AN ANALYSIS OF THE SUGGESTED TRANSLATION OF CHAPTER 4 FROM THE BOOK START WITH WHY HOW GREAT LEADERS INSPIRE EVERYONE TO TAKE ACTION BY SIMON SINEK, 2009

DUY TAN UNIVERSITY
FACULTY OF ENGLISH

NGUYEN THI TRA MY

AN ANALYSIS OF THE SUGGESTED
TRANSLATION OF CHAPTER 4 FROM THE
BOOK "START WITH WHY: HOW GREAT
LEADERS INSPIRE EVERYONE TO TAKE
ACTION " BY SIMON SINEK, 2009

GRADUATION PAPER IN ENGLISH LINGUISTICS

DA NANG, 2022


DUY TAN UNIVERSITY
FACULTY OF ENGLISH

NGUYEN THI TRA MY

AN ANALYSIS OF THE SUGGESTED
TRANSLATION OF CHAPTER 4 FROM THE
BOOK "START WITH WHY: HOW GREAT
LEADERS INSPIRE EVERYONE TO TAKE
ACTION " BY SIMON SINEK, 2009

Major: English for Translation - Interpretation

SUPERVISOR

: PHAN THI LE HUYEN, MA

STUDENT

: NGUYEN THI TRA MY

CLASS

: K24NAB

STUDENT CODE: 24203111468

DA NANG, 2022


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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

To teachers at Duy Tan university!
To my supervisor – Ms. Huyen, M.A!
During my four years at university with teacher’s guidance, family’s
care and friend’s cooperating, I had reached valuable experience and
knowledge. I am very grateful to all of you for your help, precious experience
and useful lessons, which will support me in the future, especially my career.
First of all, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to Ms. Phan
Thi Le Huyen, M.A Lecturer at Duy Tan University's, Faculty of English, my
supervisor for her precious assistance, useful comments and enthusiastic help
to me during the process of completing this graduation.
Secondly, I would like to take this opportunity to thank my classmates

at Duy Tan University and all my close friends for their encouragement.
Nextly, many words of thanks to the library of Duy Tan University for
helping me with materials during the time I was learning at university,
especially, during the period time I am writing this graduation paper.
Last but not least, I especially want to thank all my family members for
their love, help, and understanding.
In conclusion, I am grateful to all of youI wish you good health,
happiness, and success!
Yours sincerely!
Student
Nguyen Thi Tra My


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STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP

Except where reference is made in the text of the thesis, this thesis
contains no material published elsewhere or extracted in the whole or in part
from a thesis by which have qualified for or been awarded another degree or
diploma.
No other person’s work has been used without due acknowledgement in
the thesis.
This thesis has not been submitted for award of any degree or diploma
in any other tertiary institution.
Danang, May 2022
NGUYEN THI TRA MY


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ABSTRACT

This paper presents the suggested version of the original chapter in the
book and provides some terminologies and vocabularies in business.
Moreover, it gives some difficulties and solutions happening during the
translation process, especially when translating some phrases and sentences
relating to trade and economy.
The graduation paper will help the translator to get some experience
and to identify some mistakes and difficulties arising in the translation
process. Based on this way, the translator can improve their knowledge and
understand some strengths and weaknesses of translation.


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TABLE OF CONTENTS
TABLE OF CONTENTS..................................................................................................iv

ABBREVIATIONS..........................................................................................x
CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION..................................................................1
Rationale.............................................................................................................................1
Aims and objectives...........................................................................................................1
1.1. Aims.........................................................................................................................1
Through the graduation thesis, I would like to bring the following aims as follows:...1
Improving translation skills through confusing vocabulary, structures, and idioms.....1
Bringing a deeper and broader view of life through successful leaders........................1
Helping Vietnamese readers understand the working culture of many different
countries.........................................................................................................................1
Having a suggested translation for students studying with a major in English.............2

Providing difficult phares, sentence structures to advoid misleading for readers.........2
1.2. Objectives................................................................................................................2
Scope of the study..............................................................................................................2
1.3. Text Features...........................................................................................................2
1.4. Text Length..............................................................................................................3
This book includes 6 chapters. Because the time is limited and the book is too long, I
just chose chapter 4 “ How to rally those who believe” from the book “Start with
Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action by Simon Sinek”, with
total 4,500 words of the book to translate......................................................................3
1.5. Text Organization....................................................................................................3
1.6. Text Source..............................................................................................................3
Methods of the study..........................................................................................................3
I finished this the graduation paper based on some main methods such as :.....................4

