The translation methods applied in vietnamese version of the adventures of tom sawyer by mark twain

As an attempt to gain more insights into translation methods in literary translation, this research aims to investigate the translation methods used by the two translators Nguy Mong Huye

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FALCULTY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHER EDUCATION

GRADUATION PAPER

THE TRANSLATION METHODS APPLIED IN VIETNAMESE VERSION OF THE ADVENTURES

OF TOM SAWYER BY MARK TWAIN

Supervisor: Nguyen Thi Cam Linh, MA Student: Nguyen Duy Tuan

Year of enrolment: QH 2009

HANOI - 2013

ĐẠI HỌC QUỐC GIA HÀ NỘI TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ KHOA SƯ PHẠM TIẾNG ANH

KHÓA LUẬN TỐT NGHIỆP

CÁC PHƯƠNG PHÁP DỊCH ĐƯỢC ÁP DỤNG TRONG BẢN DỊCH TIẾNG VIỆT CỦA TÁC PHẨM NHỮNG CUỘC PHIÊU LƯU CỦA TOM SAWYER –

TÁC GIẢ MARK TWAIN

Giáo viên hướng dẫn: ThS Nguyễn Thị Cẩm Linh Sinh viên: Nguyễn Duy Tuấn

Khóa: QH 2009

HANOI – NĂM 2013

ACCEPTANCE

I hereby state that I: Nguyễn Duy Tuấn, class QH2009.F.1.E25, being a candidate for the degree of Bachelor of Arts (TEFL) accept the requirements of the University relating to the retention and use of Bachelor’s Graduation Paper deposited in the library

In terms of these conditions, I agree that the origin of my paper deposited in the library should be accessible for the purposes of study and research, in accordance with the normal conditions established by the librarian for the care, loan or reproduction of the paper

Signature

Date

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

It is my pleasure to thank those who make this thesis possible

First and foremost, I owe my deepest gratitude to my supervisor, Ms Nguyễn Thị Cẩm Linh, M.A, Lecturer of Faculty of English Language Teacher Education, ULIS, VNU This thesis could have probably not completed without her patient, enthusiastic and instructive supervision and encouragement

I also would like to express my sincere thanks to all the lecturers in the Faculty of English Language Teacher Education for devoting time and efforts to enrich, broaden and deepen my knowledge, especially on the major of translation and interpretation over the past four years My special thanks go as well to the Faculty of English Language Teacher Education for giving me the opportunity and permission to implement this thesis

Besides, I am heartily thankful to my classmates, who have enthusiastically supported and provided me with valuable suggestions

I am also deeply indebted to my family for their constant encouragement which motivated me to perform best during the thesis

Furthermore, I want to express my special thanks to Ms Công Nhung, class 11E19, who was my inspiration and supported me during the time

Lastly, I would like to offer my regards and blessings to all the readers of this paper I appreciate all the constructive comments on it and hope that my study will

be useful for those who also take interest in this subject

Nguyễn Duy Tuấn

ABSTRACT

Though The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is one of excellent works by Mark

Twain, which has great impacts on American literature, there have been little to no research on the way professional translators translate it into Vietnamese As an attempt to gain more insights into translation methods in literary translation, this research aims to investigate the translation methods used by the two translators

Nguy Mong Huyen and Hoang Van Phuong in translating The Adventures of Tom Sawyer into Vietnamese Besides that, the research succeeds in identifying the

frequency of every translation methods as well as their effectiveness Finally, some suggestions would also be given

These goals were achieved by a research using questionnaire and document observation Questionnaire were delivered to all 4th year students majoring in Translation and Interpreting, FELTE, ULIS, VNU

Findings from the study show that there are up to 6 out of 8 translation

methods according to Peter Newmark’s theory being used throughout the story The Adventures of Tom Sawyer The most common translation method applied is

communicative translation – a surprise to the researcher as the most appropriate method which are usually used in literary works is semantic translation method The study also suggests a non-traditional point in translating literary works Moreover, the researcher also suggest some better issues for further research

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACCEPTANCE i

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii

ABSTRACT iii

LIST OF TABLES, FIGURES i

CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION 1

1 Statement of the research and practical rationale for the study 1

2 Aims and objectives 2

3 Significances of the study 3

4 Scope of the study 4

5 Organization of the study 4

CHAPTER II: LITERATURE REVIEW 5

1 Definitions of translation 5

2 Translation methods Error! Bookmark not defined 2.1 The definition of translation methods Error! Bookmark not defined 2.2 Types is of translation methods (Peter Newmark’s theory) 7

3 Mark Twain and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer 12

3.1 Mark Twain 12

3.2 The Adventures of Tom Sawyer 13

CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY 14

1 Selection of subject 14

2 Research instrument 15

3 Data collection procedures 15

4 Data analysis procedures 16

1 Translation methods applied in the translation of The Adventures of Tom

Sawyer by Nguy Mong Huyen – Hoang Van Phuong 17

1.1 Semantic translation 19

1.3 Faithful translation 28

1.4 Free translation 30

1.5 Idiomatic translation 33

1.6 Adaptation 35

2 Result of students’ survey 38

2.1 Participants 38

2.2 Time 38

2.3 Process 38

2.4 The result for translation methods applied in translating The Adventures of Tom Sawyer decided by students 39

CHAPTER V CONCLUSION 43

1 Major findings of the study 43

2 Limitation of the study 44

3 Recommendations for further study 45

REFERENCES 46

APPENDIX 1 48

APPENDIX 2 53

LIST OF TABLES, FIGURES

Page Abbreviation SL: Source language

Table 1 Translation methods applied in translating The Adventures of

Tom Sawyer decided by students

40

CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION

1 Statement of the research and practical rationale for the study

As the country is increasingly integrating into the world, Vietnam has more and more chances to raise its competitiveness, develop the economy and enhance the living standard for people However, the integration also requires proper conditions and preparations Language difference is one of the most basic one That is why the role of translation is more important than ever It has great impact and relation to many aspects in daily modern life Being aware of the need for qualified translators

