitioners with a new

way in determining the translation method in their practice, but it is probably

more useful in translators training when there is no other information provided,

and the original text is the only material that a translator have been given.

However, in reality there are many other factors need to be considered when

determining the translation method for a particular text. Vermeer’s skopos theory

is significant to translation practitioners in decision making at macro level; it also

expends the possibilities of translation and increases the range of possible

translation strategies. However, it does not touch the aspect of the actual

procedures of translation at operational level.

2. All the four translation theories studied are relevant to document translation, and

can provide guidance to translators at different stages of the translation process.

Vermeer’s skopos theory is applicable at the initial decision making stage of the

translation process in determining the translation strategy at macro level; Nida’s

principle of equivalence and Nemark’s text categories and translation methods are

applicable at the operational stage; and Yan Fu’s Xin Da Ya is applicable through

48

out the operational stage, but probably is more applicable at the evaluation stage

of the translation process.

3. Translation practitioners need to distinguish individual situation and apply each

theory properly to achieve the best possible result. Translation is a very

complicated process, there are many factors involved, such as the intention of the

original writer, the purpose of the translation, the requirement of the client and the

needs of the prospective readers. The change of any factor in the process of

translation will affect the final outcome.

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