A Contrastive Appreciation of Poetry Translation under the Theory of Functional Equivalence--A Case Study of Three English Versions of Yong Liu

Abstract

Literary translation has always been an important and diffi cult point in translation, in which the translation of poems with more refi ned language and more beautiful artistic conception is more diffi cult. Chinese classical poetry is quite diff erent from English poetry in content, format and the way of expressing emotion. Among them, the diff erences in image, rhythm and form in poetry are the most obvious. So whether translating classical Chinese poetry into English or translating English poetry into Chinese will reduce the charm of the original poetry. The translation theory of “dynamic equivalence” put forward by Eugene Nida shows that translation is not only lexical equivalence, but also semantic and stylistic equivalence. [1] In some ways, the theory of functional equivalence can guide the translation of poetry and provide some criteria. According to the theory of functional equivalence and the characteristics of Chinese and English poetry, the author makes an appreciation and comparison of the three English versions of Yong Liu.