in the near future, in recent years, the University of Language and International Studies has made great progress in enhancing the quality of training translators and interpreters Being a senior student of the Translation – Interpretation Training Division at University of Language and International Studies - Vietnam National University, researcher decided to make a study on the field of English –Vietnamese translation as the graduation paper to improve my understanding and preparation about my future career

Translation is a complex academic field “Translation is not merely an interlinguistic process It is more complex than replacing source language text with target language text and includes cultural and educational nuances that can shape the options and attitudes of recipients.” (Bernacka, 2012) In the field of translation, one key concept which cannot be ignored is the translation methods The concept is not new It is a powerful measure to make the most appropriate translation There are many types of document which need to be translated To make standard translation, the translator has to apply a proper translation method which is suitable with each type of document The understanding and distinguishing of translation methods are still limited and controversial Yet, the main subject of the study is about translation methods

In order to make an effective study on translation methods, literary works such as novels, stories and poems are good suggestions Various types of works as well as the flexible contents which need to be transferred to readers enable the study

to make a thorough analysis on translation methods Therefore, a study on translation methods in literary should be scientifically conducted As a famous and

highly-evaluated short story, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain is

chosen as the subject of the study More specifically, the Vietnamese version by Nguy Mong Huyen and Hoang Van Phuong is the subject to make comparison with the original one It is regarded as one of the most common and successful literary translation

For all those reasons, the study “The translation methods applied in

Vietnamese version of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain” is

conducted to make a better view on the field of translation methods

2 Aims and objectives

By researching the work The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain and

its Vietnamese version, the study aims to:

- Identify all the translation methods which professional translators apply in the

translated version The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

- Identify the main translation methods which mostly applied in the translated

version The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

- Make recommendations for further researches on translation studies

In order to achieve those goals, the research aims to answer these following research questions:

1 What are the translation methods Nguy Mong Huyen and Hoang Van

Phuong applied in the Vietnamese version of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain?

2 What are the most common and effective translation methods Nguy Mong Huyen and Hoang Van Phuong applied in the Vietnamese version

of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain?

3 Significance of the study

The study aims at supporting translators-to-be of Translation and Interpretation Division, University of Language and International Studies, Vietnam National University as well as novice translators in particular and anyone who has the same interest in literary translation

Firstly, the study is expected to provide readers with a better view on academic translation methods More specifically, the study provides concepts and uses of all kinds of translation methods which are applied in Vietnamese version of

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer To some extent, it can help to develop the

understanding of readers about the translation methods which can be useful for literary translation Thanks to this, readers can find it useful in their process of mastering translation theory

Secondly, readers can find here the most common and effective translation

methods which are applied properly in Vietnamese version of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer To this extent, the study helps to make deep and thorough view about

some specific translation methods which are useful for professional researches about translation

Thirdly, the study provides readers with better suggestions about the translation methods which can be applied in translating literary works of Mark Twain, which supports better translations on these ones This can provide researchers with some useful and reliable information for their further studies in the future

4 Scope of the study

Translation is a complex and sophisticated concept, so it is impossible to discover all the aspects of this issue Within the scope of this graduation paper, this study focuses on translation methods Main dimensions of translation methods will

be mentioned such as semantic translation, communicative translation, literal translation, word-for-word translation, faithful translation, adaptive translation, free translation and idiomatic translation

All the quotations and examples, comparisons in the study are extracted from

the English and Vietnamese versions of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark

Twain (translated by Nguy Mong Huyen and Hoang Van Phuong)

5 Organization of the study

The structure of the study is as following:

Chapter 1 - Introduction: Provide an overview of the study with rationale, aims and

objectives, significance and organization of the study

Chapter 2 - Literature review: Provide key concepts in translation and linguistic in

order to understand the concept of translation and translation methods

Chapter 3 - Methodology: State methods of the study including selection of subjects,

research instrument, procedures of data collecting and procedures of data analysis

Chapter 4 - Findings and discussion: Discuss the results of the study and explain

how these results are discovered, then explain how they answer the research questions

Chapter 5 - Conclusion: Summarize discussed points, limitation of the study as well

as suggestions for further researches

CHAPTER II: LITERATURE REVIEW

1 Definitions of translation

Translation is a complex concept and many key thinkers have introduced its definition R Jakobson (1959) mentioned it in his theory “On linguistic aspects of translation” Following this theory, there are three types of translation as follow:

 Intralingual translation (or rewording): An interpretation of verbal signs by means of other sign in the same language

 Interlingual translation (translation paper): An interpretation of verbal signs

by means of some other languages

 Intersemiotic translation (transmutation): An interpretation of verbal signs of non-verbal system

This classification seems quite obscure, as it describes the translation from a panorama view In this definition, translation does not merely concern linguistic units like words, sentences, texts but also refers to non-linguistic measures like non-verbal language system

