Tian Xujun
School of Foreign Languages, Shanghai Lixin University of Accounting and Finance, Shanghai, China.
PLoS One. 2025 Mar 28;20(3):e0320490. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0320490. eCollection 2025.
This study examines the role of translators as mediators in bridging the psychological gap between source text (ST) and target text (TT) through a corpus-based analysis of Chinese English translation of modal verbs in the Chinese Report on the Work of the Government from 2000 to 2022. The research reveals that translators frequently modulate high-value Chinese modals into medium or low-value English equivalents. This strategic modulation, along with the use of explicitation and implicitation, reflects the translators' efforts to balance source text fidelity with target text acceptability. The findings underscore the translators' role in adapting authoritative Chinese political discourse to align with expectations of the international audiences, thereby facilitating effective cross-cultural communication. This study contributes to translation studies by providing insights into the translation of modality in political texts and emphasizing the critical role of translators in mediating linguistic and cultural differences.
本研究通过对2000年至2022年《政府工作报告》汉英翻译中情态动词的语料库分析，考察了译者作为调解者在弥合源文本（ST）和目标文本（TT）之间心理差距方面的作用。研究发现，译者经常将高价值的汉语情态词调整为中等或低价值的英语对应词。这种策略性调整，以及显化和隐化的运用，反映了译者在平衡源文本忠实度和目标文本可接受性方面所做的努力。研究结果强调了译者在使权威性汉语政治话语符合国际受众期望方面的作用，从而促进有效的跨文化交流。本研究通过深入探讨政治文本中情态的翻译，并强调译者在调解语言和文化差异方面的关键作用，为翻译研究做出了贡献。
