英语电影片名翻译的认识分析

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ABSTRACT

Film, a popular audio-visual art with both artistic and commercial values, is one of

the most influential mass media nowadays. With the development of cultural exchanges

between China and the world, more and more English films are introduced to Chinese

audience. The title, as an important part of a film, is of informative, expressive, vocative,

aesthetic and educational functions and its translation is a challenging and creative job.

An excellent translated version can contribute a lot to the box-office sale of a new film.

However, English film title translation remains a problematic issue in the current time.

As for the same original film title, different translated versions coexist, causing

confusion to the audience and bringing barrier to communication across different

cultures. Being a special and significant part of translation, English film title translation

is still an area that is far from being explored and no one has offered a systematic and

feasible principle to pilot it up till now. And now, it is really a high time to pay attention

to this issue.

Cognitive linguistics, a newly developed discipline, provides a new approach to the

study of translation in that it mainly studies people’s way of thinking, which has been

neglected for a long time in translation studies. Schemata, the basic building blocks of

cognition, are used to make sense of the discourse (Cook, 1999). They permeate the

whole process of translation and take an active role through it. Therefore, schema can be

a starting point for us to improve translation quality. Based on the schema theory, this

thesis attempts to explore English film title translation from the cognitive perspective.

The first chapter serves as an introduction. It states the significance of this study,

and also describes the research hypothesis, methodology and structure of the thesis.

Chapter II is a literature review of the main theoretical achievements made by Western

and Chinese scholars on translation and translation studies. The cognitive approach to

translation and the schema theory are well illustrated in this part. Chapter III defines the

film title to be examined in this thesis, introduces four film genres and four naming

approaches, discusses three main features and analyzes five functions of English film

titles. This part mainly serves as the foundation for future analysis on translation tips.

Chapter IV, the core part of this thesis, reviews the overall situation and previous

studies of English film title translation in China first. Then, it describes the schema

working process in translating and holds that translation is essentially a cognitive

iii

process, exploring how to transfer meanings from one language to another language.

Based on this discussion, the mental process of translating English film titles is well

presented by a diagram (see Figure 4.4). Through the describing of the mental process

of the translator, the author believes that the translator’s schemata play a decisive role in

translating English film titles. Besides, the target audience’s schemata are also

highlighted and become an important influencing factor in the process of translating.

Therefore, this thesis argues that whether the translated title could reproduce the five

functions of the original title optimally and stimulate the target audience’s schemata

appropriately or not is an essential criterion of judging the quality of translation. In

order to help the translators improve the translation quality, seven practical translation

tips with rich examples are proposed in the following part. In addition, a questionnaire

is also conducted to test the effectiveness of the seven translation tips. From the data

collected by the questionnaire, it concludes that the seven translation tips proposed in

this thesis are quite effective and feasible in English film title translation practice.

In the conclusion part, the author sums up the main idea of this thesis and points

out that English film title translation is an interesting topic worthy of exploration.

