Loading...

Table of Content

    20 July 2023, Volume 46 Issue 4 Previous Issue    Next Issue
    Progressive Expression Types in Human Languages and the Discrepancies in Temporality and Spatiality
    Qingqiang HE
    2023, 46 (4):  2-16. 
    Abstract ( 333 )   HTML ( 31 )   PDF(pc) (6935KB) ( 283 )   Save

    This article presents an analysis of progressive expression types in human languages, based on a sample of 72 languages.The study focuses on the discrepancies in temporality and spatiality within these expressions.By considering the morphological changes of the core verbs, the nature of markers, and their correlation with locative meaning or components, a continuum of progressive aspect expressions emerges.This continuum reveals the varying saliency of progressive aspect expressions across different languages in conveying temporal concepts with spatial concepts.Consequently, this study unveils a continuum that characterizes the temporality and spatiality inherent in progressive aspect expressions in human languages.Additionally, this study identifies several implicational universals in progressive aspect expressions of human languages.

    References | Related Articles | Metrics
    A Re-examination of Extended Units of Meaning
    Yunfeng LIU
    2023, 46 (4):  17-26. 
    Abstract ( 247 )   HTML ( 43 )   PDF(pc) (5443KB) ( 141 )   Save

    Extended units of meaning is an important theoretical and analytical term in Corpus Linguistics.However, in description, nodes have been assumed to be fixed and unchanging, and no semantic analysis of grammatical words has been carried out, which limits the research scope of extended units of meaning and needs to be re-examined.Using the Corpus of Contemporary American English, this paper extends the description of lexical, grammatical, semantic aspects around a node; then the inter-collocational analysis is adopted to describe the extended units of meaning by changing the observation start of nodes and collocates respectively; finally, the local grammar patterns are described and the research application discussed.The results show that the multi-level co-selection of extended units of meaning is linked as a whole.There are variant forms of nodes under the influence of all co-selected elements.The analysis of the word in each position presents multiple relationships at the same time.The results of this study are of great value for phrase lexicography and automatic processing of extend units of meaning.

    Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics
    The Semantic Combinatorial Mechanism of Non-spatial "Dà(大)+N" Structure
    Qiang LI
    2023, 46 (4):  27-42. 
    Abstract ( 199 )   HTML ( 4 )   PDF(pc) (8755KB) ( 125 )   Save

    This paper discusses the semantic combination of adjective"dà"(大) and nouns in the non-spatial "dà(大)+N" structure.The semantic types of nouns include time, weather, status, feature and relative, while "dà" is characterized by degree, scale, prominence, emphasis, importance and ranking.Nouns have semantic features of degree, property and scale, showing different semantic strength.The semantic combinatorial process involves pure type selection, coercion by exploitation and coercion by introduction.Besides, the asymmetry of "dà(大)+N" and "xiǎo(小)+N" is analyzed from the perspective of degree semantics.

