Child-orientation Principle in Fairy Tale Translation Based on The Trumpet of the Swan

Abstract

Fairy tales enable children to cruise around a world full of wonder and imagination. As a special group, children readers are different from adults for their unique development phases of language and cognition. Therefore, fairy tale translation should give close attention to children’s special demand. Basically, translation works of fairy tales require their translators to stand on children’s point of view and spark children readers’ interests. For quite a long time, as an acknowledged principle in fairy tale translation, child-orientation puts more emphasis on observing and appreciating the world with the child-like appetite. Translators should take account of children’s language ability as well as their cognitive condition and aesthetic preference. This essay is mainly about child-orientation principle. A comparative study has been made between The Trumpet of the Swan by E·B·White and its Chinese translation version by a famous translator Ren Rongrong. Through several concrete translation examples and with an analysis of its language style including conciseness, vividness and musicality as well as its rhetorical device such as simile and overstatement, a simple conclusion could be drawn. It is extremely important to follow child-orientation principle in fairy tale translation. Translation works based on this principle will bring an essence of fun and interest for children.