In a simpler way, the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary - 7th edition, defines that "translation is a process of changing something from written or spoken form into another language" This definition shares something in common with second type of translation mentioned in Jakobson's essay Besides, translation as defined in Le & Nguyen (2008), is "the expression in another language (or target language) of what has been expressed in another (source language), preserving semantic and stylistic equivalence" By this, translation in common sense is the talking or writing about one thing using a different language The definition also clearly states two most significant criteria for translation: unaffected information and the style of the source language text

But translation is not only a process, but also a product in which the translator must convey as exactly as possible the message from the source text to the target text, remaining the scrutiny of language In other words, translation, as a product, requires achievement in both linguistic and artistic effects, or three criteria of faithfulness, good form, and accuracy

To further clarify "translation", another question may be put forward "What is

translation for?" Venuti (1995, p.18) stresses that aim of translation is “to bring back a cultural other as the same, the recognizable, even the familiar, and this aim always risks a wholesale domestication of the foreign text, often in highly self- conscious projects, where translation serves an appropriation of foreign culture for domestic agendas, cultural, economic, and political.”

In this analysis, the writer highlighted the function of translation: turning an exotic culture into something familiar with the readers, implying that translation, in the end, seeking to blur the language barriers between cultures In the context of intensive and extensive integration, this function day by day proves to be increasingly vital

2 Translation methods

2.1 The definition of translation methods

Newmark (1995, p.5) introduces a very clear and comprehensive concept of translation which “rendering the meaning of a text into another language in the way that the author intended the text.”

Roger Bell (1991, p.5) defines translation as “the expression in another language (or target language) of what has been expressed in another, source language, preserving semantic and stylistic equivalences.”

Mildred L Larson (1984, p.10) otherwise claims:

Translation consists of transferring the meaning of the source language into the receptor language Therefore, translation consists of studying the lexicon, grammatical structure, communication situation, and cultural context of the source language text, analyzing it in order to determine its meaning, and then reconstructing this same meaning using the lexicon and grammatical structure which are appropriate in the receptor language and its cultural context

Meanwhile Nida and Taber (1974, p.12) believed that “translation consists in reproducing in the receptor language the closest equivalent of the source language message, first in terms of meaning and secondly in terms of style” Translators are also required to possess a lot of qualities which are compounded of intelligence, sensitivity, and intuition and other knowledge-based elements All of these seem impossible for a translator to do his task to a good, well-preserved end But it is proved to be untrue, because translation, though by not any means, is simply to render the meaning of a text into another language in a way the author intended, but

it is not always simple for a translator to reproduce a work, or to play his single role

in making an art Translation, instead, is an instrument of education and truth Precisely, it has to reach readers whose cultural and educational levels are different from, or even lower than that of the reader of the original A translation is also obligated to serve a quite different language structure that some community speaks and other numerous factors related to its own culture, its own way of thinking and expressing

Additionally, translation itself is also a means of communication, a transmitter of culture, a technique of language learning and further a personal pleasure Each means serves its own significant characteristics and typical forms of existence, which helps explain the newly modern trends of language, cultural inter-connection

2.2 Types of translation methods (Peter Newmark’s theory)

The central problem of translation has always been whether to translate literally or freely The argument has been going on since at least the first century

BC Up to the beginning of the 19th century, many writers favoured some kind of

“free” translation: the spirit, not the letter the sense not the words; the message rather than the form; the matter not the manner This was the often-revoluntionary slogan of writers who wanted the truth to be read and understood – Tyndale and Dolet were burned at the stake, Wycliff’s works were banned Then at the turn of

19th century, when the study of cultural anthropology suggested that the linguistic barriers were insuperable and that language was entirely the product of culture, the view that translation was impossible gained some currency, and with it that, if attempted at all, it must be as literal as possible This view culminated in the statements of the extreme “literalists” Walter Benjamin and Vladimir Nabolov The argument was theoretical: The purpose of the translation, the nature of the readership, the type of text, was not discussed Too often, writer, translator and reader were implicitly identified with each other Now the context has changed, but the basic problem remains

Peter Newmark (1988) puts it in the form of a flattened V diagram:

SL emphasis TL emphasis

Word-for-word translation Adaptation Literal translation Free translation

Faithful translation Idiomatic translation

Semantic translation Communicative translation

Below are some definite translation methods which stand out for a translator’s choice and an easy adaptability to his task, achieving the optimum effects and influence on the translation in accordance to its purposes

 Word- for- word translation

This is often demonstrated as interninear translation, with the TL immediately below the SL words The SL word order is preserved and the words translated singly by their most common meanings, out of context Cultural words are translated literally The main use of word for word translation is either to understand the mechanics of the source language or construe a difficult text as a pre- translation process

 Literal translation

The factor that distinguishes literal translation from the former method is that the SL grammatical constructions are converted to the nearest TL equivalents but the lexical words are again translated singly, out of context As a pre-translation process, this helps indicates the problems to be solved

 Faithful translation

Moving a step further than the previous one, faithful translation is an attempt

to reproduce the precise contextual meaning of the original within the constraints of the TL grammatical structures It transfers cultural words and preserves the degree

of grammatical and lexical “abnormality” (deviation from SL norms) in the translation It aims at being completely faithful to the intentions and the text- realisation of the SL writer

The distinction between “faithful” and “semantic” translation is that the first

is uncompromising and dogmatic, while the second is more flexible, admits the creative exception to 100% fidelity and enable the translator’s intuitive empathy with the original

 Adaptation

This is the “freest” form of translation It is used mainly for plays (comdies) and poetry; the themes, characters, plots are usually preserved, the SL culture converted to the TL culture and the text written The deplorable practice of having a play or poem literally translated and then rewritten by an established dramatist or poet has produced many poor adaptations, but other adaptations have “rescued” period plays

 Free translation

Free translation reproduces the matter without the manner, or the content without the form of the original Usually it is a paraphrase much longer than the original, a so-called “ intralingual translation”, often prolix and pretentious, and not translation at all

 Idiomatic translation

Idiomatic translation reproduces the “message” of the original but tends to distort nuances of meaning by preferring colloquialisms and idioms where these do not exist in the original (Authorities as diverse as Seleskovitch and Stuart Gilbert tend to this form of lively, “natural” translation.)

