Table Of ContentNew Frontiers in Translation Studies
Zhonglian Huang
Yongzhong Zhang
Variational
Translation
Theory
New Frontiers in Translation Studies
Series Editor
Defeng Li
Center for Studies of Translation, Interpreting and Cognition,
University of Macau, Macao SAR, China
Translation Studies as a discipline has witnessed the fastest growth in the last 40
years.Withtranslationbecomingincreasinglymoreimportantintoday’sglocalized
world,somehaveevenobservedageneraltranslationalturninhumanitiesinrecent
years. The New Frontiers in Translation Studies aims to capture the newest
developments in translation studies, with a focus on:
(cid:129) Translation Studies research methodology, an area of growing interest amongst
translation students and teachers;
(cid:129) Data-based empirical translation studies, a strong point of growth for the
discipline because of the scientific nature of the quantitative and/or qualitative
methods adopted in the investigations; and
(cid:129) Asian translation thoughts and theories, to complement the current Eurocentric
translation studies.
Submission and Peer Review:
The editor welcomes book proposals from experienced scholars as well as young
aspiringresearchers.Pleasesendashortdescriptionof500wordstotheeditorProf.
Defeng Li at Springernfi[email protected] and Springer Senior Publishing Editor
Rebecca Zhu: [email protected]. All proposals will undergo peer
reviewtopermitaninitialevaluation.Ifaccepted,thefinalmanuscriptwillbepeer
reviewed internally by the series editor as well as externally (single blind) by
Springer ahead of acceptance and publication.
More information about this series at http://www.springer.com/series/11894
Zhonglian Huang Yongzhong Zhang
(cid:129)
Variational Translation
Theory
123
ZhonglianHuang YongzhongZhang
Centerfor Translation Studies Schoolof ForeignLanguages
GuangdongUniversity of ForeignStudies HubeiUniversity of Economics
Guangzhou, China Wuhan, China
ISSN 2197-8689 ISSN 2197-8697 (electronic)
NewFrontiers in Translation Studies
ISBN978-981-15-9270-6 ISBN978-981-15-9271-3 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-9271-3
©TheEditor(s)(ifapplicable)andTheAuthor(s),underexclusivelicensetoSpringerNature
SingaporePteLtd.2020
Thisworkissubjecttocopyright.AllrightsaresolelyandexclusivelylicensedbythePublisher,whether
thewholeorpartofthematerialisconcerned,specificallytherightsoftranslation,reprinting,reuseof
illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and
transmissionorinformationstorageandretrieval,electronicadaptation,computersoftware,orbysimilar
ordissimilarmethodologynowknownorhereafterdeveloped.
The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this
publicationdoesnotimply,evenintheabsenceofaspecificstatement,thatsuchnamesareexemptfrom
therelevantprotectivelawsandregulationsandthereforefreeforgeneraluse.
The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this
book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the
authors or the editors give a warranty, expressed or implied, with respect to the material contained
hereinorforanyerrorsoromissionsthatmayhavebeenmade.Thepublisherremainsneutralwithregard
tojurisdictionalclaimsinpublishedmapsandinstitutionalaffiliations.
ThisSpringerimprintispublishedbytheregisteredcompanySpringerNatureSingaporePteLtd.
The registered company address is: 152 Beach Road, #21-01/04 Gateway East, Singapore 189721,
Singapore
Preface: Indispensable Variational Translation
Theory
Our Chinese monograph Variational Translation Theory was drafted in China in
1998andpublishedin2002.Inrecognitionofitswidespreadimpactontheresearch
and practice of translation scholars, practitioners, and graduate students, it was
listedasanentryinADictionaryofTranslationStudiesinChinain2011,andwas
labeledasthecountry’sfirstoriginaltranslationtheory.ThisEnglishbookisbased
in part on the 2002 Chinese book Variational Translation Theory and draws on
findingsandinsightsinthefieldthathavecometolightsinceitspublication.Itisa
sourceofgreatprideandjoythattheEnglisheditionistobepublishedbySpringer.