    References | Related Articles | Metrics
    The Choice of English Singular Epicene Pronoun by Chinese Learners: A Mixed Study
    YUE Ming, CHEN Hong, ZHANG Yi
    2023, 46 (4):  43-55. 
    Abstract ( 239 )   Save
    Pronoun selection reflects the speaker’s gender attitude, which is a sensitive social issue these days.Previous studies disagree on whether Chinese EFL Learners have learned the gender-neutral epicene pronoun singular THEY.Through mutual verification of behavioral experiments and spoken corpus analysis, we find that only a minority of Chinese college students use gender-neutral singular pronouns, and the majority still show gender bias.Their choices are influenced by two known factors: social gender and antecedent restriction, reflecting learners’ weak awareness of gender equality, insufficient input of correct forms, and inadequate cognitive skills in processing second language pronouns.Increasing the input of singular THEY in teaching can encourage Chinese EFL learners to use generic pronouns without gender bias in spoken English and fully reflect gender equality and social progress.
    References | Related Articles | Metrics
    The Neuroscience Approach to Pragmatic Research — Neuropragmatics
    MA Tinghui
    2023, 46 (4):  56-67. 
    Abstract ( 348 )   Save
    The neural mechanisms of pragmatic phenomena have received increasing attention.In this context, neuropragmatics has emerged and gradually become a relatively independent field.This article discusses the theoretical basis and development phases of neuropragmatics.It proposes that this field originated from pragmatic disorder studies, came into being under the framework of pragmatic theories and grew in strength in embodied cognitive science.From the perspective of cerebral localization and neurochronometry, neuropragmatics explores the neural reality of pragmatic disorder in patients and related pragmatic phenomenon in normal subjects so as to reveal the underlying neurological basis of language in context and communication behavior.Based on the current research status, this paper points out that neuropragmatics presents a development trend from studying pragmatic phenomena to exploring communicative processes, and from measuring single-brain neural activation to collecting brain-to-brain synchrony.It concludes by discussing issues that need to be clarified in future research.
    References | Related Articles | Metrics
    Encoding and Decoding Mechanisms for Speakers’ Individual and Group Identities: A Social Psycholinguistics Perspective
    CHEN Wenjun, HU Yanbing, JIANG Xiaoming
    2023, 46 (4):  68-81. 
    Abstract ( 395 )   Save
    How listeners quickly and effectively perceive speakers’ identity and personality in verbal communication remains a widely researched topic for social psycholinguistics.Traditional research focusing on the perception of between-speaker identity variation reported that the correct rate for between-speaker differentiation is subject to listeners’ phonological knowledge and speakers’ Fundamental Frequency (F0) and Vocal Tract Length (VTL).Recent research has found that speakers modulate their vocalisation strategies (language structure, language style and physiological basis of vocalisation) according to their changing communicative intentions, whereas listeners could adapt to within-speaker variations and recognise speakers’ identities.This article reviews the unique constraints on speaker identity encoding imposed by phonological rules and unpacks how underlying acoustic parameters characterise within-and between-speaker identity variations that influence speaker identity perception.It further introduces the concept of in-/out-group and explores how the phenomenon where speakers would adopt varied vocalisation strategies when motivated by group identity permutation intentions supports the Communication Accommodation Theory (CAT).Based on such, it proposes Speaker Identity Encoding and Decoding Model for Verbal Interaction Scenarios and calls for future research in three directions.
    References | Related Articles | Metrics
    The Effect of Mode Integration in Sight Translation: Psychological Evidence from the Left-right Space-time Metaphor
    Yaling GUO,Lin ZHU
    2023, 46 (4):  82-90. 
    Abstract ( 197 )   HTML ( 11 )   PDF(pc) (5012KB) ( 79 )   Save

    This study explores the mechanism of mode shift in sight translation with priming experiments focusing on the effect of fictive motion and visual processing on time perspectives.The stimuli consist of English sentences describing fictive motion plus left or right visual guide; the target is sight translating of an ambiguous temporal sentence from English to Chinese (the ambiguous phrase can be translated either as "ti-qian" (advance) or as "tui-chi" (postpone).The results revealed that (1) primed by fictive motion, the proportion of "postpone" in translation slightly increased; (2) primed by fictive motion and left visual guide, the proportion of "advance" in translation went up slightly while primed by fictive motion and right visual guide, the proportion of "postpone" in translation increased significantly.The findings indicate that linguistic and visual processing affect time perspectives in the target text, as an evidence of mode integration effect in sight translation.The integration of language and visual processing, affected by experiences, has an interfering effect on sight translation.Both left and right visual guide exerted interference on left-handers and right visual guide exerted more interference on right-handers.