 Communicative translation

The last method proposed by Newmark (1988) is communicative translation which tries to render the exact contextual meaning of the original in such a way that both content and language are readily acceptable and comprehensible to the

readership In other words, communicative translation is written basing on the

readership and normally is most suitable for informative and vocative text

Among these eight translation methods, the most notable ones are semantic translation and communicative translation, which, according to Newmark, are the only methods fulfilling the two main aims of translation, accuracy and economy Besides, they also share the common feature that "treat the following items similarly: stock and dead metaphors, normal collocations, technical terms, slangs, colloquialisms, standard notices, phaticism, ordinary language"

Though, there are still sharp disparities between these two translation methods As in A Textbook of Translation (Newmark, 1988), semantic translation is explained through the comparison with faithful translation It not only renders the exact meaning of the source-language text in compliance with the grammatical structure of the target language as faithful translation does, but also pays great attention on the aesthetic features of the source-language text Semantic translation

is thus more flexible and compromising than faithful translation and "admits the creative exception to 100% fidelity", i.e helps the translator fully transfer the original ideas of the writer It is personal and individual, tends to over-translate; and since semantic translation closely renders metaphors, collocations, technical terms, slang, colloquialisms, unusual syntactic structures and collocations, etc It is often used for texts that have high status such as religious texts, legal texts, politicians' speeches, and expressive texts, e.g literature

Communicative translation differs from semantic translation in the sense that

it gives priority to the effectiveness of the message and focuses on readability and naturalness; in other words, it renders the meaning of the source-language text in such a way that "both content and language are readily acceptable and comprehensible to the readership." It is social, concentrates on the messages of the

text, tends to under-translate, to be simple, clear and brief, and is always written in a natural style As a result, communicative translation is used for informative and vocative texts

Despite identifying clearly the features of the two translation methods and stating which method will be applied in each type of document, Newmark (1988) also noted, "there is no one communicative nor one semantic method of translating a text - there are in fact widely overlapping bands of method A translation can be more, or less, semantic - more, or less, communicative - even a particular section or sentence can be treated more communicatively or less semantically" This statement

is the cornerstone in Newmark's translation method argument; the recognition of relativity between semantic and communicative translation, i.e there is no document

in which merely semantic or communicative translation is applied, makes it a sound and practical theory

These are not what have been considered the most outstanding methods of translation but they are numerous and can be potentially chosen during a translator’s working process, and only practice can show their importance, or even decisiveness

to the success of a translation, or their usefulness as terms of reference in translation

3 Mark Twain and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

Twain began his career writing light, humorous verse, but evolved into a chronicler of the vanities, hypocrisies and murderous acts of mankind At mid-career, with Huckleberry Finn, he combined rich humor, sturdy narrative and social criticism Twain was a master at rendering colloquial speech and helped to create and popularize a distinctive American literature built on American themes and language Many of Twain's works have been suppressed at times for various

reasons Adventures of Huckleberry Finn has been repeatedly restricted in American

high schools, not least for its frequent use of the word "nigger," which was in common usage in the pre-Civil War period in which the novel was set

A complete bibliography of his works is nearly impossible to compile because of the vast number of pieces written by Twain (often in obscure newspapers) and his use of several different pen names Additionally, a large portion

of his speeches and lectures have been lost or were not written down; thus, the collection of Twain's works is an ongoing process Researchers rediscovered published material by Twain as recently as 1995

3.2 The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is an excellent novel about a young boy

growing up along the Mississippi River It is one of the most successful masterpieces of Mark Twain The story was written in 1876 and set in thetown of

"St Petersburg", inspired by Hannibal, Missouri, where Twain lived

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is a great read that has a bit of everything -

treasure hunts, murder, romance and a neat look at what life was like when kids played with dead rats and frogs Each chapter is an unique adventure that fits into a larger story about the importance of friendship and the idea of freedom

CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY

excellent writer for children with the two best-seller works The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn With the diversified styles like

that, a story by Mark Twain is a standard for further research on translation methods, as it can reveal clearly all dimensions related

Secondly, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is considered the most remarkable

works of Mark Twain The story is a perfect selection as a book-for-children It attracts readers – both children and adults – with interesting writing styles but simple word use, humor but highly educated Readers at all ages passionate with the adventures of the mischievous boy named Tom This story has great value and influence during the 20th century, and up to now it is still one of best choices for children That is the reason why the research on this work is valuable

Finally, the translated version by Nguy Mong Huyen and Hoang Van Phuong

is also a successful work in Vietnamese literary Both the content and the style of the author in the source language are expressed smoothly and naturally into

Vietnamese As the first to translate the story, these two authors did succeed in introducing and making the story favored among Vietnamese readers

All above has made a proper explanation for the subject of the research “The

translation methods applied in Vietnamese version of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain.”

