Abstract
Swearwords are commonly used in daily communications, but how to translate swearwords appropriately has received relatively little attention. This research explores swearword translation from English into Chinese based on Peter Newmark’s theory of communicative and semantic translation through a case study of the book Steve Jobs. Through detailed analyses, it is proved that translating swearwords should be reader-oriented so that the translations can produce an equivalent effect on the target readers. It is also found that many elements should be considered in swearword translation, such as character of swearer, context, source language and culture as well as target language and culture.
Highlights
Translation, as the essential tool in the communication between different languages and cultures, should cover every aspect of life, whether noble or low, decent or vulgar
It is proved that translating swearwords should be reader-oriented so that the translations can produce an equivalent effect on the target readers
Communicative translation focuses on target readers, who want to read the translated work without any difficulty or obscurity and expect the translation to be like a native work in language as well as in culture while semantic translation emphasizes more on the original
Summary
Translation, as the essential tool in the communication between different languages and cultures, should cover every aspect of life, whether noble or low, decent or vulgar. Academic studies have so far seldom touched upon the translation of dialogue, especially the low or vulgar aspect such as swearwords. The lack of sophisticated or comprehensive studies into swearword translation hinders people’s understanding of swearwords in different languages and cultures, and intercultural communications at large. In view of this situation, this research conducts a case study of swearword translation in the popular book Steve Jobs from the perspective of Peter Newmark’s communicative and semantic translation theory, hoping to provide readers with some knowledge of whether and how to translate swearwords from English into Chinese
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