    Figures and Tables | References | Related Articles | Metrics
    General History of Film Translation in China: Contents, Methods, and Significance
    Haina JIN
    2023, 46 (4):  91-99. 
    Abstract ( 366 )   HTML ( 11 )   PDF(pc) (5298KB) ( 122 )   Save

    China has a long history of film translation and there have been abundant and vibrant translation activities throughout the development of Chinese cinema.Film translation is an important part of the development of Chinese film industry.However, this topic is still an under-researched area and has not received the kind of academic attention it deserves.Taking the China National Social Science Foundation Major Research Project, "A General History of Film Translation in China." as an example, this article discusses the perspective, contents, methods, and significance of the general history of film translation in China.Researchers need to draw from theories and knowledge from different disciplines, including translation studies, film studies, communication studies and history studies and adopt a variety of research methods.The aim is to establish a film translation history theoretical framework and methodology, integrating the history of translating foreign films in China, the history of translating Chinese films into foreign languages, the history of translating films into ethnic minority languages in China and the history of translating barrier-free films in China.This research could provide a historical perspective for the development of film translation as a discipline, expand the research field of translation history and film history, and bring new insights to both translation studies and film studies.

    References | Related Articles | Metrics
    On the Theory of Intelligent Media Translation
    CHEN Yu
    2023, 46 (4):  100-107. 
    Abstract ( 197 )   Save
    In recent years, intelligent media communication based on big data, mobile internet, virtual reality, human-computer interaction and other technologies has gradually become a new mode of communication, bringing new propositions and challenges for translation.Artificial intelligence -empowered translation technology is in line with the transformation and reshaping of traditional translation in the era of digital China construction and intelligence, as well as the development of Chinese modernization and the important initiative of the 14th Five-Year Plan of the country, and has great potentials for development.This study starts from the trend of intelligent media, closely following the needs of target language audiences, integrates the multi-dimensional analysis of the translated text, image and audio-visual, describes the intelligent communication of language information, and proposes the integration of translation and intelligent media and the mechanism of intelligent media translation to explore the multi-dimensional and multi-modal translation model, and to provide reference for the reform of the emerging media in the globalization and the transformation and upgrading of Chinese literary translation.
    References | Related Articles | Metrics
    Clarifications and Scrutinization: Theoretical Studies at the Meso-level of Eco-Translatology
    HUANG Rui, WANG Yuan
    2023, 46 (4):  108-118. 
    Abstract ( 418 )   Save
    Eco-Translatology, an indigenous theoretical discourse system, has received many favorable affirmations and commendations as well as a few disputes and doubts during its development over the past two decades.Among various discussions and comments, however, a few reviewers misunderstood some key concepts and misinterpreted the connotations of Eco-Translatology.This paper explains the theoretical studies at the meso-level of Eco-Translatology, aiming to respond to Wang Jian’s critical appraisal by clarifying misunderstandings, identifying misreadings, and taking in rational views.The authors believe that the clarifications will help better understand Eco-Translagology and further promote the healthy development of the theoretical discourse system of eco-translation studies that originated from China.
    References | Related Articles | Metrics
    Relevant Knowledge in Interpreting in the Era of Professionalization: Based on Data of Post-interpreting Interviews with Professional Interpreters
    LI Lan, CHAI Mingjiong
    2023, 46 (4):  119-128. 
    Abstract ( 196 )   Save
    Knowledge has been regarded as a pivotal part of interpreting competence, yet there is still a dearth of study, especially on “relevant knowledge”, i.e., the ad hoc knowledge pertaining to a specific interpreting task.In this study, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 8 professional interpreters after they finished two interpreting tasks, with an aim to unveil the content, purpose, scope and degree of specialization of the relevant knowledge in interpreting mode.The results show that interpreters need to know about domain-specific expressions and concepts via the source and/or the target language, while the ultimate purpose is to acquire professional and logical delivery in the target language.Relevant knowledge is not limited to one specific domain, and its degree of specialization may vary, but the scope is determined by conference details such as PPT, manuscript, and agenda.Therefore, the relevant knowledge in interpreting mode is not equal to domain knowledge, and is mainly composed of the logical delivery of the knowledge about relevant domain(s), as well as relevant information as a source to anticipate the content and scope of the knowledge needed.
    References | Related Articles | Metrics