Abstract

Tao Yuanming, a great poet in China, is best known for his pastoral works, in which the countryside beauty is vividly expressed. However, the translation of poetry has been a major concern for scholars, because the external and internal properties of the original work cannot be received simultaneously. At present, the most popular methods in poetry translation are rhymed translation and free verse translation. But they do not take the readers’ expectations and cognitive environments into consideration, and cannot receive the best effect among readers. 

This paper focuses on different translation versions of Tao Yuanming’s pastoral works and analyses whether the relevance theory has been applied and the effects it caused in both native and foreign readers. It also explores the significance of cognitive context as well as the nature of poetry translation. Based on relevance theory, the paper makes a comparison analysis of different translation versions and studies how to make the readers achieve the optimal relevance of the source language regarding the cultural and cognitive differences. Finally the paper reaches a conclusion that relevance theory is applicable in poetry translation, and proper using of this theory is of great significance in the revival of the original work.

Key words: relevance theory; cognitive context; comparison analysis; poetry translation

Contents

Abstract

中文摘要

1 Introduction-1

2 Literature review-2

2.1 Relevance theory-2

2.2 Previous achievements in relevance theory translation-3

3 Chinese poetry translation-4

3.1 Main strategies in Chinese poetry translation-4

3.2 The translation of Tao Yuanming’s works-4

4 Comparison analysis of the translation of Tao Yuanming’s poetry-5

4.1 Context and cognitive environments-5

4.2 The principle of optimal relevance-7

4.2.1 The translation of images-7

4.2.2 The handling of words-9

4.3 Reproduction of artistic beauty-11

5 Some shortages and implications in poetry translation-13

5.1 Some shortages in relevance theory translation-14

5.2 From the aesthetic perspective-14

5.3 From the cultural equivalence perspective-15

6 Conclusion-16

References-18