Numerals in Chinese Literature: Functions and Problems of Translation into Russian: on the Collection of Bi Feiyu’s Novellas ‘The Moon Opera’

Abstract

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     The article analyzes the features of the functioning of numerals in the texts of Chinese fiction, and also considers the problems of their translation into Russian. The research is based on the stories of Bi Feiyu, who is one of the Chinese writers of the 1960s. The analysis of the usage contexts allowed us to distinguish (in addition to the actual designation of the abstract quantity – this universal function was not considered) three more functions: the plot-forming function, the function of using numerals as a component in rhetorical techniques, and as a component of the idioms. The authors analyze the translation strategies: they give a description of the causes of translation difficulties and possible ways of translating numerals. The collection of novellas “The Moon Opera” published in Russia (translated by A. and O. Rodionovs, St. Petersburg: Azbuka, 2014) is taken as a source of material for the analysis of the translation into Russian. Difficulties associated with cultural, linguistic and emotional differences in the perception of numbers, as well as caused by ignoring the plot, are highlighted. Considering possible ways of translation, the authors draw on translation theory that focuses on social semiotics. This theory uses the concepts of domestication and foreignization. Depending on the presence of cultural values in the numeral in the original text the authors follow a literal translation (foreignization strategy), or a free translation / translation with equivalent replacement (domestication strategy).
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References

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