A study on the translation method used in Tao An Meng Yi

【Abstract】：Tao An Meng Yi is a famous traditional Chinese classic written by Zhang Dai， an essayist and poet in ancient China. In this paper， two translation methods used in Tao An Meng Yi， amplification and simplification will be analyzed and compared.

【Key Words】：amplification "simplification;

1.Introduction

Zhang Dai （1597-1679） was an essayist and poet who lived in the late Ming Dynasty and early Qing Dynasty. He was born in a prominent gentry’s family in Shanying （now Shaoxing of Zhejiang Province）. Zhang Dai led a luxurious and carefree life in his childhood and youth， allowing him to develop a refined artistic and literary taste. His major works included： Tao An Meng Yi， his best-known collection of a series of short epigraphic narratives of the travel of his youth as well as vignettes of personalities， customs and various cultural pursuits （Mair， 1995： 594）.

2.Applied theory

2.1 Amplification

Amplification means supplying necessary words in our translation on the basis of accurate comprehension of the original. As a matter of principle， a translator is supposed to supply necessary words to make his or her version both accurate in meaning and in keeping with the idiomatic use of the language to be translated into. It is for the purpose of “faithful representation” of the thought of the author that we often resort to “amplification”.

2.2 Simplification

Simplification is not uncommon in the translation process. It is the translator’s attempt to make the text easier to understand and accept by the target text receiver. When the source text carries too much information that are not relevant to what the translator aims to present to the target addressees， such methodology will be adopted in the target text.

3.Comparative analysis

不舟不車，不衫不幘，酒醉飯飽，呼群三五，躋入人叢，昭慶、斷橋，囂呼嘈雜，裝假醉，唱無(wú)腔曲，月亦看，看月者亦看，不看月者亦看，而實(shí)無(wú)一看者，看之。（《陶庵夢(mèng)憶·西湖七月半》）

Lin Yutang： …there are the young men， who neither ride nor go into boats， but after a drink and a good dinner， rush about in their rowdy dress and seek the crowd at Chaoching and Tuanchiao where it is thickest， shouting， singing songs of no known melody and pretending to be drunk. （2002： 52）

Li Yutang adds “there are the young men” before the sentence in his translation， which gives a summarization of the group of people which the source text attempts to describe. It not only makes the translation closer to the target language， but also renders the target text more easily to understand and accept by the target addressees. Furthermore， the addition of new content to the source text helps differentiate the five types of people watching the moon on the West Lake， and helps the target receivers to better understand the original.

樓船蕭鼓，峨冠盛筵，燈火優(yōu)傒，聲光相亂（《陶庵夢(mèng)憶·西湖七月半》）

Mair： Those on spacious pleasure boats where music is played， wearing formal dress， enjoying magnificent banquets under lantern lights， entertained by actors as sounds and sights dissolve into one another.

“樓船”， literally translated， means “l(fā)arge storied ship with ornaments” and “蕭鼓” means Chinese flute and drums. However， Mair simplifies them in the target text by making a generalization and translating them into “spacious pleasure boats” and “music”. Through this way， he washed out and even eliminated the “l(fā)ocal color” of the source text so that the target addressee won’t obtain the specific information of what type of ship or music is. Although this kind of translation method ignores the impressiveness of Chinese culture， as it uses domestication method， it is easier for foreign readers to get an impression about the unique culture.

4.Conclusion

This paper mainly analyzes two translation methods of Tao An Meng Yi， amplification， simplification， which make it easier for foreign readers to grab the unique culture or minds. Actually， it is the content and culture matters， not the method itself， which also applies in domestication and foreignization.

References：

[1]趙亦周，2013，從目的論視角比較張岱散文之英譯[D]。外交學(xué)院。

[2]張麗杰，2004，論張岱《陶庵夢(mèng)憶》的情感意蘊(yùn)[D]。內(nèi)蒙古師范大學(xué)。