CHAPTER 2. THEORETICAL BACKGROUND.......................................5
1.1. Translation theory........................................................................................................5
1.1.1. Concepts of translation........................................................................................5
1.2. Types of categories......................................................................................................6
Types of categories of translation may be defined in terms of extent, levels, rank of
translation. There are many methods to translate; however, my graduation paper used
some types among of them.................................................................................................6
1.2.1. Full vs Partial Translation.........................................................................................6
1.2.2. Total and Retricted Translation................................................................................7


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1.2.3. Phonological Translation..........................................................................................7
1.2.4. Graphological Translation.......................................................................................8
1.2.5. Transliteration......................................................................................................8

1.2.6. Free, Literal, and Word-for-word Translation.....................................................8
1.3. Principles and Methods of Translation...................................................................9
1.3.1. Principles of Translation......................................................................................9
1.3.2. Methods of Translation......................................................................................11
Translation is the interpreting process of the meaning of the source language into target
language, carrying on the equivalent objective and semantic; besides, the differences in
culture, linguistic lifestyles, and the others are factors affecting the translating process.
To effectively translate the meaning which author wants to describe, translator needs to
understand and analyze sentences carefully. During the translating process, I
encountered a lot of multi-meaning vocabulary as well as difficult grammar structures
and unfamiliar idioms. Below are some examples and analysis that I have confronted so
far......................................................................................................................................42
4.1. Vocabulary.................................................................................................................43
For any text, the vocabulary is one of the key elements. Some words, at first, are easy
to understand, but translating correctly is hard. In order to understand the meaning of
a word, everyone can look up the dictionary easily; however, it is very difficult to
understand and misunderstand the meaning of the original text without selection. So,
in some cases, I chose the most suitable mean based on the context of the text..........43
4.1.1. Words with multi-meanings..............................................................................43
4.1.2. Words and phrases with no Vietnamese equivalent in dictionary.....................46
4.1.3. Phrasal verbs......................................................................................................48
4.1.4. Specific terms....................................................................................................50
4.2. Structures...................................................................................................................51
In addition to vocabulary, phrases, and idioms, structure is also an important part of the
meaning of a sentence. In my graduate paper, I have analyzed some of the structures so
that the readers understand the meaning of the text better...............................................51
4.2.1. Simple Sentences...............................................................................................51
A simple sentence is a sentence that contains a single independent clause. In
grammar, a clause is a group of words that contains a subject and a predicate. The
subject is the word that indicates what a sentence is about or who or what is

performing an action....................................................................................................51
Example 15:.................................................................................................................52
“Bill Gate/ is/ shy and awkward, a social misfit.” [P2]...............................................52
S V C...........................................................................................................................52
In this sentence, the author uses the present simple tense describing the personality of
Bill Gates......................................................................................................................52


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My suggested version: “Bill Gates là một người rụt rè và vụng về, một người không
xứng với địa vị xã hội của ông ta.”..............................................................................52
Example 16:.................................................................................................................52
“The vision and charisma of the leader /are /enough /to attract the............................52
S V C A........................................................................................................................52
innovators and the early adopters.”.............................................................................52
In this sentence, the author uses the present simple tense describing the permanent
existence to leaders' visions of issues attract listeners.................................................52
My suggested version: “Người lãnh đạo phải có đủ tầm nhìn và sức hút để thu hút
những người biết cách đổi mới và những người thích nghi nhanh. ”...........................52
4.2.2. Compound Sentences........................................................................................52
A compound sentence is a sentence that has at least two independent clauses and no
dependent clause. Each clause is a complete thought, so it can stand alone. There are
some different forms of compound sentence................................................................52
Example 17:.................................................................................................................52
“Dr. Martin Luther King Jr/ was / the leader/,but/ he/ didn't change/.........................52
S V C Conj S V............................................................................................................52
America/ alone." [P18]................................................................................................52
O A..............................................................................................................................53
There are two independent clauses in this sentence:...................................................53

