過猶不及？：史蒂芬‧金小說《Bag of Bones》兩種中文譯本比較

Abstract

本研究從史蒂芬‧金（Stephen King）在中文市場銷量不如美國為出發點，探究其作品在翻譯環節上的問題。研究文本為長篇小說《Bag of Bones》的兩種中文譯本：簡體字譯本《屍骨袋》與正體字譯本《一袋白骨》。論文從比較兩版譯本切入，針對三個部分進行分析比較。首先是兩版譯本的翻譯風格，根據前人對於兩岸譯本比較研究的走向，針對語法特徵、形象詞／成語運用、地方／流行語彙運用等面向進行比較。其次比較譯本對小說連貫性的掌握程度，從關鍵詞彙、懸念筆法與情節邏輯等面向來探討。最後，針對史蒂芬‧金慣用大量當代美國流行文化詞彙來營造小說背景的寫作手法，分析兩譯本對流行文化詞的翻譯策略，再援引豪斯（Juliane House）的顯性／隱性翻譯（overt/covert translation），試圖說明兩譯本策略的選擇動機。 研究發現，簡體字譯本由兩位譯者執筆，在風格上就有不一致之現象；為求小說閱讀流暢，在文化詞處理上動用了「文化過濾」（cultural filter）機制，刪去部分文化意象與典故，可說是符合紐馬克（Peter Newmark）所謂的「欠額翻譯」（under-translating）。正體字譯本翻譯策略衝突，在譯文中大量引進中文的形象詞與地方、流行語，但對於美國文化詞又以顯性翻譯的手法來處理，因此譯本充斥過多訊息，屬於「超額翻譯」（over-translating）。研究並呼籲，翻譯時必須針對文本屬性，擬定翻譯策略，確定譯本的目標，譯本才能成功。Stephen King (1947- ), a well-known author in United States, has not yet received equal popularity in Mainland China and Taiwan. This phenomenon might partly be attributed to the quality of the translations. To better understand how translation might influence how King is received among Chinese-speaking readers, this thesis thus examines two Chinese translations of King’s Bag of Bones. The thesis compares the two Chinese versions in three perspectives. First, the style of translation is described through a detailed analysis of grammatical characteristics, the use of image words, fixed expressions, regional lexicon and contemporary catchwords. Secondly, by comparing the aspects of keywords in the novel, the suspense in narrative and the logic of plot, whether the translations can demonstrate coherence of the novel or not is discussed. Finally, In view of King’s usual approach of employing a great number of “cultural words” in his works, the strategies adopted by the two translations are outlined and then explained, using the concept of Juliane House’s overt/covert translation. The conclusions are as follows. The simplified Chinese version, in which the translation was split between two translators, shows inconsistency in style. Also, for the purpose of improving reading fluency, it applies a “cultural filter” between the source text and the target text, eliminating certain cultural images and allusions. This can be seen as what Peter Newmark called “under-translating”. The traditional Chinese version, however, shows conflicts in translation strategies. Various Chinese image words, regional lexicon and contemporary catchwords in Taiwan are introduced into the translated text, whereas overt translation approaches are used when dealing with source language cultural words. Therefore, the traditional Chinese translation version is flooded with excess information, and over-translation is observed as a result. The thesis further proposes that translation strategies must be devised based on the attribute of the source text and the purpose of the target text. Only with appropriate and consistent strategies is a translation more likely to be successful.