A Brief Analysis of the Importance of Context in the Translation Process

British translation theorist Peter Newmark once proposed that context is a crucial factor in translation, more important than linguistic rules and the meaning of language itself. Translation and context are likened to the relationship between fish and water. Context can be divided into linguistic context and non-linguistic context. Linguistic context refers to various verbal contexts on which a discourse structure relies to convey a specific meaning in the process of communication. It includes the context in written language as well as the introductory and concluding remarks in spoken language, manifested by the interrelationships between words, paragraphs, and texts within the language system. Non-linguistic context refers to factors external to the language system that play a significant role in conveying the content of a text, including time, place, the identity of interlocutors, psychological background, cultural background, customs, and habits. Both linguistic and non-linguistic contexts have an undeniable impact on the accuracy of translation. This article will introduce some examples based on these two concepts:

Example 1:

(1) I like apples.

(2) Like charges repel, unlike charges attract.

(3) Although he is young, he knows a lot like an experienced man.

(4) Like knows like.

In the above four sentences, the word "like" appears in each, but we find that the translations vary significantly. "Like" is a polysemous word, and depending on the linguistic context, it is translated as "喜欢" (like), "相同的" (like), "像" (like), or "英雄" (like). Without analyzing the context, translating "like" as "喜欢" (like) or another single meaning in every case would lead to serious errors in many sentences.

Example 2:

(1) It was Friday and soon they'd go out and get drunk.

(2) The United States has now set up a loneliness industry.

These two sentences involve non-linguistic context issues. In the first sentence, the addition of "Friday" as "星期五发薪日" (payday on Friday) is because in the UK, Friday is payday. In the US, due to two historical economic crises occurring on Fridays, "Friday" often signifies "Black Friday." In the second sentence, "loneliness industry" refers to a part of American social welfare, a specialized social service project established by the US government for lonely elderly people. Without background knowledge, this sentence would be challenging to understand, let alone translate. Hence, social background factors also play a crucial role in the translation process.

Therefore, translation requires attention not only to the text itself but also to the background knowledge outside the text to achieve perfection.

◀️：The Purpose Theory of Translation

▶️：Russian-Chinese Translation: Transfer of Relations