一．Explain the following terms in English
(1)literal translation and free translation
(1)Literal translation（直译）is so-called “word-for-word” translation. It, superficially speaking, means "not to alter the original words and sentences"; strictly speaking, it strives "to keep the sentiments and style of the original".
(2) Free translation（意译）(sense-for-sense translation) is used mainly to convey the meaning and spirit of the original without trying to reproduce its sentence patterns. This approach is most frequently adopted when it is really impossible for the translator to do literal translation.
(3) Examples:
It rains cats and dogs.
下猫下狗
大雨滂沱
Do you see any green in my eye?
你以为我是幼稚可欺的吗?
A burned child dreads the fire.
烧伤的孩子害怕火。
一朝被蛇咬，十年怕井绳。
To kill two birds with one stone.
一石二鸟
一箭双雕
(2)Domestication（翻译的归化）and foreignization（翻译的异化）
液碱
1Domestication and foreignization are two strategies used in translation, regarding the degree to which translators make a text conform to the target culture.
2Domestication is the strategy of making text closely conform to the culture of the language being translated to, which may involve the loss of information from the source text. 氧化镍
3Foreignization is the strategy of retaining information from the source text, and involves deliberately breaking the conventions of target language to preserve its meaning.
德阳市实验小学校园网For example: The English idiom “go to law for a sheep, you lose a cow” can be translated into the Chinese idiom “捡了芝麻，丢了西瓜” (domestication: The Chinese idiom loses massive cultural information in this translation). But in order to reflect the cultural custom that western people are accustomed to solving disputes through legal ways, it would be better to use the method of foreignization and the idiom should be translated like “为一只羊打官司，却损失了一头牛”.
(3)Nida’s dynamic equivalence theory of translation/functional equivalence
(1)A term used to refer to the type of equivalence reflected in a target language which seeks to adapt the function of the original to suit the specific context in and for which it was produced. 中国产品质量法It is a translation method in which the translator attempts to reflect the thought of the writer in the source language rather than the words and forms.
(2)According to Nida, it serves to “highlight the communicative function of translating”.(1986)
(4)“Skopos theory”（目的论）in Germany
1The Skopos theory is an approach to translation which was put forward by Hans Vemeer and developed in Germany in the late 1970s and which emphasizes a more functional and socio-cultural concept in translation.
2Translation is considered not as a process of translation, but as a specific form of human action. The word “Skopos” was from Greek. It's used as the technical term for the
purpose of translation.
3In the frame work of this theory, one of the most important factors determining the purpose of a translation is the address, who is the intended receiver or audience of the target text with their world language. Every translation is directed at an intended audience. From this view, the status of the source is clearly much lower in Skopos theory than the equivalence theory.
(5)YanFu’s theory on translation
Yan Fu is known for the Triple Principle of Translation: faithfulness, expressiveness and elegance. Yan Fu’s first two criteria of being faithful to the original text in content and being expressive in translation are generally acceptable, but his interpretation of “elegance” has aroused plenty of criticism because in his opinion, one has to resort to the vocabulary and emphasis on the equal status of the three conflicting principles. Despite this, Yan’s translation theory is still popular in China.
顾漫论坛
[严复用“信、达、雅”概括了翻译活动要达到的标准。“信” 就是忠于原文；“达” 是文字表述要达意；“雅”是要有文采。] 海参圈
(6) Fulei’s “spiritual resemblance”
(His idea emphasizes the subjectivity in translation.)
“以效果而论，翻译应该像临画一样，所求的不在形似而在神似”。 “理想的译文仿佛是原作者的中文写作”。 文字上要求 “译文必须为纯粹之中文，无生硬拗口之病”，并期以“行文流畅，用字丰富，彩变化”。 (7) Qianzhongshu’s “conversion” aiming at “perfection” (transliteration)（化境）
“The highest ideal of literary translation is hua or sublimation, transforming a work from the language of one nation into that of another. If this could be done without betraying any evidence of artifice by virtue of divergences in language and speech habits, while at the same time preserving intact the favor of the original, then we may claim that such a performance has attained huajing or the ultimate of translation.”
(8) Essential qualities of a good translator
He or She should be qualified with such qualities as: a good command of language; a solid foundation of cultural information of both source language and target language; a flexible mind; an inquisitive mind; a variety of interests; skill of short-hand; team-work; diligence; career-respect…
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