2 Research instrument

The main instrument of the study is also its subject, the story The Adventures

of Tom Sawyer in English by Mark Twain and its Vietnamese version by Nguy

Mong Huyen and Hoang Van Phuong These two works will be researched carefully

to find out translation methods which are applied in translating the English version into Vietnamese version as well as the most common and effective ones

Moreover, to make the figure more persuasive, researcher aims to use another instrument for supportive information from the students who are in class 09E25, University of Language and International Studies The questionnaire focuses on finding out the translation methods which are applied by Nguy Mong Huyen and

Hoang Van Phuong in translating The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, at the same time

find out the most common translation method, in order to solve the second research question

3 Data collection procedures

First of all, the two versions of the story will be read carefully and critically All dimensions of translation methods which are applied in translating from English into Vietnamese will be found after a process of comprehending, choosing and highlighting the most noticeable sentences and expressions Then, the result collected will be the subject for further research of the study

In the field of questionnaire, there are 20 handouts are printed and delivered

to 20 students in class 09E25, University of Language and International Studies The

result collected will be calculated and summarized to support for the main one from the following procedures

4 Data analysis procedures

For the first and second research question, the collected data will be analyzed through the following two steps:

Step 1: All noticeable results from data collection procedures are analyzed carefully to find out all translation methods which are applied in the translation of the story The results of this step will be the answer for Research Question 1: What are the translation methods Nguy Mong Huyen and Hoang Van Phuong applied in

the Vietnamese version of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain?

Step 2: After all translation methods are found, a deeper analysis and comparison are carried out in order to find out the translation methods which are the most common and effective ones The results of this step is the answer for Research Question 2: What are the most common and effective translation methods Nguyen

Mong Huyen and Hoang Van Phuong applied in the Vietnamese version of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain?

Step 3: The data collection is completed with the return of questionnaire The data then is summarized and calculated to find out what translation methods are applied in translating the story into Vietnamese and what is the most popular method used by Nguy Mong Huyen and Hoang Van Phuong The result collected supports for the main findings from the above steps

CHAPTER IV: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

1 Translation methods applied in the translation of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Nguy Mong Huyen – Hoang Van Phuong

To get the proper accounting number and percentage, the researcher aims to

study the third chapter of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer – Busy with War and Love

for a modeling sample The result from this study will be stated as the figure for the whole study The reason for choosing the chapter is that this is the one which can

represent the whole story The Adventures of Tom Sawyer aims to describe the event

around a mischievous boy named Thomas Sawyer Tom's infatuation with classmate Rebecca "Becky" Thatcher is apparent He lives with his half brother Sid, his cousin Mary, and his stern Aunt Polly in the (fictional) town of St Petersburg, Missouri The chapter succeeded in describing all the characteristics of his through childlike activities: fighting, falling in love, flirting, “showing off”, stealing food, being scolded All these factors gather and make the chapter most suitable for being studied as a sample for the long story This is also the reason why this chapter is selected for former textbooks for secondary school program

All the translation methods applied in translating every sentence of the third

chapter in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer - Busy with War and Love have been

detected through a process of comprehensive reading and classifying The sample chapter is divided into group of sentences which have relation in context and translation methods which appeared in all 37 cases There are totally 6 of all 8 translation methods introduced by Peter Newmark are found namely semantic translation, communicative translation, faithful translation, idiomatic translation, free translation and adaptation Though there are 37 cases studied, there are more than 37 places in which more than one translation methods are applied More specifically, there are of all 76 cases in which different translation methods are

applied With the length excuse, a detailed appendix will be provided for more reference about this result

Below is the chart describing the result of the analysis and coding phrase with respect to the frequency of using of each translation methods:

Figure 1 Translation methods applied in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

To better describe the chart, these following figures are provided:

The frequency of translation methods being applied:

 Communicative translation: 38% (29 of all 76 cases supervised)

 Semantic translation: 19% (15 of all 76 cases supervised)

 Faithful translation: 11% (8 of all 76 cases supervised)

 Free translation: 11% (8 of all 76 cases supervised)

 Idiomatic translation: 13% (10 of all 76 cases supervised)

 Adaptation: 8% (6 of all 76 cases supervised)

The results, as seen in the chart, indicate that communicative translation is the

which ranks second is semantic translation, while idiomatic translation ranks the third with 13% Faithful translation and free translation get the same percentage and take position of fourth and fifth most common translation methods respectively The smallest proportion belongs to adaptation which makes up only 8% of the total translation methods applied in the story Detailed analysis for each method will be presented in the following parts Each translation method will following be analyzed thoroughly through examples of typical paragraphs throughout the story in which the method can show off all its roles

Saturday morning was come, and all the summer world was bright and fresh, and brimming with life There was a song in every heart; and if the heart was young the music issued at the lips There was cheer in every face and a spring

in every step The locust-trees were in bloom and the fragrance of the blossoms filled the air Cardiff Hill, beyond the village and above it, was green with vegetation and it lay just far enough away to seem a Delectable Land, dreamy, reposeful, and inviting (Twain, 13)