Although it is still an emerging area of translation studies, the theory and
practice of variational translation should be afforded the same status as those of
complete or full translation. Traditional translation studies generally focus on
complete translation. Few studies have addressed incomplete translations or
rewritings which have played an increasingly important role in reconstructing
human knowledge and culture, and advancing cross-cultural communication. With
the cultural turn of translation studies in the 1990s, incomplete translations or
rewritings of source texts gradually began to be acknowledged in the field of
translation studies, but no systematic research of incomplete translations or
unfaithful translation phenomena were made.
To advance an in-depth and systematic research of incomplete translations or
rewritings, we therefore use the term “variational translation” to refer to “unfaith-
ful” translations or rewritings, and divide translation studies into two interrelated
categories: complete translation and variational translation. By drawing upon our
researches on unfaithful translations and rewritings, we have found more than ten
different methods of variational translation. These methods, which are intrinsically
interrelated, are linked through theoretical categorization and systematization to
form an organic system of variational translation methods.
The book Variational Translation Theory provides its readership with a chance
to gain a thorough understanding of the motivations behind translators’ variational
translations, of the processes behind this kind of translation, and of the special
effects and values of variational translations in reconstructing human knowledge
and culture, and advancing cross-cultural communication.
v
vi Preface:IndispensableVariationalTranslationTheory
The practice of variational translation can, in fact, be traced back to oral and
writtencommunicationsamongdifferentethnictribesinearlyhumanhistory.There
are a great number of influential variational translations in human translation
practicefromancienttimestotheendofthetwentiethcentury.Unfortunately,they
have not been highlighted in translation studies. This book, by adopting the per-
spective of cross-cultural communication, justifies and addresses the practice of
variationaltranslationtheoreticallyandsystematicallyforthefirsttime.Variational
translation theory consists of one core philosophy, two contradictions, four key
factors, seven techniques, and eleven methods.
The core philosophy of variational translation is adaptation, which is subject to
two contradictions. One contradiction lies between the source text and the target
reader in terms of supply and demand, and the other between the content of the
source text and the form of the target language. The contradictions are related to
fourkeyfactors:thereader,thetranslator,thesourcetext,andthetargettext.These
factors generate seven adaptation techniques: adding, deleting, editing, narrating,
condensing, integrating, and altering. Although independent, these adaptation
techniques are interrelated and influence one another in translation practice. This
brings about theeleven variationaltranslation methods: selected translation, edited
translation, narrated translation, condensed translation, summarized translation,
summarized transcomment, transcomment, altered translation, annotated transla-
tion, transwriting, and cited translation. All these variational translation methods
canallowreaders togainabetter understandingofhow variationaltranslationsare
produced, and help them master these adaptation techniques and thereby improve
their translation efficacy and efficiency.
Thevalueofvariationaltranslationtheoryliesinthefollowingfourpoints:(1)It
hassummarizedandexplorednewtranslationmethodsandtheoreticalmodels,and
made new reflections on a series of theoretical issues such as the law, processes,
mechanisms, standards, and subjectivity of translation, which challenge the tradi-
tionally established views on translation; (2) it can deepen our understanding of
translation,renovateourperceptionoftranslation,establishapluralistviewpointof
translation, and focus on serving different readers and pursuing the social and
economic benefits of translation; (3) it can improve the existing systems of trans-
lation theories and methodologies and lay a strong theoretical foundation for
variationaltranslationpractice;and(4) itcanprovideanewperspectivefor further
understandingthenatureandrichnessoftranslationactivitiesandanewtheoretical
reference for comprehensively and objectively defining the scope of translation
activities.
The application value of variational translation theory mainly lies in the fol-
lowing three points: (1) It can direct variational translation training programs and
enabletrainees’outputtobemorecompatiblewithsocialneedsanddevelopments;
(2)itcanguidetranslatorstoservedifferenttargetreadersflexiblyandcreativelyat
the micro-level, enhance translators’ market awareness, and highlight the efficacy
and purpose of translation in terms of theory and practice; and (3) it can help
translatorsdealwithmassiveamountsofinformationefficiently,thusdevelopbetter
source text information processing during the translation process.
