Abstract

In the translation practice, learners of English often encounter some difficulties which mainly lie in the understanding of rhetoric. People consciously or unconsciously use rhetoric in language practice. Especially in speeches, in order to enhance the language appeal and the effect of language expression, the use of rhetorical devices is indispensable. “ A tale of two political systems” made by Eric Li, a famous venture capitalist and political scientist, is used as a text under study, in which some of the common rhetorical devices in English and their translation strategies are the research focus. This speech is related to the history of the rise of China, covering politics, economy, and culture and so on. In this speech, the rhetoric devices are diverse, and the representation is strong. The rhetorical devices used in this speech are divided into four categories. Metaphor, parallelism, hyperbole and personification are members of the first group. Then, speakers usually make use of rhyme, alliteration, repetition, and antithesis to strengthen the sense of rhythm and make their speeches more vivid. Obviously, these five belong to the second group. Thirdly, understatement and irony are subordinate to the third group. Finally, the rest rhetorical devices like allusion, rhetorical question and metonymy and climax are parts of the fourth group. This study hopes that this analysis could help English learners to master the basis of English rhetoric, understand the similarities and differences between English and Chinese language from the perspective of rhetoric and know more about different translation strategies of English rhetoric. Another intention is to enhance English learners’ reading abilities, literary appreciating level and the writing capacities.

Key words: English-Chinese translation; English rhetorical devices; translation strategies; speeches

Contents

Abstract

摘要

1. Introduction1

2. Literature Review.2

3. Methodology3

  3.1 Research purpose.3

  3.2 Research text3

  3.3 Data collection4

4.Results and Discussion4

4.1 Common rhetorical devices.8

4.2 Phonetic rhetorical device used in this speech9

4.3 Special rhetorical devices used in this speech10

4.4 Other rhetorical devices10

5.Conclusion11

   5.1Major findings.11

   5.2 Suggestions for future study11

6. References12