Abstract

Through the Looking-Glass, as one of the most famous literature for children, was written by British writer Lewis Carroll. It made a stir as soon as it was published. With its spread over one century, it has translations of more than eighty languages. It has been very popular among not only children but also grown-ups since its spread in China. 

In the thesis, the author chooses two Chinese versions of Through the Looking-Glass from two different periods of time to make comparative research. The author adopts plenty of examples to do the research. Here, the two main concepts “horizon of expectations” and “fusion of horizons” are applied to analyze the two versions of Alice to study their reception by both children and grown-ups. It also discusses the different ways that the translators adopt to deal with their target readers. The comparative study can be divided into two parts, namely differences caused by different horizons of expectations of the translators and of readers. The two translators, with different historical and cultural backgrounds, have different horizon of expectations which lead to their different styles and customs of translating. Besides, according to their different horizon of expectations and receptivity of target readers, the translators also choose different ways of translating. As the most basic unit, the choice of vocabulary is of great importance. The thesis is mainly to contend that one translation of literary works can hardly satisfy all readers for their different historical backgrounds and receptivity. One literary work needs different versions of translations for different target readers. 

Zhao Yuanren targets at children while Wang Yongnian targets at grown-ups. The two translators choose different words and expression to cater to their target readers. Nevertheless, both of their translations have values and reasonableness for the readers of their times and cultural backgrounds.

Key words: Reception Theory, Through the Looking-Glass, horizon of expectations, fusion of horizons

Contents

Abstract

中文摘要

Chapter One Introduction-1

1.1 Research Background-1

1.2 Significance and Objective of the Study-1

2.3 Layout of the Study-2

Chapter Two Literature Review-3

2.1 Background of Reception Theory-3

2.2 An Overview of Studies on Carroll's Alice-4

2.2.1 Through the Looking-Glass-4

2.2.2 Previous Studies on Carroll’s Works-5

2.2.3 Studies on Carroll’s Alice from Reception Theory-6

Chapter Three Theoretical Framework-8

3.1 An Overview of Reception Theory-8

3.2 Main Concepts of Reception Theory-8

3.2.1 Horizon of Expectations and Fusion of Horizons-9

3.2.2 Appealing Structure-9

Chapter Four Comparing the Two Versions with Jauss’s “HoE” and “FoH”-11

4.1 Differences in Translators’ Horizons of Expectations-11

4.1.1 Differences in Historical and Cultural Backgrounds of the Translators-12

4.1.2 Differences in Social and Regional Backgrounds of the Translators-13

4.2 Differences in Readers’ Horizons of Expectations-14

4.2.1 Differences in the Use of Modal Particles-15

4.2.2 Differences in the Use of Onomatopoetic Words-16

4.2.3 Difference in the Choice of Cultural Items-17

4.2.4 Differences in the Use of Verbs-18

Chapter Five Conclusion-20

6.1 Major Findings-20

6.2 Limitations and Suggestions-20

References-22

文献综述报告-24