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Therefore, the author mainly analyzes the untranslatability from the aspects of cultural differences between English and Chinese as follows: historical culture, geographical culture, customs and traditions, and religious culture. And at the same time, the methods of reducing untranslatability are also discussed in this paper. The purpose is to enhance English learner’s understanding of untranslatability, help them master some useful strategies and thus improve their abilities of translation.
This paper is composed of five parts. The first part is an introduction, and the second part is a brief introduction to the definition and classification of untranslatability. In the third part, the author mainly analyzes the untranslatability from the perspective of cultural differences between English and Chinese. In the fourth part, the paper explores the strategies of reducing untranslatability. The last part is a conclusion.
II. Brief Introduction to Untranslatability
Translation can be regarded as a kind of cross-cultural communication. Although some of the information in translation activity can be effectively conveyed, it is sometimes difficult for translators to find the equivalent words or phrases in the target language. Eugene Nida, American translation theorist, once said in The Principle of Equivalence, “There is no complete equivalence between different languages, so the totally correct translation does not exist. However, it is possible for translators to make the translation close to the source language. ” (156) This is the untranslatability which is referred to by translators in translation studies.
2.1 The Definition of Untranslatability
The untranslatability is inevitable in the process of translation. It is the theoretical problem that has been argued constantly for a long time in the field of translation studies. When it comes to untranslatability, we don’t mean that something is absolutely untranslatable in translation practice. Or rather, we mean that in translation, we cannot find the same equivalence to fulfill its function both in form and meaning in the target language. We can try to find out a similar expression or word to transmit the information. In addition, we can use some strategies to help us reduce untranslatability and lessen the barrier in translation. In translation, the information in the source language sometimes cannot be effectively conveyed in the target language, thus leading to the changes or loss of the meaning. This phenomenon is called untranslatability, which is mainly caused by language differences and cultural gaps. Cultural differences between English and Chinese are mainly reflected from the aspects of the follows: cultural background, customs and traditions, religious culture, and cultural gaps and conflicts. Language is not only the product of culture, but also the carrier of culture. However, cultural untranslatability is ultimately reflected in the linguistic level, and it is mainly caused by the different cultures.
Nowadays, with the development of language and translation theories, people don’t lay one-sided emphasis on the problem of translation whether it is possible or not. On the one hand, due to the similarities of cultures in different countries, many people have reached the viewpoint that translatability is possible in translation. And it is by the means of translating that makes different nations communicate with each other. On the other hand, different languages and cultures have their special features, so untranslatability is inevitable between different languages in translation. British translation theorist, Catford (1965) classified untranslatability into two kinds: linguistic untranslatability and cultural untranslatability. We regard untranslatability which is resulted from linguistic differences as the true untranslatability, that is, absolute untranslatability. Cultural untranslatability which is resulted from the differences of religion and society is temporary, because cultural background itself in nature can be recognized and expressed, so cultural untranslatability is called relative untranslatability. In this paper, the author mainly analyzes untranslatability from cultural differences and discusses some effective solutions to reduce it.