Đã đến sáng thứ bảy Trời đất cảnh vật mùa hạ rực rỡ muôn màu tươi thắm

và tràn đấy sức sống Mọi người đều thấy trong lòng như muốn hát ca, và nếu trái tim còn trẻ thì lời ca giọng hát ở miệng cứ thế tuôn ra Ai nấy mặt

mày hớn hở, chân bước thoăn thoắt Hoa minh quyết đua nở, tỏa hương thơm ngào ngạt Đồi Cardiff sừng sững ở phía cuối làng, cây cối xanh um, xa xa trông có vẻ là một nơi tuyệt thú đầy thơ mộng, yên tĩnh, như chào đón mọi người đến dạo chơi

It can be said that semantic translation is an ideal tool for transferring scenery description Pay attention in underlined lines and readers will see that the sentences are properly translated with standard phrases: bright and fresh, and brimming with life; cheer in every face and a spring in every step, etc These ones in source language (SL) are not this scale attractive, however, to the surprise of readers, Nguy Mong Huyen and Hoang Van Phuong have turned these normal sentences into colorful ones which create strong impression To this extent, it can be said that translators have performed better than the author themselves

Readers can investigate more examples in which semantic translation method

is applied:

It was the cool gray dawn, and there was a delicious sense of repose and peace in the deep pervading calm and silence of the woods Not a leaf stirred; not a sound obtruded upon great Nature's meditation Beaded dewdrops stood upon the leaves and grasses A white layer of ashes covered the fire, and a thin blue breath of smoke rose straight into the air Joe and Huck still slept Now, far away in the woods a bird called; another answered; presently the hammering of a woodpecker was heard Gradually the cool dim gray of the morning whitened, and as gradually sounds multiplied and life manifested itself The marvel of Nature shaking off sleep and going to work unfolded itself to the musing boy.[ ] All Nature was wide awake and stirring, now; long lances of sunlight pierced down through the dense foliage far and near, and a few butterflies came fluttering upon the scene (Twain, 120)

Trời mới tảng sáng, ánh sáng mờ mờ một màu xám nhạt, không khí mát mẻ; trong cái yên lặng tĩnh mịch bao trùm khu rừng có một cảm giác thư thái và thanh bình tuyệt thú Không một chiếc là nào lay động; không một âm thành nào đến phá rối sự trầm tư mặc tưởng của thiên nhiên vĩ đại Sương đọng thành những chuỗi hạt nhỏ trên lá cây, ngọn cỏ Một lớp tro trắng phủ trên đống lửa, một tia khói xanh nhỏ như sợi chỉ bốc thẳng lên trời Joe và Huck hãy còn ngủ Ở đằng xa, mãi sâu trong rừng một con chim lên tiếng gọi; một con chim khác hót trả lời; một lát sau có tiếng chim gõ kiến mổ lộp độp Màu sáng nhạt mát dịu của buổi sáng trăng dần, các âm thanh nổi lên mỗi lúc một nhiều, cuộc sống dần dần biểu hiện Cảnh kì diệu của thiên nhiên đang giũ cái ngủ để sắp sửa bước vào lao động, diễn ra trước con mắt mơ mộng của Tom.[ ] Tất cả thiên nhiên nay đã tỉnh dậy hẳn và hoạt động lao xao xa gần, những tia nắng dài như lưỡi kiếm xuyên qua đám lá cây rậm rạp chiếu xuống, một vài con bướm tới bay lượn phấp phới trên không

This paragraph is the description of the island of Cardiff, the place where Tom Sawyer and his friend, Joe Harper and Huck Finn, leave the normal life to start the journey of pirates Semantic translation is applied properly with careful word

choices: the deep pervading calm and silence of the woods and cái yên lặng tĩnh mịch bao trùm khu rừng; great Nature's meditation and sự trầm tư mặc tưởng của thiên nhiên vĩ đại; The marvel of Nature shaking off sleep and going to work unfolded itself with Cảnh kì diệu của thiên nhiên đang giũ cái ngủ để sắp sửa bước vào lao động All these wonderful translation show readers with the significant

landscape of Cardiff island The author shows his talent by pearling words, and translators also play well their role in the game of drawing a perfect painting of nature

Now the research comes to the last example about semantic translation method:

Now the battle was at its highest Under the ceaseless conflagration of lightning that flamed in the skies, everything below stood out in clean-cut and shadowless distinctness: the bending trees, the billowy river, white with foam, the driving spray of spume-flakes, the dim outlines of the high bluffs

on the other side, glimpsed through the drifting cloud-rack and the slanting veil of rain Every little while some giant tree yielded the fight and fell crashing through the younger growth; and the unflagging thunder-peals came now in ear-splitting explosive bursts, keen and sharp, and unspeakably appalling The storm culminated in one matchless effort that seemed likely to tear the island to pieces, burn it up, drown it to the tree-tops, blow it away, and deafen every creature in it, all at one and the same moment It was a wild night for homeless young heads to be out in (Twain, 142)

Bây giờ trận ác chiến đã lên tới cao điểm Những tia chớp liên tiếp lóe sáng rực trên trời, mọi vật ở dưới đất đều hiện ra rất rõ nét, không một chút bóng mờ; cây cối cong rạp xuống đất, con sông cuồn cuộn sóng, bọt trắng xóa, như bông tuyết tung lên tan thành những đám bụi nước bay đi, bóng mờ mờ của những bờ dốc cao bên kia sông thấp thoáng hiện ra sau những đám mây lững lờ trôi và sau bức màn mưa buông chéo Chốc chốc lại có một gốc cây khổng lồ không chống đỡ nổi đổ xuống đánh ầm, đè lên những cây nhỏ hơn mọc ở bên dưới; sấm vẫn đổ liên hồi không bớt dữ dội chút nào, tiếng nổ như

xé tai, khủng khiếp không thể nói hết được Cơn dông tố lên tới cao điểm trong một nỗ lực chưa từng thấy; tưởng như muốn xé tan hòn đảo ra từng mảnh, đốt cháy rồi dìm xuống nước cho ngập tới ngọn cây, thổi cho nó trôi băng đi mất, làm mọi vật trên đảo phải điếc tai choáng óc, tất cả những việc

