医学英语翻译与写作 Medical English Translation and writing 张晶 山东大学大外部

Chapter 3 Equivalence and Flexibility in Translation

To understand equivalent translation correctly Literal translation and free translation Concretion and abstraction Negative translation and reverse translation

Equivalent Translation Dynamic equivalence is a quality of a translation in which the message of the original text has been so transported into the receptor language that the response of the receptor is essentially like that of the original receptors. ——— Eugene A Nida, The Theory and Practice of Translation It seeks to make the same impact without regard to the form of the original language.

Equivalent Translation “There is always some loss in the communication process, for sources and receptors never have identical linguistic and cultural backgrounds…. The translator’s task, however, is to keep such loss at a minimum” (de Waard & Nida)

Equivalent Translation The woman patient has been a widow only six months. Acute and subacute hepatic necrosis more often complicates hepatitis in the elderly. The illness quickly responded to treatment. If a tumour is palpable, the disease is often too advanced to be treated radically.

Literal translation and free translation Medical science, as a branch of science, needs no special ethics. He is dead, as you stand here. Influenza has been with us a long, long time. A cancer spreads its own seeds which plant themselves in other parts of the body. The skill of the surgeon leaves nothing to be desired.

Concretion and abstraction An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Cancer of the uterus involves the body of the organ in about 1 in 7 cases. Foods adequate in kind and amount during the pregnant months are very important to the health of both present and future generations.

Negative translation and reverse translation Many mild cases are observed in which fever is low and of short duration. The disease can affect any ages and the highest incidence is in the young and middle age groups. Through this membrane materials are allowed to pass into the protoplasm. AIDS was first recognized in the United States in 1981.