Abstract
The translation of film titles has become a popular phrase in modern life. As is known to all, how to translate the film titles has become a controversial topic in the field of translation for a long time. The translation of western film titles is quite different from the translation of Chinese film titles. In the process of the translation, sometimes films titles will have different translations owing to the different translators. Because every one has his own idea, experience and knowledge. And translators also need to comply to four Principles of translation of film titles. Films are a very important part of cultural interchanges. Therefore, the culture of the countries is becoming a major content to present in the films. This paper points out the importance of the translation of film titles and calls on the translators to pay more attention to it. The art, commercial and social feature characterize the film titles. Translation isn’t a process to change one language to the other. Foreign audiences are more often than not to comprehend the original film titles. The Chinese audiences wouldn’t arouse sympathy when they see the original film titles. The author analyzes that people shouldn’t hold one-side view that the literal translation is good or the free translation is good. The literal translation and free translation ought to supplement and complement each other. These two methods must combine and use adjusting orders, adding or reducing some words of the original film titles to get the best results of the translation of film titles.
Key Words:film titles; literal translation; free translation; culture
摘 要
当今社会，“电影片名的翻译”已经成为一个流行的词语，众所周知，如何译好电影片名已成为翻译界很长时间内热烈讨论的话题；西片的片名不同于中国电影片名，在翻译的过程中，由于译者的想法、经验和知识不同，翻译也会有所不同。并且翻译者要遵守电影片名翻译的四项原则。电影是文化交流非常重要的部分，所以，各国的文化成为电影中所要表达的内容。本文指出了电影片名翻译的重要性，并号召译者对其重视，其中艺术、商业、社会特征描绘了电影片名，那就是翻译不只是一种语言向另一种语言转换的过程；西方观众能一目了然的片名，中国人却不这么认为。作者分析了直译和意译的不同，这主要是由于文化的不同，最后得出结论：不能片面地说直译好还是意译好，这两者是相辅相承的，作者提议两者之间应结合起来，具体问题具体分析，在电影片名翻译的问题上应用改变词序、增词或减词的方法来翻译片名以求得这两种翻译方法之间的平衡。
关键词:影片名；直译；意译；文化
Contents
Abstract in English
Abstract in Chinese
Preface 1
1. Introduction 2
1.1 Features of Film Titles 2
1.1.1 Art Feature 2
1.1.2 Economic Feature 2
1.1.3 Social Feature 3
2. Four Principles in Translation of Film Titles 4
2.1 The Principle of Information Value 4
2.2 The Principle of Culture Value 4
2.3 The Principle of Aesthetic Value 5
2.4 The Principle of Commercial Value 5
3. Approaches of the Translation of Film Titles 6
3.1 Literal Translation 7
3.2 Free Translation 9
3.3 Discussion on the Literal and Free Translation of Film Titles 11
4. Roles of Translator and Audience 12
4.1 Translator as a Dispenser Role on the Translation of Film Titles 12
4.2 Audience as an Acceptant Role on the Translation of Film Titles 13
5. Conclusion 13
References 14
Acknowledgements 15