đó diễn ra ngay trong cùng một lúc Thật là một đêm rùng rợn cho những đứa trẻ không nhà không cửa phải sống bơ vơ ở ngoài trời

In contrast to the last example, this paragraph describes a terrible storm on Cardiff island, where the three little pirates are settling If the last scene is beautiful

with peace and brightness, this time the Nature seems to be in anger with the way

author describes: ceaseless conflagration of lightning that flamed in the skies, the bending trees, the billowy river, white with foam, the driving spray of spume-flakes, some giant tree yielded the fight and fell crashing through the younger growth, to tear the island to pieces, burn it up, drown it to the tree-tops, blow it away, and deafen every creature in it, all at one and the same moment are used talentedly by

Mark Twain in purpose of describing the strong of nature This is still treated well in

the translation of Nguy Mong Huyen and Hoang Van Phuong: Những tia chớp liên tiếp lóe sáng rực trên trời, cây cối cong rạp xuống đất, con sông cuồn cuộn sóng, bọt trắng xóa, như bông tuyết tung lên tan thành những đám bụi nước bay đi, chốc chốc lại có một gốc cây khổng lồ không chống đỡ nổi đổ xuống đánh ầm, đè lên những cây nhỏ hơn mọc ở bên dưới, tưởng như muốn xé tan hòn đảo ra từng mảnh, đốt cháy rồi dìm xuống nước cho ngập tới ngọn cây, thổi cho nó trôi băng đi mất, làm mọi vật trên đảo phải điếc tai choáng óc, tất cả những việc đó diễn ra ngay trong cùng một lúc In the above example, the translators with their rich vocabulary

chose very appropriate way to express the ideas of SL version They all contribute to make the original version more meaningful and literary colorful

Through these examples above, obviously, semantic translation pays attention

to the treatment on words rather than the whole sentences In other words, it takes more account of the aesthetic value of the words in the source language texts Especially, Nguy Mong Huyen and Hoang Van Phuong use Vietnamese words completely to transfer the beauty and natural features of the texts from English to Vietnamese It is because the words used in translating are familiar to Vietnamese people and using such words is the habit of Vietnamese people in dialogue

To the extent of applying semantic translation method, it can be said that Nguy Mong Huyen and Hoang Van Phuong have completed their role excellently during the work

1.2 Communicative translation

Though it is applied in a very excellent way, semantic translation is not the most common translation method To the researcher’s surprise, there is another method which is also convenient and interesting for translating is used most popularly It is communicative translation method Communicative translation method attempts to render the exact meaning of the original in such a way that both content and language are acceptable and understandable to the readership It is not easy to differentiate it from semantic translation But in fact, communicative has to

be explained much and it has more freedom It uses structures that are acceptable in the target language It means that communicative translation pays more attention to structures and sentences rather than words like semantic translation In the translation works by Nguy Mong Huyen and Hoang Van Phuong, many sentences can be used as examples:

At this dark and hopeless moment an inspiration burst upon him! Nothing less than a great, magnificent inspiration He took up his brush and went tranquilly to work Ben Rogers hove in sight presently the very boy, of all boys, whose ridicule he had been dreading Ben's gait was the hop-skip-and-jump proof enough that his heart was light and his anticipations high He was eating an apple, and giving a long, melodious whoop, at intervals, followed by a deep-toned ding-dong-dong, ding-dong-dong, for he was personating a steamboat (Twain, 15,16)

Giữa cơn đen tối thất vọng chán chường, Tom bỗng nảy ra một sáng kiến Một sáng kiến vĩ đại, tuyệt diệu chứ chẳng phải vừa Tom lại cầm lấy cái chổi vôi lẳng lặng quét Được một lát, chợt Ben Rogers thấp thoáng ở đằng xa đi tới – trong tất cả đám trẻ, chính Ben là đứa hay chế giễu người khác nhất mà Tom rất sợ Ben vừa đi vừa nhẩy cẫng chân sáo, đủ chứng tỏ trong lòng nó nhẹ nhõm vui sướng và có những ước vọng cao xa Ben vừa đi vừa gặm một

quả táo, thỉnh thoảng lại hú lên một tiếng ngân dài du dương, tiếp theo là một tiếng rất trầm bính-boong-boong, bính-boong-boong Ben tự cho mình là một con tàu đang chạy trên mặt nước

Through this long paragraph, readers can see the application of communicative translation In the example, there are changes in the structures of sentences, with the rearrangement of phrases, for example: his sorrows multiplied - càng nghĩ lại càng buồn, where the subject is changed from the sorrow (SL) into the boy (TL) To be in better view, with the following examples: they would make a

world of fun of him for having to work the very thought of it burnt him like fire -

và nếu chúng biết chuyện Tom phải làm việc thì chắc sẽ cười Tom ghê lắm – chỉ

nothing less than a great, magnificent inspiration - Một sáng kiến vĩ đại, tuyệt diệu

the last one, for he was personating a steamboat – Ben tự cho mình là một con tàu đang chạy trên mặt nước.Here the sentence in SL is separated into two new ones

The content of paragraph is still proper, but translators are willing to make some change so that it can be more reader-friendly Look at some other examples:

Sabbath-school hours were from nine to half-past ten; and then church service Two of the children always remained for the sermon voluntarily, and the other always remained too for stronger reasons The church's high-backed, uncushioned pews would seat about three hundred persons; the edifice was but a small, plain affair, with a sort of pine board tree-box on top

of it for a steeple At the door Tom dropped back a step and accosted a Sunday-dressed comrade:

"Say, Billy, got a yaller ticket?"

