Binghan Zheng

The role of consultation sources revisited: An empirical study of English–Chinese translation

This paper contributes to empirical research into expertise in translation by investigating how translators approach source texts and how they use consultation sources, specifically dictionaries, to inform their translation choices. Subjects participating in the study described were divided into three groups – novice, semi-professional and professional translators – based on their levels of experience in translation. The aim of the study described was to determine if and how experience affects the way in which translators approach the translation task. Data obtained from Think-aloud protocols, translation evaluations and retrospective interviews were triangulated. As a result, findings show that: consultation aims tend to evolve from comprehension to expression as experience in translation increases; professional translators tend to be more flexible and diversified in their use of consultation sources (the selection of consultation methods is related to multiple factors such as text style, time pressure and personal preferences); and professional translators display an investigative attitude towards consultation sources (they have a better understanding of how to use consultation sources with maximum efficiency, regularly engaging in reverse lookup activities and showing a higher frequency of use of Predominantly Internal Support). Finally, in addition to translation experience, consultation proficiency has been found to be a significant factor in determining the frequency of consultation, and the efficiency of the translation process.

Visiting elements thought to be “inactive”: non-human actors in Arthur Waley’s translation of Journey to the West

This paper applies actor–network theory (ANT) to study the non-human agents that participate in the translation and publication process of Monkey, an English translation of the Chinese clas...

Gender difference of hedging in interpreting for chinese government press conferences: A corpus-based study

This paper aims to examine gender differences in hedging in Chinese–English conference interpreting based on a transcribed parallel corpus. The point of departure was to test Holmes’s (1986, 1988a) claims that women do not necessarily employ more hedges than men but that women’s use of hedges tends to focus more on interpersonal relationships while men’s is more on propositional precision. Hyland’s (1996a, 1996b) model in which hedges were categorized into accuracy-oriented, speaker-oriented and audience-oriented, has been adapted for this end. Our finding shows that male interpreters actually employ more hedges than their female counterparts on the whole. In particular, their accuracy-oriented and speaker-oriented hedges exceed those of female interpreters, but not for audience-oriented ones. To find out whether these differences were caused by the source texts per se or by interpreters’ manipulation, we named four types of interpreting approach towards hedge items: direct transfer, indirect transfer, sh...

Reconstructing a narrative, reinterpreting a history: a case study of translating Big Breasts and Wide Hips

Literary translation in the English-speaking community has become the most significant pathway for foreign works to enter the World Literature scene and compete for international recognitions. It is therefore worth examining the role of translation in literary canonisation. This research studies the “Mobel” phenomenon of the 2012 Nobel Laureate Mo Yan, selecting one of Mo’s most representative works – Big Breasts and Wide Hips as the material for case study. By comparing the original and the translated text, it aims to identify both micro translation changes and macro editing choices. Such textual analysis is then combined with references to meta-texts including translator’s preface and interviews, the readers’ response embodied in Nobel Prize documents, literary critiques and media reports. Considering that the controversies around Mo’s winning have fixated on his own political identity and politically sensitive works, the case study will focus on the book’s interpretation of China’s political history. I...