Steps to Elegant Translation from E to C (with illustrative sentences in simplified Chinese)

Book excerpt: Most of the existing books about translation principles and techniques tend to lay special stress on tedious theoretical expositions, which is very abstract and uninteresting. Actually what most people need are practical translation technique books with elicitation methods, and such books with elicitation methods are helpful to them, i.e. helpful to most people. However, it is a pity that books of this kind have not been available so far. The author’s aim of writing this book is to remedy this lamentable situation with his practical experience gained from his teaching and translating work over the past several decades. The problem of translation techniques is mainly a problem of how to meet the three requirements, namely, “fidelity”, “fluency” and “elegance” put forward by Chinese ancient scholar Yan Fu. As a matter of fact, it is not difficult to basically meet these three requirements only if you have mastered the knack of doing translation provided for by this guide book. The compilation principle of this book is, by completely getting rid of those abstract, tedious, very dull and dry theoretical expositions as well as those grammatical terms difficult for people to understand, to sum up the most useful translation methods in a simple, concise and direct way, supported by a great number of meticulously selected typical example sentences for illustration, some of which are quoted from famous English and American literary works, in an attempt to pass on to the learners the knack of doing translation which they have never been told about. When you have mastered such a knack, you will find translation work a pleasure rather than a burdensome job. Steps to Elegant Translation from E to C is the first easy-to-learn practical guide book of this kind. Its targeted readers are those at intermediate English and Chinese level, including high school and college students. The book will directly help them to raise their translation proficiency effectively. To those who are interested in translation, this book can help them to easily solve their problems in connection with translation. To the professional translators and teachers teaching translation course, this book is of constructive referential value to them. Foreigners learning Chinese or learning translation from E to C with intermediate Chinese level will find it a substantial help to them.