"Yes."

"What'll you take for her?"

"What'll you give?"

"Piece of lickrish and a fish-hook."

"Less see 'em."

Tom exhibited They were satisfactory, and the property changed hands Then Tom traded a couple of white alleys for three red tickets, and some small trifle or other for a couple of blue ones [ ]; stuck a pin in another boy, presently, in order to hear him say "Ouch!" and got a new reprimand from his teacher Tom's whole class were of a pattern restless, noisy, and troublesome [ ] Ten blue tickets equalled a red one, and could be exchanged for it; ten red tickets equalled a yellow one; for ten yellow tickets the superintendent gave a very plainly bound Bible (worth forty cents in those easy times) to the pupil (Twain, 32,33,34)

Buổi học bắt đầu từ chín giờ đến mười rưỡi mới tan Sau đó đến nhà thờ làm

lễ Trong ba chị em bao giờ cũng có hai đứa tự ý ở lại nghe giảng kinh: còn đứa kia bao giờ cũng ở lại – vì những động cơ khác mạnh hơn Những chiếc ghế dài trong nhà thờ chỗ dựa rất cao, mặt ghế không có đệm, ngồi được chừng ba trăm người; nhà thờ chỉ là một ngôi nhà nhỏ, kiến trúc đơn sơ, cái gác chuông ở trên nóc trông chẳng khác gì một cái hàng rào chung quanh các gốc cây làm bằng ván gỗ thông ghép lại! Tới cửa nhà thờ, Tom đi lui lại một bước, để nói chuyện với một thằng bạn cũng ăn mặc quần áo Chủ nhật như nó

- Này Billy, mày có phiếu vàng nào không?

- Có

- Đổi lấy cái gì nào?

- Thế mày định đổi cái gì?

- Một miếng cam thảo và một cái lưỡi câu

- Cho xem đã

Tom liền đưa cho xem Billy ưng ý, thế là những tài sản kia đổi chủ Sau đó Tom lại đổi hai hòn bi trắng lấy ba phiếu đỏ và một vài thứ lặt vặt khác lấy hai phiếu xanh [ ] một lát sau Tom lại lấy đanh ghim đâm một thằng bé khác, để được nghe đứa kia kêu “oái” một tiếng và vì thế lại bị thầy giáo mắng cho một trận nữa Tất cả lớp Tom đều rập theo một khuôn như vậy – nghĩa là không chịu ngồi yên, làm ồn ào không ai chịu nổi [ ] Mười phiếu xanh bằng một phiếu đỏ và có thể đổi lấy một phiếu đỏ; mười phiếu đỏ bằng một phiếu vàng; học sinh nào được mười phiếu vàng, ông hiệu trưởng sẽ cho một quyển Kinh Thánh đóng bìa cứng rất sơ sài (ở vào cái thời còn dễ dàng

ấy, đáng giá độ bốn hào)

In the example, translators continue to change the structures of sentences so that make them nearer to readers:

Sabbath-school hours were from nine to half-past ten - Buổi học bắt đầu từ chín giờ đến mười rưỡi mới tan

The church's high-backed, uncushioned pews would seat about three hundred persons; the edifice was but a small, plain affair, with a sort of pine board tree-box on top of it for a steeple - Những chiếc ghế dài trong nhà thờ chỗ dựa rất cao, mặt ghế không có đệm, ngồi được chừng ba trăm người; nhà thờ chỉ là một ngôi nhà nhỏ, kiến trúc đơn sơ, cái gác chuông ở trên nóc trông chẳng khác gì một cái hàng rào chung quanh các gốc cây làm bằng ván gỗ thông ghép lại

Tom's whole class were of a pattern restless, noisy, and troublesome - Tất

cả lớp Tom đều rập theo một khuôn như vậy – nghĩa là không chịu ngồi yên, làm ồn ào không ai chịu nổi

In addition, they are more active to change the way of translating concrete nouns which take important role in the story:

some small trifle or other - một vài thứ lặt vặt khác

a pattern restless, noisy, and troublesome - nghĩa là không chịu ngồi yên, làm ồn ào không ai chịu nổi

forty cents in those easy times - ở vào cái thời còn dễ dàng ấy, đáng giá độ bốn hào

These changes in fact make some differences in the meanings of the phrases, but the general content of paragraphs is still available It’s hard to evaluate the changes are good or bad, but the fact is that the readers can more easily catch with the ideas and feel more familiar with some special words

Communicative translation has an important role to achieve the value of the whole story The two translators flexible transferred images of a small boy into Vietnamese

1.3 Faithful translation

The concept is from the theory of translation by Peter Newmark and this method also appears in the translation work by Nguy Mong Huyen and Hoang Van Phuong However, it is not used much because it cannot help readers understand the target language text If the translators used it too much, no one would understand the development of the story Therefore, Nguy Mong Huyen and Hoang Van Phuong used this kind of translation only several times They preserves the cultural wirds of the source language text in the translation: