On the Translation Strategies of Images in Mao Zedong’s Poems from the Perspective of Skopos Theory

International Journal of Humanities and Social Science

© 2019 by SSRG - IJHSS Journal

Volume 6 Issue 6

Year of Publication : 2019

Authors : Jingfang Wu, Cong Liu

10.14445/23942703/IJHSS-V6I6P106

How to Cite?

Jingfang Wu, Cong Liu, "On the Translation Strategies of Images in Mao Zedong’s Poems from the Perspective of Skopos Theory," SSRG International Journal of Humanities and Social Science, vol. 6,  no. 6, pp. 43-47, 2019. Crossref, https://doi.org/10.14445/23942703/IJHSS-V6I6P106

Abstract:

Mao Zedong is not only an excellent leader of China, but also a great poet. Mao Zedong’s poems were written under a special social background, thus
they possess infinite artistic and cultural values. They not only enjoy a high praise in the history of poetry in China, but also have a broad and deep influence around the world. From the Perspective of Skopos Theory, this paper makes a contrastive study on the English versions of Mao Zedong’s poems, featuring the different images. We can make a conclusion that they have all achieved their translation purposes. Influenced by the cultural differences between China and the West, Barnstone's translation adopts literal translation, which meets the needs of western readers to a greater extent, while the Chinese official version adopts foreignization for its political demands. Xu Yuanchong's translation emphasizes the artistry of poetry and tends to adopt domestication. Obviously, due to different cultural and historical background, different translators have different translation purpose. To a large extent, translation purposes determine their translation strategies. Therefore, we should appreciate different translation versions dialectically under different historical background.

Keywords:

Mao Zedong’s poems, English versions, images, skopos theory, translation strategies

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