A Comparative Study of Translator Styles in the English Translations of The Three-Body Trilogy from the Perspective of Transknowletology

doi:10.3969/j.issn.1674-8921.2024.04.013

Abstract

Abstract:

From the perspective of Transknowletology, the paper conducts a comparative analysis of the translator styles exhibited by Ken Liu and Joel Martinsen in the process of globalizing and reconstructing local Chinese science fiction knowledge. The study constructs a self-built corpus of the English translations ofThe Three-Body Problem and The Dark Forest and employs Multidimensional Analysis method combined with text close reading. It is found that both translators adhere to the general organizational form of knowledge typical to science fiction literature, yet significant differences exist in terms of narrative concerns and informational elaboration in the two translations. The fundamental cause of these stylistic differences lies in their distinct translation philosophies: Ken Liu leans towards “cross-linguistic modulation and intercultural dialogue in knowledge translation”, while Joel Martinsen is more inclined towards “translation as an intermediary for knowledge world-sharing”.

Key words: Transknowletology, translator style, science fiction literature, The Three Body Trilogy

CLC Number:

H315.9

JIN Shengxi, LI Haoyu. A Comparative Study of Translator Styles in the English Translations of The Three-Body Trilogy from the Perspective of Transknowletology[J]. Contemporary Foreign Languages Studies, 2024, 24(4): 145-157.

Figures/Tables 7

References 20

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	《三体1》(N=35)		《三体2》(N=7)
	M	SD	M	SD	U	p
维度1	-8.35	3.45	-6.94	2.3	156.5	0.257
维度2	1.44	1.92	2.63	0.63	185	0.034
维度3	0.19	1.6	-0.18	0.71	111.5	0.716
维度4	-1.12	1.56	-1.77	1.19	108	0.644
维度5	-0.33	1.12	-0.72	0.35	97.5	0.407
维度6	-0.84	0.76	-0.34	0.26	195.5	0.011

模型	R	R²	调整 R²	标准估计的误差
《三体1》	1.000	1.000	1.000	0.00777
《三体2》	1.000	1.000	1.000	0

模型		未标准化系数		标准化系数	t值	p值
模型		B	标准误差	Beta	t值	p值
《三体1》	(常量)	-7.401	0.078		-95.200	0.000
	VBD	0.329	0.002	0.284	136.568	0.000
	TPP3	0.446	0.002	0.285	285.395	0.000
	PEAS	1.915	0.008	0.230	230.368	0.000
	PUBV	1.838	0.007	0.248	264.628	0.000
	PRESP	5.882	0.009	0.499	690.584	0.000
	VPRT	0.002	0.002	0.001	0.786	0.440
	JJ	0.000	0.002	0.000	0.211	0.834
	WZPAST	0.014	0.021	0.001	0.659	0.516
	AWL	0.004	0.013	0.000	0.279	0.782
	SYNE	6.266	0.015	0.326	410.352	0.000
《三体2》	(常量)	20.040	0.000		.	.
	PEAS	2.327	0.000	0.583	-	-
	PRESP	-0.992	0.000	-0.108	-	-
	VPRT	-0.930	0.000	-0.651	-	-
	WZPAST	-4.640	0.000	-0.205	-	-
	AWL	-3.393	0.000	-0.389	-	-
	SYNE	2.620	0.000	0.478	-	-
因变量:维度2

模型	R	R²	调整 R²	标准估计的误差
《三体1》	1.000	1.000	1.000	0.00373
《三体2》	1.000	1.000	1.000	0

模型		未标准化系数		标准化系数	t值	p值
模型		B	标准误差	Beta	t值	p值
《三体1》	(常量)	-3.490	0.005		-747.178	0.000
	THVC	3.441	0.007	0.566	496.385	0.000
	DEMO	2.388	0.003	0.800	682.847	0.000
	TOBJ	-0.002	0.011	0.000	-0.143	0.887
	THAC	-0.013	0.015	-0.001	-0.905	0.374
	STPR	0.007	0.008	0.001	0.879	0.388
	EX	-0.014	0.009	-0.002	-1.550	0.134
	DEMP	-0.009	0.006	-0.002	-1.426	0.166
	WHOBJ	-0.020	0.070	0.000	-0.279	0.782
	PHC	-0.005	0.004	-0.001	-1.366	0.184
《三体2》	(常量)	-3.555	0.000		-	-
	THVC	3.483	0.000	0.430	-	-
	DEMO	2.466	0.000	0.820	-	-
	THAC	-0.542	0.000	-0.032	-	-
	STPR	0.013	0.000	0.002	-	-
	WHOBJ	-0.071	0.000	-0.003	-	-
	PHC	-0.007	0.000	-0.002	-	-
因变量: 维度6