A Tentative Analysis of Translatability and Untranslatability

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作者：齐越

来源：《教师·中》2014年第06期

Abstract：Translation is a field full of paradoxes．During the long history of their intensive debate， translatability and untranslatability have experienced ebb a nd flow of people’s preferences．On the one hand， language should be translatable； on the other hand， owing to the existence of certain differences， language is sometimes not completely translatable．Translatability and untranslatability inseparably exist side by side．The thesis casts an overview of translatability study both at home and abroad， inquires into the bases of translatability and untranslatability from the perspective of functional equivalence， and presents a dialectical analysis of the relationship between the two．

Key words：translation； translatability； untranslatability； functional equivalence

Translation plays， in a way， a vital role in the process of human civilization．It is no exaggeration to say that if you really intend to get acquainted with the cultural backdrop of a certain country， like the backdrop of literature， history， or religion， to name just a few， translation can not be neglected．Translation is defined as below：

In the broad sense， translation refers to the process and result of transferring a text from the source language into the target language．While in the narrow sense， it refers to rendering a written text into another language as opposed to simultaneously interpreting spoken language．

Levy points out that translation is a process of communication from the teleological point of view；the objective of translating is to impart the knowledge of the original to the foreign reader．Obviously， he regards translation as an instructional course by which translation can be achieved．So translation is not viewed as a stationary， merely linguistic process any more， but rather as a communicative operation which takes place within a social context．What could be available for examination rests on the effect of translation practice rather than translation itself．Translation is regarded as performing on utterances as well as language use instead of language itself．

In the book Translating as a Purposeful Activity， Nord claims that translation is in the wider sense， any translational action where a source text is transferred into a target culture and language （Nord 141）．