A Comparative Study of the Two English Translations of The Back from the Perspective of Reiss’s Translation Criticism Theory

This paper analyzes the two English translations of Zhu Ziqing’s prose The Back from the perspective of Reiss’s translation Criticism Theory. The article begins with an overview of Reiss’s theory, emphasizing the importance of text type orientation and language features. Then, the translations by Zhang Peiji, and by Yang Xianyi&Dai Naidie were systematically compared from the internal linguistic features such as vocabulary, semantics, syntax, rhetoric, as well as the speaker, recipient, cultural difference and translator’s subjectivity. The study shows that Zhang tends to adopt direct translation and pursue formal equivalence; Yang & Dai focuses on free translation and emphasizes content communication. The two translation strategies have their own advantages in their attempts to showcase the artistic charm of the original work. The article finally points out that translation requires the translator’s creative coordination between respecting the original work and adapting to the target culture.