Logicality in Text Translation

Abstract: Similarities and distinctions in logical structures of the Chinese and English languages are due to different but interrelated logical systems of China and the West. We may well say Logics influences translation and monitors the whole process of translation. In order to make translation more suitable to the target language’s logical system, this paper views from the aspect of logic and discusses some practical and feasible logical translation methods by analyzing examples. The paper puts forward some suggestions on logical text translation. 1) When translating texts showing the three universal laws of Logics, i.e. the law of identity, the law of non-contradiction and the law of excluded middle, and the law of space, translators should translate them according to the logical sequence of the source language. Chinese and English are different in leading inferential modes, therefore, translators should reorganize the logical sequence according to the phenomena that Chinese focus on “induction ” and English focus on “deduction”. 2) When translating texts showing the law of time and the law of cause and effect, translators should also reorganize the logical sequence according to the target language’s features