A comparative study of Zhang Peiji’s and Liu Shicong’s translations of Peanuts from the perspective of Skopos Theory
目的论视角下《落花生》张培基与刘士聪译本对比评析

摘要

许地山散文《落花生》语言质朴自然、叙事平实含蓄，同时蕴含鲜明的伦理教化意味与文化象征价值，是中国现代散文英译研究的典型文本。本文以目的论为理论框架，选取张培基与刘士聪两个英译本为研究对象，采用文本对比分析法，从目的法则、连贯法则和忠实法则三个维度，考察两译本在称谓处理、文化负载项转化、儿童视角再现及语义表达等方面的策略差异。研究发现，张培基译本更注重原文风貌与文化意蕴的保留，体现文学再现取向；刘士聪译本则更强调表达自然与读者接受，体现功能适应取向。研究表明，文学翻译中的“忠实”并非静态对应，而是在翻译目的约束下的动态建构。

Abstract

Peanuts, a representative prose work by Xu Dishan, is characterized by plain language and rich cultural implications, making it a valuable text for translation studies. Based on Skopos Theory, this paper compares the English versions by Zhang Peiji and Liu Shicong from the perspectives of the Skopos rule, coherence rule and fidelity rule. The analysis focuses on appellation translation, cultural elements, narrative perspective and semantic expression. It is found that Zhang’s version tends to preserve the style and cultural connotations of the source text, showing a literary-oriented approach, while Liu’s version emphasizes readability and target readers’ reception, reflecting a functional orientation. The study suggests that fidelity in literary translation is a dynamic construction constrained by translation purpose.