Functional Equivalence Theory Reflected into the Translation of Culture—loaded Words

ZHANG+Hua-hui+CAO+Jia-nan+Bo+Yanan

Abstract：This paper studies the translation of cultural-loaded words from the angle of Functional Equivalence Theory. Through relevant and potential examples， it analyzes how to apply the functional equivalence theory to translate culture-loaded words and expressions， such as， slang， idioms， proper names and allusions. It is hoped to help students to gain their translation experience and improve their skills as well as the intercultural communication awareness to further realize the improvement of translation capabilities. Furthermore， this paper aims to provide relevant reference for literature translation.

Key words：Functional Equivalence Theory； Culture-loaded Words

中圖分類號：H315.9 文獻標識碼：A 文章編號：1672-1578（2017）11-0001-03

1 Introduction

In Language， Culture and translating， Nida divides functional equivalence into two kinds， among which minimal equivalence would be defined as “The readers of a translated text should be able to comprehend it to the point that they can conceive of how the original readers of the text must have understood and appreciated it”.（Nida， 1991： 118） While， maximal equivalence means “The readers of a translated text should be able to understand and appreciate it in essentially the same manner as the original readers did.”（Nida， 1991： 118） As mentioned above， it is the core of Functional Equivalence Theory.

2 Culture-loaded Words

Culture-loaded words， or “lexical gap”， refer to that the information the words in the source language has no equivalents in the target language. And the characteristics of the culture-loaded words make it difficult to find the corresponding words and expressions in the target language in the process of translating. Nida claims his view of culture in his book Language and Culture-Contexts in Translating， “a culture creates and endows certain entities with important cultural significances.”（Nida， 2001， p.151）While， Mona Baker， she holds “the source-language word may express a concept which is totally unknown in the target culture. The concept in question may be abstract or concrete； it may relate to a religious belief， a social custom， or a type of food. Such concepts are often referred to as culture-specific”.（Baker， 2011， p.21） Among those definitions and classification， the most classic one must be the one stated in Eugene Nidas work Toward a Science of Translating； he categorizes culture into five categories， which are ecological culture-loaded terms， material culture-loaded terms， social culture-loaded terms， religious culture-loaded terms and linguistic culture-loaded terms respectively. The ecological culture-loaded terms are words which include seasons， plants， animals， and geographical environments. The material culture-loaded terms are words and expressions which contain tools， equipment， and products， etc. The social culture-loaded terms are proper names， address terms， social structure， social organization and social life. The religious culture-loaded terms are words and expressions which have the meaning of religious routines and beliefs of a certain society or community. The linguistic culture-loaded terms are words and expressions which refer to idioms， slang， euphemisms， allusions， etc. Culture-loaded words possess three major characteristics：（1） They are peculiar to one culture.（2） They possess abundant cultural overtone or related implied meanings.（3） It is rather hard to get their synonyms in the target language.endprint

2.1 Linguistic Culture-loaded Words and Their Translation Strategies

Linguistic culture-loaded words and expressions refer to idioms， slang， euphemisms， allusions， etc. Because of differences in language， thinking， life experiences and other factors， all ethnic groups have their own unique vocabulary， that is， culture-loaded words. They are most sensitive language items and direct reflection of the unique cultures. In fact， connotative cultural information contained in culture-loaded words and expressions which is closely related to specific contexts and source culture， is more difficult to translate. On account of the big gap and enormous differences between the source culture and the target culture， when translating culture-loaded words the translator often feels stuck to find the exact equivalent expressions.

2.1.1 Slang

Bethany K. Dumas and Jonathan Lighter believe English slang is an informal language that is usually used on an informal occasion. Therefore， when using slangs， users must take the occasions and objects into account. Slangs are used to express new things or to give new ideas to old things， which reflect conflicts of values， express hostility or contempt to a particular group of members. Civilized societies tend to differentiate between the main cultural group and the various subcultures， which tend to use slang in order to preserve their solidarity for social or linguistic biases. The most effective slang often refers to the person who uses it and its social background. Slang has become a necessary humorist and journalist tool. If used properly， it can make the language to have a fresh outlook or innovation. Linguists and other social scientists have devoted a great deal to the study of slang as a reflection of culture.（Dumas & Lighter， 1978：14–15）

As mentioned above， due to the differences in religion， tradition and culture， it seems impossible to achieve complete equivalence in translating culture-loaded words. For example，

Example 1： When I was little I could be a pest， and people would get the hump.

Translation： 我小時候很招人煩，特別不招人待見。

Here， if“pest” is literally translated in“害蟲”，while “hump” in “駝峰”， the receptor will feel lost and wont appreciate and comprehend the target text as the reader of the original text. Actually，“to get the hump” is the British informal expression， means“to become or be annoyed or irritated”.

The following is another similar example in the excerpt.endprint

Example 2： If I missed a ball， hed sit there and get the hump， and it took the enjoyment away.

Translation： 如果我失誤了一球，他會坐在那里，變得怒不可遏，比賽之興味索然矣。

Example 3： He went mental and chased me all over the holiday camp.

Translation： 他火冒三丈，在度假營地里到處追我。

Facing this kind of culture-loaded words， literal translation.（他去精神了，在度假營地里到處追我。）will fail to deliver the accurate meaning and vivid picture of the source text.Another example： It is the only way for me to deal with this， otherwise I would go mental.（這也是我唯一來處理這個問題的方法，否則，我會發瘋的。）

Some scholars hold that euphemism， swearwords and vulgarity all belong to slang. English euphemism should obey such rules as avoiding stimulation，offering comfort， eliminating vulgarity， forming aesthetic feeling， etc.

A swear word is a word or phrase thats generally considered blasphemous，obscene， vulgar， or otherwise offensive. Also it is known as swearing， bad word， obscene word， dirty word， and f-letter word. The purpose of using vulgar words is to vent their discontent， worry， anger and contempt， protesting intense emotions.

Example 4： There was hell to pay.

Translation： 我為此付出了沉重代價。

Example 5： I was nervous as hell when it happened， but I knew I couldnt back down.

Translation： 當打架時其實我著實誠惶誠恐、膽戰心驚，但我知道這時候我不能認慫退卻，臨陣脫逃。

Literal translation for example 4 would be“那有地獄來支付”，which confuses the target reader and lose the flavor and touch of the original text. Unlike in the sentence ——Black as the devil， hot？as hell， pure as an angel， sweet as love.（黑如惡魔，灼似地獄，純比天使，甜如愛情）“as hell” in English example 5 means“非常地，極端地，可怕地”. In the Functional Equivalence Theory， Nida regards the “receptors response” as his major principle and standard of a good translation. He holds that it is irrational to assess whether the translation is valid or faithful just at a corresponding lexical level， grammatical level or figure of speech. The most essential thing is how much the reader can comprehend and appreciate the translated version in a correct and clear way. Like other swearwords and vulgarity， literal translation is bound to be impolite and hurt peoples eyes and feelings， most importantly； it hurts the original meaning of the text. So， in such a case， free translation will help realize formal， functional and cultural equivalence.

Example 6： Next time I come into the club， I dont want to know if youre winning or losing. I just want to see a dead-pan look on your face.endprint