Key Words: English film title translation, cognitive approach, schema

theory, translation tips

摘要

作为一种集艺术性和商业性于一体的流行的声像艺术，电影现如今已成为最

具影响力的媒体之一。随着中国与世界的接轨，文化交流的进一步加强，英语影

片也越来越多地出现在国人的娱乐生活中。电影片名是电影的重要组成部分，具

有传达信息、表现美感、吸引观众等功能，因而，电影片名翻译是一项极具挑战

性和创造性的工作。绝妙的片名翻译能为影片锦上添花，在新片的推介过程中起

着举足轻重的作用。然而，目前英语电影片名翻译仍然比较混乱，“一片多名”现

象十分严重，这不仅给中国观众造成了不便，也为不同文化间的交流带来了障碍。

作为翻译领域一个特别重要的组成部分，英语电影片名翻译的研究工作还做得远

远不够。目前似乎还没有人提出一套比较完整可行的原则指导电影片名翻译。这

一现象应引起翻译界的重视。

新兴的认知语言学主要研究的是人类的思维方式，这为长期以来忽视人类心

智的翻译研究提供了一个新的视角。人们通过图式这一人类认知的基石来理解语

篇，图式充斥了翻译的整个过程并发挥着积极的作用。因此，从图式入手是我们

提高翻译质量的起点。本文以图式理论作为研究的基础，试图从认知的角度探究

英语电影片名翻译。

论文的第一章介绍了英语电影片名翻译的重要性，阐明了本文的研究假设、

方法以及组织结构。第二章回顾了国内外关于翻译的定义以及翻译研究的理论成

果，介绍了有关翻译的认知研究和图式理论的观点。第三章介绍了电影的四种类

型和四种命名方法，讨论分析了电影的三大特征和五大功能，为探讨其翻译方法

奠定了基础。

作为本文的核心部分，第四章首先对目前我国英语电影片名翻译的现状以及

前人的研究成果进行了回顾。接着，又对图式在翻译过程中的运作机制做了详细

的阐述，提出翻译实质上是一个探究如何将意义从一种语言转换成另一种语言的

认知过程，并在此基础之上，以图表的形式详细描述了英语电影片名翻译这一认

知过程。通过对这一过程的描述，作者认为译者的图式在英语电影片名翻译中起

着决定性的作用。此外，的语观众的图式也逐渐突显，成为影响这一过程的重要

因素之一。因此，本文提出译名是否能够最大程度地再现原名的五大功能并充分

激活的语观众头脑中的相关图式是衡量其翻译好坏的标准。为了帮助译者提高翻

译质量，本文引用丰富的例证概括提出了七种实用的翻译方法,并通过调查问卷的

方法对其有效性进行了验证。调查研究的结果表明，本文提出的七种翻译方法在

英语电影片名翻译的实践中是有效的、可行的。

结论部分作者概述了全文的主要内容，并指出英语电影片名翻译是一个有趣

的话题，值得我们进一步深入的研究。

关键词：英语电影片名翻译认知分析图式理论翻译方法

CONTENTS

Acknowledgements................................................................................................. i

ABSTRACT............................................................................................................ii

摘要.........................................................................................................................iv

Chapter I Introduction ..........................................................................................1

§ 1.1 Motivation and Significance of the Research .........................................1

§ 1.2 Research Hypothesis .............................................................................. 3

§ 1.3 Research Methodology and Thesis Structure ......................................... 3

Chapter II Literature Review ...............................................................................5

§ 2.1 Translation and Translation Studies ........................................................5

§ 2.1.1 The Definition of Translation ...................................................... 5

§ 2.1.2 A Brief Review of Translation Studies ........................................ 6

§ 2.2 Cognitive Approach to Translation .........................................................8

§ 2.3 A Brief Review of Schema Theory .........................................................9

§ 2.3.1 The Definition of Schema ..........................................................11

§ 2.3.2 The Properties of Schema ..........................................................13

§ 2.3.3 The Classification of Schemata ................................................. 16

Chapter III Profile of English Film Titles ......................................................... 19

§ 3.1 Film Genres .......................................................................................... 19

§ 3.1.1 Horror Film ................................................................................19

§ 3.1.2 Fantasy Film .............................................................................. 20

§ 3.1.3 Comic Film ................................................................................ 20

§ 3.1.4 Lyric Film .................................................................................. 20

§ 3.2 Naming Approaches of English Films ..................................................20

§ 3.2.1 Naming by Plot ..........................................................................21

§ 3.2.2 Naming by Hero or Heroine ...................................................... 21

§ 3.2.3 Naming by Theme ..................................................................... 21

§ 3.2.4 Naming by Setting ..................................................................... 21

§ 3.3 Features of English Film Titles.............................................................22

§ 3.3.1 Linguistic Features of English Film Titles ................................ 22

§ 3.3.2 Aesthetic Features of English Film Titles ..................................22

§ 3.3.3 Cultural Features of English Film Titles ................................... 23

§ 3.4 Functions of English Film Titles .......................................................... 24

§ 3.4.1 Informative Function ................................................................. 25

§ 3.4.2 Expressive Function .................................................................. 26

§ 3.4.3 Vocative Function / Commercial Function ................................ 26

§ 3.4.4 Aesthetic Function ..................................................................... 27

§ 3.4.5 Educational Function .................................................................27

Chapter IV Exploring English Film Title Translation: From Theory to

Practice ............................................................................................................... ..29

§ 4.1 An Overview of English Film Title Translation in China .....................29

§ 4.1.1 One English Film Title vs. Several Different Chinese Versions.30

§ 4.1.2 Overuse of Influential Film Titles’ Model .................................31

§ 4.1.3 A Mixed Picture of High and Low Quality of Translation ........ 32

§ 4.2 Schema Working Process in Translating .............................................. 33

§ 4.2.1 Schema in ST Interpretation ...................................................... 35

