用「目的論」的觀點探討翻譯之差異問題－以“The Fall of Freddie The Leaf＂的日語翻譯為例

Abstract

The current study regards the differences between the translated text and the original one as a kind of change of type. It is aimed to explore how to assess the changes of translated text from Vermeer's Skopos theory. The Japanese translated text of a picture book, ＂The Fall of Freddie the Leaf＂, is taken as a case example. The analytical results are summarized as follows: 1. The use of subjects and the illustrative examples in the translated sentences are more specific and naive than the original ones. 2. The terms (e.g., death) related to the cruel reality in the translated text are either eliminated or replaced by some other kind vocabularies. 3. The definition of continuity of life is elaborated from the perspective metagenesis by the author; while it is considered to be reincarnation by the translator. According to the Skopos theory, it is allowable to adjust the translated sentences as needed only if the purpose of translation and the original intention are consistent each other. Since the case example, ＂The Fall of Freddie the Leaf＂, is written for little children, it can be viewed as a proper adaptation to use naive words, eliminate and/or substitute some brutal vocabularies such as ＂death＂. Still, about the translation of ＂continuity of life＂, the central idea of the translator is apparently different from that of the original writer. Hence, such a change (an adjustment) in the translated text would be questionable.