Independent clause 1: “Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was the leader”...........................53
Independent clause 2: “he didn't change America alone”...........................................53
Conjunction: “but”......................................................................................................53
My suggested version: “Tiến sĩ Martin Luther King Jr là một nhà lãnh đạo, nhưng chỉ
mình ơng thì khơng thể thay đổi được nước Mỹ .”......................................................53
Example 18:.................................................................................................................53
“He/ wasn't/ a legisla-tor/, for example, but/ legislation/ was created/.......................53
S V C Conj S V............................................................................................................53
/to give all people in the United States equal rights regardless of skin color.”...........53
A [ P 21].......................................................................................................................53
......................................................................................................................................53
There are two independent clauses in this sentence: Independent clause 1: “He
wasn't a legisla-tor”......................................................................................................53
4.2.3. Complex Sentences...........................................................................................53
A complex sentence is a sentence that contains an independent clause and one or
more dependent clauses (subordinating clause) in which there is a subordinator (when,


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where, as, since, although, etc.). An independent clause can stand alone as a sentence,
but a dependent clause even though it has a subject and a verb cannot stand alone....53
4.2.3.1. Noun Clauses..................................................................................................54
Example 19:.................................................................................................................54
“They were able to explain what was new and special about their latest innovation,
and focus groups agreed that the new product was much better than that of the
competition”. [P36]......................................................................................................54
Main clause: “They were able to explain”..................................................................54
Subordinate clauses: “what was new and special about their latest innovation” and
“that the new product was much better than that of the competition”. (Noun clauses)

......................................................................................................................................54
My suggested version: “Họ có thể giải thích được điều gì là mới và đặc biệt về sự đổi
mới gần đây nhất của họ và họ tập trung vào nhóm người ủng hộ rằng sản phẩm mới
(của họ) tốt hơn nhiều so sản phẩm cạnh tranh.”.........................................................54
Example 20:.................................................................................................................54
Example 21:.................................................................................................................55
4.2.3.3. Adverbial Clauses...........................................................................................55
Example 22:.................................................................................................................55
“When a WHY is clear, those who share that belief will be drawn to it and maybe
want to take part in bringing it to life.” [P 13].............................................................55
Main clause: “those who share that belief will be drawn to it and maybe want to take
part in bringing it to life.”.............................................................................................55
Subordinate clause (adverbial clause of time): “When a WHY is clear,”...................55
Suggested version: “Khi lý do TẠI SAO rõ ràng, thì những người có chung niềm tin
đó sẽ bị thu hút và có thể muốn tham gia vào việc ứng dụng nó vào cuộc sống.”.......55
Example 23:.................................................................................................................55
“Dr. King spoke about the philosophical implications of the movement, while
Abernathy, Dr. King's onetime mentor, long-time friend and financial secretary and
treasurer of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, would help people
understand the specific steps they needed to take.” [P17]...........................................56
Main Clause: “Dr. King spoke about the philosophical implications of the
movement.”..................................................................................................................56
Subordinate clause: (adverbial clause of time) “while Abernathy, Dr. King's onetime
mentor, long-time friend and financial secretary and treasurer of the Southern
Christian Leadership Conference, would help people understand the specific steps
they needed to take”.....................................................................................................56
My suggested version: “Tiến sĩ King nói về ý nghĩa triết học của phong trào, trong
khi Abernathy, người đã từng là cố vấn cho Tiến sĩ King, người bạn lâu năm của ơng,
đồng thời là thư ký tài chính kiêm thủ quỹ của Hội đồng Lãnh đạo Cơ đốc giáo miền
Nam, chỉ cho mọi người từng bước cụ thể mà họ cần thực hiện.”...............................56

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Example 24:.................................................................................................................56
“When Gates speaks, he doesn't rally a room, he inspires it.“ [P2]............................56
In the above complex sentence, the two independent clauses are connected by a
comma. And there is a dependent clause (adverbial clause of time)............................56
Main Clause: “he doesn't rally a room, he inspires it”................................................56
Subordinate clause (adverbial clause of time): “When Gates speaks”........................56
My suggested version: “Khi Gates nói, ơng ấy khơng thu hút sự chú ý của cả một
khán phòng mà ông truyền cảm hứng cho họ. ”...........................................................56
4.2.4. Compound-Complex sentences.........................................................................56
Example 25:.................................................................................................................57
“Herb Kelleher was able to personify and preach the cause of freedom, but it was
Rollin King who came up with the idea for Southwest Airlines.”...............................57
[P 28]...........................................................................................................................57
There are two independent clauses in this sentence:...................................................57
Independent clause 1:“Herb Kelleher was able to personify and preach the cause of
freedom.”......................................................................................................................57
Independent clause 2:“ it was Rollin King who came up with the idea for Southwest
Airlines.”......................................................................................................................57
The second independent clause is followed by a subordinate clause (adjective clause)
......................................................................................................................................57
My suggested version: “Herb Kelleher đã có thể nhân cách hóa và rao giảng về lý do
của tự do nhưng chính Rollin King mới là người đưa ra ý tưởng cho Southwest
Airlines (hãng hàng không giá rẻ lớn nhất tại Mỹ).”...................................................57
Example26:..................................................................................................................57
“I was at law school in England, where the law is one of the last truly "English"
professions; not wearing a pinstriped suit to an interview could hurt my chances of