§ 4.2.2 Schema in TT Production .......................................................... 36

§ 4.3 The Process of Translating English Film Titles ....................................38

§ 4.4 Translator’s Schemata—the Decisive Factor ....................................... 41

§ 4.4.1 The Positive Role of Adequate and Appropriate Schema

Stimulation ............................................................................................ 42

§ 4.4.2 The Negative Influence of Inadequate and Inappropriate Schema

Stimulation ............................................................................................ 43

§ 4.5 Target Audience’s Schemata—an Influencing Factor .......................... 44

§ 4.6 Translation Tips on Stimulating Target Audience’s Relevant

Schemata ........................................................................................................45

§ 4.6.1 Formal Schema Aspect .............................................................. 46

§ 4.6.2 Linguistic Schema Aspect ......................................................... 48

§ 4.6.3 Content Schema Aspect .............................................................54

§ 4.7 A Questionnaire to Test the Effectiveness of the Translation Tips ....... 59

§ 4.7.1 Research Procedures ..................................................................59

§ 4.7.2 Results ....................................................................................... 60

§ 4.7.3 Discussion and Implications ......................................................62

Chapter V Conclusion ......................................................................................... 65

Appendix I ............................................................................................................ 67

Appendix II .......................................................................................................... 71

Appendix III .........................................................................................................76

Appendix IV ......................................................................................................... 78

References .............................................................................................................80

在读期间公开发表的论文 ................................................................................... 83

Chapter I Introduction

§ 1.1 Motivation and Significance of the Research

Xia Yan, a famous Chinese dramatist, once pointed out that film was “the Seventh

Art” following the other six old art forms, namely, literature, painting, sculpture, music,

architecture and drama (Kong, 2007). Though film is the youngest among all the other

art forms, it has become one of the most influential forms of mass media with unique

charms. Partaking of visual and performing arts, film is a reflection of life, a mirror and

an abstraction of how we live, think and feel. It can look back into the remote past, or

probe the distant future; it “compresses a whole day into a few minutes, or prolongs a

few minutes into what seems to be a whole day” (Dick, 1978, p.4).

Ever since the adoption of the policy of reform and opening up at the end of 1970s,

cultural exchanges between China and the world have become increasingly prevalent

and more and more foreign films especially English films are pouring into the Chinese

market. Since 1995, the China Film Group Corporation has been importing the so-called

Hollywood entertainment “blockbusters”, popular films with high box-office profits.

Therefore, the Chinese audience has more access to the English films nowadays (Li,

2006).

When a large number of English films have been introduced into Chinese market,

English film translation has undoubtedly become a significant activity. After all not

every Chinese viewer can understand English. It has been noticed that more attention

has been paid in this field during recent years. A few Chinese scholars and researchers,

aware of and interested in film translation, have made respectable contributions.

Professor Qian Shaochang (2000), an expert in audiovisual translation, pointed out the

importance of film translation and called on the translators to pay more attention to it.

Bao Huinan (2001), in his book 《文化语境与语言翻译》(Cultural Context and

Language Translation, my own translation), reviewed the current situation of film title

translation and also classified the translation methods adopted in English film title

translation.

Being an important part of a film, title plays a vital role in the release of a film. A

good title can serve as a brand name and an effective advertisement of a film. It can not

only provide the viewers with certain information about the film genre, content or main

Chapter I Introduction

characters, but also catch their attentions instantly and arouse their imagination and

curiosity towards the film. As a popular art and a commodity, a film also has

commercial value. Undoubtedly, an excellent translation of a film title contributes a lot

to a big success in box office of the film in the market abroad. Nevertheless, English

film title translation is still chaotic in Chinese film market. The viewers are often

confused and troubled with several different translations towards the same English film

title, including Mainland version, Hong Kong version, and Taiwan version. Usually,

these three different versions vary largely from each other. Why such differences? What

happened in the process of translating these English film titles? It is really a high time to

pay attention to this issue.

However, compared with the translation of literary works, film translation is far

from being explored, let alone film title translation. Take “Chinese Translators’ Journal”,

the authority in China’s translation circle, for example. From 1997 to 2007, among 1293

articles on translation studies that appeared in it, only 5 touched upon film title

translation. Up till now, not a single satisfactory theory has been set up to guide English

film title translation. Before writing this paper, the author surveyed twenty-five papers

on this issue from journals of the past decade and found that most of them are

concerned with translating techniques and strategies (see section 4.1). As a matter of

fact, their analysis is useful and applicable to some extent in translating English film

titles. But none examines the underlying causes of the different translations and the

mental process of translators.

