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Article published In:
Target
Vol. 21:2 (2009) ► pp.209–234

Pragmatic shifts in two translations of Fusheng Liuji

A descriptive study of request behaviour

| The University of Macau

This study focuses on translation shifts in speech act realisation patterns in two English translations of the Chinese work Fusheng Liuji. It employs analytical tools from cross-cultural pragmatics to describe speech act behaviour in the original and its translations. Lin uses more translation shifts—including significant shifts in strategy use, and moderate shifts in information sequencing—than Pratt … Chiang, who mainly retain the original pragmatic features. Both the translators and the original author make frequent use of request formulae. The two translations also show marked shifts from lexical to syntactic modification of requests. The article further examines the translators’ approaches to translation in terms of their concept of translation and the historical and social contexts of their translations.

Keywords: translation shift, translation norm, cross-cultural pragmatics, request, formulaic language, Chinese literature
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Cross-cultural pragmatics and translation studies
  • 3.Method
    • 3.1Sample: The original and the translated texts
    • 3.2Methods of data analysis: the coding scheme
  • 4.Results
    • 4.1Shifts in strategy use
    • 4.2Internal modifications
    • 4.3Formulaic expressions
    • 4.4External modifications: information sequencing
  • 5.Discussion
    • 5.1Translation shifts caused by linguistic constraints
    • 5.2Translation shifts at the translator’s discretion
    • 5.3Methodology: Tools of cross-cultural pragmatics in translation studies
  • 6.Conclusion
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • References
Published online: 16 December 2009
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/target.21.2.01wan
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