getting a job.” [P 10]....................................................................................................57
In the above compound-complex sentence, the two independent clauses are
connected by a semi colon. And there is a dependent clause (adjective clause
introduced with “where”).............................................................................................57
Independent clause 1: “I was at law school in England”............................................57
Independent clause 2: “not wearing a pinstriped suit to an interview could hurt my
chances of getting a job.”.............................................................................................58
Dependent clause : “where the law is one of the last truly "English".........................58
My suggested version: “Tôi học trường luật ở Anh, nơi mà luật là một trong những
nghề cuối cùng thật sự rất “nước Anh”; đó là nơi mà nếu tôi không mặc một bộ com lê
kẻ sọc đến buổi phỏng vấn thì có thể làm mất đi cơ hội việc làm của tôi.”.................58
4.2.5. Sentences in Passive Voice................................................................................58


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The passive voice is used when we want to emphasize the action (the verb) and the
object of a sentence rather than subject. This means that the subject is either less
important than the action itself or that we don’t know who or what the subject is......58
Example 27:.................................................................................................................58
“With a childhood passion that became reality, Armstrong was destined to become an
astronaut.” [P 7]............................................................................................................58
In this case, I translated the passive structure " was destined " into "đã được định sẵn"
to emphasize the author's point about what was predicted in advance........................58
My suggested version: “Với niềm đam mê từ thuở nhỏ đã trở thành hiện thực,
Armstrong đã được định sẵn để trở thành một phi hành gia.”.....................................58
Example 28:.................................................................................................................58
In this case, I translated the phrase "can be reached" into "có thể đạt tới" to
emphasize the author's point of to emphasizing what dreams can be achieved...........58
4.2.6. Sentences with Empty Subjects.........................................................................59

A dummy subject is a sentence used in the case it is not clear who caused the action
or to emphasize an action in the sentence....................................................................59
Example 29:.................................................................................................................59
S(F) V S(R)..................................................................................................................59
Example 30:.................................................................................................................59
Example 31:.................................................................................................................59
“It's all fine and good to know how to drive, but it's more fulfilling when you have a
place to go.” [P 19].......................................................................................................59
The word "It" is often translated as "nó" in Vietnamese. If I had analyzed this
sentence word by word, it would have easily changed the meaning of the sentence.
"It” is used to indicate the existence of “to know how to drive ”................................59
My suggested version: “Thật tốt và tiện lợi khi bạn biết lái xe nhưng sẽ tuyệt hơn nếu
như bạn có một nới để đi đến.”....................................................................................59
5.1. Difficulties.................................................................................................................60
This graduation paper is a good opportunity for me to apply skills learned at Duy Tan
University and gain new knowledge. Through my graduation paper, I have understood
more about cultural and social fields as well as the translation field. However, I still
encountered difficulties in the process of making this paper...........................................60
First of all, although I have learned a lot about specialized theories in the field of
translation, in the process of translating I still cannot understand and choose the most
accurate meaning with the style of the translation. especially words containing rhetoric.
Finding the right word uses for the text took a lot of my time.........................................61
Second, I don't have much experience in translation, so the main problem I have is not
being able to translate this report in a smooth, natural, and attractive way......................61
Thirdly, the time to translate this text is quite short while the length of the text is quite
long and there are many parts in the report that's why I don't have enough time to devote


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all my time to study it thoroughly. text and analyze difficult as well as possible
expressions.......................................................................................................................61
Finally, because the author is a native speaker, he speaks and uses a very rich and varied
vocabulary of English in his daily life, so he sometimes encounters difficult structures to
cause misunderstandings. There are some words that are from the author's locality so it
is difficult to translate even into English, so I keep the original meaning.......................61
5.2. Solutions....................................................................................................................61
6.1. Summary...................................................................................................................62