Preface:IndispensableVariationalTranslationTheory vii
Since its publication, the variational translation theory has received positive
reviews in the international journals—Meta and Perspectives, the top Chinese
journal Chinese Translators Journal, and key Chinese newspaper Guangming
Daily. These positive reviews have driven further researches on variational trans-
lation in China, which have been academically fruitful in this field. For example,
Prof. Huang Zhonglian, one of the authors of this book, has published three
researchmonographsandonetextbook,allofwhichinvolvevariationaltranslation
theory. The three research monographs are Scientific Translatology (2004),
Pragmatic Translatology (2013), and Exploring Yan Fu’s Variational Translation
Thoughts (2016). The first two incorporate variational translation theory into the
construction of the translation discipline, and the third analyzes the genesis of the
thoughts of the most influential Chinese translator, Yan Fu (1854–1921), on vari-
ational translation. The above-mentioned textbook, titled A Textbook for
Translation Development from Russian to Chinese (2007), discusses how to use
variationaltranslationtheorytoguidetranslationtrainingprograms.Currently,with
the aim of establishing the independent discipline of variational translatology, the
authors of this book are conducting further researches for publishing a new
monograph entitled Variational Translatology.
Before closing, we would like to extend our sincere thanks to all the scholars,
bothathomeandabroad,whoseusefulinsightsormaterialshavebeenincorporated
into this book to further support or exemplify variational translation theory. We
would also like to extend special thanks to Zhang Lu and Wang Shichao for their
assistance in the preparation of this book, and to the editors of Springer for their
coordination and editing work.
Guangzhou, China Zhonglian Huang
Wuhan, China Yongzhong Zhang
July, 2020
fi
Introduction: Pro le of Variational Translation
Theory
The term “variational translation” refers to a translation activity in which the
translator employs seven adaptation techniques—adding, deleting, editing, narrat-
ing,condensing,integrating,andaltering—toabsorbtheoriginalcontentsbasedon
theovertorcoverttranslationrequestsoftargetreadersinaspecificcondition.The
seven adaptation techniques utilized in variational translation practice can produce
the following eleven variational translation methods: selected translation, edited
translation, narrated translation, condensed translation, summarized translation,
summarized transcomment, transcomment, altered translation, annotated transla-
tion, transwriting, and cited translation. The relationships between these eleven
methodsarehierarchicalandinclusive,andformanorganicsystem.Pleasereferto
the following figure:
Variational translation theory holds that, in this figure, the complete translation
lies at the bottom of the figure, which is the full translation of the original work
withoutanycreativewritingadded.Atthetopisthecreativewriting,whichhasnot
undergone any translation actions. There is a big space between the complete
translationatthebottomandthecreativewritingatthetopinwhichtranslatorscan
use adaptation techniques to produce eleven variational translation types (also
called methods), as shown in the figure. As we move from selected translation to
cited translation, the content absorbed by translators from the original work
decreasesgradually,andtheformfadesawayuntilitcompletelyvanishes,withthe
informationfromtheoriginalworkdiminishing,andtheinformationcreatedbythe
translatorincreasing.Therefore,amongtheelevenvariationaltranslationtypes,the
original text’s information appears most in the selected translation and least in the
cited translation. This is because the selected translation is nearest to the complete
translation, and a cited translation is farthest from the complete translation and
nearest to the creative writing.
The relationships between the eleven methods of variational translation are
hierarchical and inclusive. Edited translation, which is in the hierarchical level
above selected translation, includes selected translation; that is to say, the adapta-
tion techniques used in selected translation can also be employed in edited trans-
lation. Similarly, summarized translation includes the four variational translation
ix
x Introduction:ProfileofVariationalTranslationTheory
C creativewriting D
cited translation
C1 transwriting D1
C2 altered translation D2
C3 annotated translation D3
C transcomment D
4 4
summarized
C D
5 transcomment 5
C D
n n
O
A B
n n
A B
5 summarized translation 5
A4 condensed translation B4
A3 narrated translation B3
A2 edited translation B2
A selected translation B
1 1
A complete translation B
4
Figureofthevariationaltranslationhierarchy
methods below it: selected, edited, narrated, and condensed translation. All the
adaptationtechniquesusedinthesefourmethodscanbeemployedbyatranslatorto
achieve a successful summarized translation. Likewise, a summarized transcom-
ment can be made based on all the adaptation techniques frequently used in the
lower hierarchical methods.
Developingthese variationaltranslationmethods intranslationpractice requires
thattranslatorsbringtheirsubjectivityintoplayinaccordancewiththetargetreaders’
