Normalization in Self-retranslation: A Case Study of Contraction in English Versions of Tales of Hulan River by Howard Goldblatt

Contraction is a typical feature of spoken English, but how is it presented in translated texts? Based on corpus of the first translation and the self-retranslation of Tales of Hulan River by Howard Goldblatt, the study analyzes contraction in different translated versions to explore the characteristics of the translator's self-retranslation. It finds that contraction is more frequent and the variety of contracted forms is larger in the self-retranslation, and closer to the pattern and norm in non-translated English. The wide use of contractions is related to the norm of the target language and the expectancy norm, illustrating the impact of normalization and the translator's subjectivity. The study suggests that Goldblatt's self-retranslation shows an obvious tendency of normalization and reflects the translator's faithfulness and reader-centered approach.