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Many scholars at home and abroad have contributed a lot to the theory of translation and have put their respective propositions about translation theory: such as linguistic, sociolinguistic, communicative, free, literal, semiotic, relevant and even gender—to mention only a few. But there is no generally accepted translation theory and it seems to be a subject on which hot debates never cease since its appearance, yet there are quite a few influential “theories” in the broad sense of “a set of principles which are helpful in understanding the nature of translating or in establishing criteria for evaluating a translated text.” (Nida 114) In general, however, these principles are stated in terms of how to produce an acceptable translation. But this thesis focuses on the features of business English letters and the methods to translate business English letters. The function of a business letter is to get or to convey business information, to make or to accept an offer, to deal with various businesses and when disputes arise, it can also serve to be the voucher—important literary or legal proofs. Business letters does not call for flowery language because it is not literary works, but it is required to express your own views accurately and properly in a plain language that is very clear, and catch the reader’s attention and persuade the reader into believing what you said. Therefore, business letters translation must be accurate and appropriate, or it will bring great inconveniences or losses to international business.
In order to obtain good quality translations of business letters, translators must understand the stylistic and language features of business letters and the differences between business English letters and business Chinese letters.
II. Definition and Meaning of International English Letter
With the development of economic globalization and the expansion of transnational corporations, the cooperation and trade between China and other countries are booming and deepening. China, the largest exporter and the largest market in the world, is conducting an unprecedented exchange with the world. Nowadays, business English letter plays an important role in international trade and high-qualified translators are badly needed in our society.
Business English, as one branch of English for Specific Purposes, is a complex of English knowledge and business knowledge, is a kind of English variant which is used by merchants in international business activities, which covers finance, law, advertisement, secretary and accountant etc. Nowadays, business English becomes more and more popular and important. More and more people turn to study, teach business English in order to adapt to the development of our society. Even more and more scholars turn to devote themselves to Business English translation to facilitate international trade. “Generally speaking, translation implies rendering from one language into another of something written or spoken. It is essentially the faithful representation in one language of what is written or spoken in another. It is the replacement of the information of the source language by its counterpart of the target language. However, translation, in a narrow sense, is the practice of finding the equivalent both in form and essence between two cultures.” (He 37) Generally speaking, business English can be classified into three kinds of style, namely, the official document, the advertisement and the exposition. Business letters, contract, and legal documents belong to official documents, commercials belong to the style of advertisement, while economic and trade comments, reports and speeches belong to the style of exposition. From it, it is obvious that it is not an easy thing for us to make a unified criterion for business English. Different styles or different documents need different translation principles. In recent years, many scholars have devoted themselves to the theories of translation for business English and have given their detailed explanation on how to translate business legal documents, English commercials, trademark, specifications and business contracts etc. While this thesis focuses on the features of business English letters and the methods to translate them on the basis of the theories mentioned above.