摘 要

Chapter 1 Introduction 1

1.1Research Background 1

1.2 Purpose of the Study 1

1.3 Organization of the Thesis 1

Chapter 2 Literature Review 3

2.1 Previous Studies on the Skopos Theory 3

2.1.1 The Origin and Development of the Skopos Theory 3

2.1.2 The Three Major Rules of the Skopos Theory 4

2.1.3 Domestic and Foreign Research Made on the Skopos Theory Before 5

2.2 Previous Studies on Congcong’s English Translations 5

2.3 Research Gap 6

Chapter 3 Data and Methodology 7

3.1 Data 7

3.2 Research Methodology 7

Chapter 4 Research on the Different Versions of Congcong Based on the Skopos Theory 8

4.1 A Contrastive Study of the Title in Three English Translations 8

4.2 Analysis on words selection in three English translations 8

4.3 Differences about Sentence Pattern in the Three English Translations 10

4.4 A contrastive study of the transfer of artistic conception in the three English translations 11

Chapter 5 Conclusion 15

5.1 Summary of Major Findings 15

5.2 Significance of the Study 15

5.3 Limitations and suggestions for future study 16

参考文献 17

Acknowledgement 18

Abstract

Congcong, a piece of representative prose written by Zhu Ziqing, focuses on the fleeting passage of time and elaborates on the traces of it passing. And it mainly expresses the author’s sorrow for time passage. Congcong has the striking merit of being clear and simple in structure and plain in words. It has gained popularity not only among readers but also translators because of the fact that Zhu Ziqing has blended his feeling towards time with the scene. Chinese translation theorists have made deep studies about the different translations of “Congcong” by Zhang Peiji, Zhu Chunshen and Zhang Mengjing from different perspectives. And much progress has been achieved. However, it is found that studies are rarely carried out based on the Skopos theory.

Proceeding from the angle of the Skopos theory, this thesis carries out a comprehensive analysis of the title, word selection, sentence structure and the artistic conception in three English translations of Congcong (Zhu Chunshen 1994; Zhang Mengjing 1999; Zhang Peiji 1999), on the basis of which it aims to assess the quality of the three renditions. It is found that in his translation Zhang Peiji has followed the three principles of Skopos theory, namely the principle of purpose, the principle of coherence and the principle of loyalty. To convey the literary beauty of the original text, which is the very purpose of his translation, Zhang Peiji chooses different translation strategies. Therefore, his translation is not only highly readable, but also unique in the use of sentence patterns and word selection. Zhu Chunshen (1994) and Zhang Mengjing (1999) adopted the literal translation method. While faithfully conveying the meaning of the original text and following the principle of coherence, they also try to convey the connotation of the prose by using simple and plain language, thereby capturing the charm of the original text.

Keywords: Congcong; literature translation; Skopos theory; translation purpose; translation methods.

中文摘要

作为朱自清先生散文的代表作品，《匆匆》细腻地刻画了时间流逝的踪迹，表达了作者对时光流逝的无奈和惋惜。该文结构精巧，层次清楚；文字清秀隽永，纯朴简练；真正达到了情景交融，因此不仅深受读者的喜爱，也颇得翻译界人士的眷顾。目前已有多个版本的英译文面世。以往的研究从不同的理论视角对《匆匆》的诸多英译本中所涉及的翻译策略等进行了较为深入的研究，取得了较为丰硕的成果，但是基于目的论的视角对其英译本的研究尚不多见。