A Study on Translator’s Subjectivity in Poetry Translation Guided by Skopos Theory
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- Keywords: Translator’s subjectivity; Skopos Theory; Cultural adaptation; New Culture Movement
- Abstract: This study investigates the manifestation of the translator’s subjectivity in Zheng Zhenduo’s Chinese rendition of Tagore’s Stray Birds through the lens of Skopos Theory. Situating the translation practice within the New Culture Movement of the 1920s, the research examines how Zheng’s “enlightenment-oriented” translation purpose shaped his strategic choices. Textual analysis reveals three key dimensions: Firstly, Zheng localized cultural imagery and reconstructed prosodic patterns to align with vernacular modernization. Secondly, his subjectivity manifested in dynamically balancing fidelity and creativity, preserving Tagore’s pantheistic essence while employing cultural adaptation through omission/amplification. Thirdly, Zheng’s dual identity as a translator-editor engendered ideological intervention through paratextual framing. The study demonstrates how translator subjectivity under Skopos’s Theory facilitated literary canon reconstruction, offering fresh perspectives for modern translation historiography.
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How Chinese Learners Acquire Motion Expressions in English
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- Keywords: language-specific influence; manner verb; motion event expression; path particle; second language acquisition
- Abstract: This study examines how Chinese adult learners of English acquire characteristic motion event expressions in English with an aim of determining which force mainly drives the rate and the progress of second language acquisition. 36 Chinese learners of English, as compared to a group of English monolingual speakers, were requested to describe voluntary motion events showing varied types of manner and path information (e.g. The man jumped across the tracks). Their utterances were analyzed at two levels: a) verb type (manner verb, path verb, general verb) at the lexical level and b) verb-supporting elements (particles, prepositional phrase, zero) at the grammatical level. The results of statistical analyses such as chi-square and one-way ANOVA reveal that although, in general, Chinese learners of English can acquire the typical patterns of motion expression in English, those of intermediate and low proficiencies use specific manner verbs and path particles at a significantly low frequency as compared to English monolinguals. These results show that second language learners have not fully dispensed with the constraints of their native language, suggesting, in general, that languagespecific factors play an important role in second language acquisition.
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How to Make Construals for Language Activities More Dynamic
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- Keywords: conversation; dynamic construals; image schemas; teaching grammar
- Abstract: This article aims to give a cognitive linguistic account of providing dynamic construals for classroom activities within the context of second language teaching. After a brief discussion of possible conceptual issues involved in construal operations and image schemas in conversational type activities in teaching Present Continuous Tense, it will be argued that a suitable cognitive linguistic framework is needed to model the various complex dimensions of teaching grammar, providing the solid foundation for the productive activities. Following a short introduction to various parts of construal operations and the nature of schemas in cognitive linguistics, five types of conversation activities (interview, discussion, narratives, arguments or debates and role play) will be positioned within two influential models of cognitive linguistics, i.e., “linguistic construal operations” developed within various constructions of “image schemas.” Then, a link will be established between the concept of linguistic construals and different types of image schema, which provides a toolset for modeling the implicit knowledge structures underlying specific usage events in communication. For the assessment of the suitability of the proposed framework, the article concludes with a discussion on good lesson plan criteria from cognitive point of view which can provide a measure learning value in language activity.
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The Impact of Bilingualism on Storage and Processing in Working Memory
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- Keywords: dual-task paradigm; verbal working memory; storage and processing, language-dependent effect, cognitive linguistics
- Abstract: Working memory as a cognitive system refers to a mental workspace involved in the temporary storage and processing of information. Although many scholars have looked extensively at the implications of WM for second language acquisition or for translation, the inner relationship of WM is still underdeveloped. The purpose of this study is to investigate 1) whether the interaction between storage and processing-based functions of verbal working memory is positive or negative, 2) and whether the interaction between working memory capacity and language proficiency is language-specific. Thirty-three students were allowed to participate in the experiments. Both the processing and storage functions of verbal WM in language contrasts (L1/L2) were separately assessed via a dual-task paradigm programmed in the E-Prime. The correlation coefficient indicates two relationships within bilingual WM capacity: 1) between L1 WM storage and L1 WM processing; 2) between L2 WM storage and L2 WM processing. These results demonstrate that verbal WM capacity is language-dependent and that there is a positive correlation between WM storage and WM processing.
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Metaphorical Competence in Chinese EFL learners
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- Keywords: gender; individual variables; language proficiency; metaphor identification; metaphor interpretation; metaphor production
- Abstract: This article examines the possible relationship between Chinese EFL learners’ metaphorical competence (MC) and their language proficiency and gender based on empirical studies of 110 Chinese EFL male and female students. Emphasizing the importance of context in understanding metaphors and the multifaceted connotation of MC, the study describes three facets of MC: (i) the ability to identify and interpret metaphors in context, (ii) fluency of metaphor interpretation, and (iii) originality of metaphor production. SPSS 16.0 was run to analyze the collected data of MC tests and language proficiency test CET Band 4. The results demonstrate that female Chinese EFL learners were significantly better at identifying and interpreting metaphors than their male counterparts especially in context, while their ability to produce creative metaphors did not significantly surpass that of the males. I also found that the participants’ language proficiency was significantly related to identifying and interpreting metaphors in context and the fluency of metaphor interpretation. It was not, however, significantly related to the ability to produce creative metaphors. EThe results are elucidated, and the implications of these findings are discussed.
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