A study of Lin Yutang’s translation Case study of two versions of Six Chapters of a Floating Life

Contents

Abstract 3

Chapter One Introduction 4

1.1 Research Background 4

1.2 Research Object 4

Chapter Two Literature Review 4

2.1 The Previous Study of Lin’s Translation of Six Chapters of a Floating Life 5

Chapter Three the Previous Study of Lin’s Translation Ideas 6

3.1 Faithfulness 6

3.2 Fluency 6

3.3 Beauty 7

Chapter Four Case Study of Two Versions of Six Chapters of a Floating Life 7

4.1 The definition of “Culture” 8

4.2 Culture-specific Words 8

4.3 Case analysis of Culture-specific words in Six Chapters of a Floating Life 8

4.3.1 Place Names 8

4.3.2 Units of Measurement 10

4.3.3 Social Customs 11

Chapter Five Conclusion 12

References 13

Abstract

Lin Yutang spent his whole life on the cultural communication between the East and the West and made great contribution to the spreading of the Chinese culture to the world, and he also promoted the studies of translation theories. His contributions are permanent and his art of translation is worth appreciating and learning.

In order to introduce Chinese culture and appeal to the Western readers' interest, Lin's Chinese-English translation is faithful to the original text both in meaning and plain and explicit in language and accords with his idea for translation-"faithfulness, fluency and beauty".

In translating Chinese classics into English, cultural factors are very crucial for the effective introduction of Chinese culture to the West. Therefore, how to translate culture-specific words and expressions in literary works has been an important issue for translators. This paper attempts to study the translation of Chinese culture-specific terms in the English version of Fu Sheng Liu Ji (《浮生六记》)rendered by Lin Yutang, namely, Six Chapters of a Floating Life. By analyzing the two version of Fu Sheng Liu Ji, original one and translation version, we hope we can better understand Lin’s translation style and find some clues to deal with inter-cultural communication. 

Key words: Lin Yutang, Six Chapters of a Floating Life, translation theory, Culture-specific words