German Functionalist Theories 德国功能翻译理论

2.2 Significance
• Translation criticism acts as a policeman. It is he who safeguards the leagal rights of the original author. It is he who fights against plagiarism and cribbing. Translation can never proceed in an orderly way unless monitored by translation criticism. • Translation criticism acts as a doctor. It is he who firstly points out what is wrong or amiss with the translated script and then the translators are able to polish their works. • Translation criticism acts as a judge. It is him who the clients may have recourse (求援) to when a dispute appears between different translators.
1.4 Value and Limitation This approach really have great practical value for professional translators, especially for those who work on non-literary texts. Whether they are applicable to literary translation remains to be testified in the future.
1. Introduction
1.1 Background Information • Functionalist approach to translation are another influential trend in modern translation studies. They were developed in Germany in the late 1970s. • Prominent figures of the school: Katharina Reiss, Justa Holz-Manttari, Hans J. Vermeer and Christiane Nord.
2.3Traditional Approaches to Translation Criticism
Deconstructionism
Manipulation Theory
Structuralism
Vermeer and the Skopos Theory
The skopos theory is an attempt to bridge the gap between theory and practice. Vermeer considers translation a type of human action, which is intentional, purposeful behavior that takes place in a and her Action Theory The theoretical basis of functional approaches to translation is action theory put forward by von Wright and Rehbein and communication theory. This reflects clearly in Holz-Manttari's theory and methodology of translational action in which she even avoids using the term "translation" in the strict sense. She defines translation as "a complex action designed to achieve a particular purpose". The purpose of translational action is to transfer message across culture and language barriers by means of message transmitters produced by experts. She focuses on the actional aspects of the translation process, the role of the participants and the situational conditions such as time, place and medium in which translation activities take place. She also pays special attention to the status of the translator.
German Functionalist Theories
Translation Criticism/text types and functions
Contents
• Introduction • Translation Criticism
• Text types and their functions
1.3 Representatives and their Theories
Katharina Reiss and functional category of translation criticism As early as 1971 Katharina Reiss introduced a functional category into her "objective approach to translation criticism". Her book Possibilities and Limits of Translation Criticism: Categories and Criteria for a Fair Evaluation of Translations(1971) may be regarded as the starting point for the scholarly analysis of translation in Germany.
Nord and Functionality plus Loyalty • Nord supports functionalist approaches to translation both in translator training and practice and she attempts to refine Vermeer's model by putting forward her own functional model: functionality plus loyalty. • Functional approaches take into consideration the function or functions of texts and translation in the real situation of professional translation, and shift away from the then predominantly equivalence-based linguistic- oriented translation theories.
2.Translation Criticism
2.1 Definition 翻译评论可指对翻译过程及译品进行的(艺术或科学)分 析与评价(analysing and evaluating)。这并非全面定义，但 由之可明确翻译批评的主要对象：不仅包括评价翻译活动的 结果(译品)，还包括追溯翻译过程(分析与评论译者动机、工 作态度、翻译方法等)。翻译批评至少应包含翻译过程及译 作，由下述定义可予确认：翻译批评即参照一定的标准。对 翻译过程及其译作质量与价值进行全面的分析与评价. (《中国翻译词典》：184)
• Taking equivalence as her basis, Reiss develops a mode of translation criticism based on the functional relationship between source and target texts. According to Reiss, the ideal translation would be equivalence. • However, she finds that there are two exceptions from the general purpose of achieving equivalence: When the target text is intended to achieve a purpose or function other than that of the original, functionality(i.e. Adequacy to the intended function) takes precedence over equivalence. When the target ext addresses an audience different from the intended readership of the original, readerorientedness takes precedence over equivalence.