Fortunately, cognition, a subject that is increasingly arousing the attention of

scholars around the world, provides a new approach to the study of the translator in that

it mainly studies people’s way of thinking. As the basic building blocks of cognition,

schemata are used to make sense of the discourse (Cook, 1999). They permeate the

whole process of translation and play a decisive role in one’s comprehension of the

phenomena s/he happened to be exposed to. Therefore, schema can be a starting point

for us to improve translation quality. This also applies to the translation of English film

titles. However, till now there have been few studies on English film title translation

conducted from the cognitive approach. Therefore, this paper attempts to make up this

deficiency based on the schema theory.

Chapter I Introduction

§ 1.2 Research Hypothesis

Although there have been many translation theories and some have exploded in the

field of film title translation, such as “domestication and foreignization”, “skopos

theory”, “reception theory”, etc., many of the most skillful translators have little or no

use for the theories of translation. If a dozen translators tackle the same original film

title, they will produce a dozen different Chinese versions. Taking the schema theory as

its major frame of reference, this thesis tries to answer the following questions:

1. Why does a single English film title have different Chinese versions? What happens

in the mind of the translator while s/he is translating?

2. What is the role of the translator’s schema in the process of translating? What

factors influence the translator’s final decision?

3. What translation strategies or methods can be applied to help the translators improve

the quality of their translation?

The hypothesis is made as following:

According to schema theory, schema plays an essential role in both the processes

of interpretation and production. Being an integrated process of interpretation and

production, translating English film titles naturally depends on the translator’s schema.

Due to the differences of the translators’ schemata, the same English film title may be

translated differently by different translators. In addition, the target audience’ schemata

are also significant in the process of translating English film titles. Whether the

translated title could stimulate the target audience’s schemata appropriately or not is an

essential criterion of judging the quality of translation. Therefore, the translator should

adopt various flexible strategies to help activate the target audience’s schemata and

make the translation more accessible and appropriate in translation practice.

§ 1.3 Research Methodology and Thesis Structure

An analytical, descriptive and comparative approach will be adopted to analyze the

issue. The data are collected from a pool of one thousand English film title translations

from the internet, magazines and relevant books and articles. From this database, the

author selected 100 classic English film titles with their Chinese translations and

conducted a pilot study (see Appendix II). Through the pilot study, the top 50 English

Chapter I Introduction

film titles were chosen and viewed as the main objects. The original titles of the top 50

films and their translations are listed in the Appendix III. The method of questionnaire is

also adopted to test the effectiveness of the translation strategies proposed in this thesis.

It is hoped that a comparative study with corpus and data based analysis can come up

with a more objective conclusion.

Structurally, this thesis consists of five parts. Chapter I is the introduction part. In

this part, the author briefs on the motivation and significance of the research, the

research hypothesis and the whole structure of the thesis. Chapter II is the literature

review part. Firstly, it reviews the definition of translation and the development of

translation studies. Secondly, it introduces the cognitive approach to translation. Thirdly,

it deals with schema theory: its notion, properties, classification and role in English film

title translation so as to lay a foundation for a better understanding and research of its

application in English film title translation in Chapter IV. Chapter III details film genres,

naming approaches, features and functions of English film titles. Chapter IV, as the core

part of this thesis, is the data analysis part within the framework of cognitive linguistics

and schema theory. An overview of English film title translation in China is briefly

introduced first. Based on schema theory, the mental process of translating English film

titles is also described in this chapter. Through the describing of the mental process of

the translator, the role of translator’s schema and the target audience’s schema is

highlighted and some practical translation tips are also proposed in this chapter. Besides,

a questionnaire is conducted to test the effectiveness of the translation tips proposed in

this thesis. Chapter V is the conclusion part. Limitations of this thesis and suggestions

for further research are also included in this chapter.

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摘要：

iiABSTRACTFilm,apopularaudio-visualartwithbothartisticandcommercialvalues,isoneofthemostinfluentialmassmedianowadays.WiththedevelopmentofculturalexchangesbetweenChinaandtheworld,moreandmoreEnglishfilmsareintroducedtoChineseaudience.Thetitle,asanimportantpartofafilm,isofinformative,expressive,vocativ...

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