ABBREVIATIONS
A: adverbial
Adj: adjective
BCI: Big Company Incorporated
C: complement
CEO: Chief Executive Officer
Conj: conjunction
NP: noun phrase
O: object
P: paragraph
PC: Personal Computer
S: Subject
SL: Source language
TL: Target language
V: Verb


Graduation Paper

1

Supervisor: Phan Thi Le Huyen, M.A

CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION
Rationale
Society is more and more growing and modern. Everyone wants a job
with a stable salary. However, the majority of people do not know how to start
work, they cannot find direction for themselves. Nowadays, most young
people feel depressed, pressured, stressed with work and life. It has also
become a popular topic used by authors to provide an insight for their readers.
Simon Sinek is one of the most famous speakers in the world. His book
"Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire People To Take Action" will
give people a new perspective on the lessons the author brings to people.
Whether it's at work or the smallest things in life. Those practical lessons will
give us a new perspective on life and apply it to our lives to change our lives
every day and make it better and better. In addition, the author analyzes each
step in the process of achieving the goals of the leaders, then gives comments
and lessons from them on how they started their work and became rich. The
content of the book is about constant effort, not giving up in any difficult
situation.
Aims and objectives
1.1.Aims
Through the graduation thesis, I would like to bring the following aims
as follows:
• Improving translation skills through confusing vocabulary, structures,
and idioms.
• Bringing a deeper and broader view of life through successful leaders.
• Helping Vietnamese readers understand the working culture of many
different countries.

Student:Nguyen Thi Tra My

Code: 24203111468


Graduation Paper

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Supervisor: Phan Thi Le Huyen, M.A

• Having a suggested translation for students studying with a major in
English.
• Providing difficult phares, sentence structures to advoid misleading for
readers.
1.2.Objectives
By carrying out this graduation thesis, I have got lots of helpful things:
• Improving my translation skills, using suitable words and structures of
any sentences
• Knowing the type of style suitable for each translated text.
• Knowing how to apply theory of translation to the study.
• Understanding more about terms and concepts of the cultural and
political field through the analysis of vocabulary and sentence structures.
•

Learning more difficult and complex vocabularies, phrases, or

structures which easily make misunderstand for readers.
Scope of the study
The book that I selected to translate is “Start with Why: How Great
Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action” by Simon Sinek published in 2009.

The graduation paper is translated from the original version and given the
analysis of a suggested translation of the book. Besides, this graduation paper
focuses on translating and analyzing the suggested version and some difficult
vocabularies and structures of the chapter 4 " How to rally those who believe”
as well as giving some essential solutions to solve these problems.
1.3.Text Features
The book “ Start with Why” is a book that expands the horizons and
knowledge of so many people, inspiring them using real-life examples of
great leaders to show you how they communicate and how you can adjust
their thinking to inspire others. In many cases, coming up with an answer is

Student:Nguyen Thi Tra My

Code: 24203111468


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Supervisor: Phan Thi Le Huyen, M.A

difficult, but posing a question for that difficult answer is much more difficult.
People tend to answer more than why, so in this book, you can experience
things you never thought possible, as well as gain more motivation to learn.
and self-improvement step by step.
1.4.Text Length
This book includes 6 chapters. Because the time is limited and the book
is too long, I just chose chapter 4 “ How to rally those who believe” from the
book “Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action

by Simon Sinek”, with total 4,500 words of the book to translate.
1.5.Text Organization
This graduation thesis consists of six chapters:
• Chapter 1 is the introduction of this thesis.
This is the introdution of rationale, aims and objectives, scope, methods
and organizaton of the study.
• Chapter 2 is about the theoretical background of translation.
• Chapter 3 is the translated version of the report.
• Chapter 4 is about the analysis of vocabulary and structures of the
suggested translation.
• Chapter 5 shows the difficulties during the translation process and gives
some solutions to deal with the difficulties.
• Chapter 6 gives out conclusions as well as suggestions
This part includes the summary of findings, experiences that I gained
through this graduation paper and some proposals which I wanted to send to
the university and the department.
1.6.Text Source
The text is a part of the book “Start with Why: How Great Leaders
Inspire Everyone to Take Action” by Simon Sinek published in 2009.
Methods of the study

Student:Nguyen Thi Tra My

Code: 24203111468


Graduation Paper

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Supervisor: Phan Thi Le Huyen, M.A

I finished this the graduation paper based on some main methods such as :
- Reading whole text to understand the main content of the text.
- Reading carefully again to identify and note difficult words, phrases or
common idioms, terminologies, structures of the text.
- Determining the style of the document.
- Discussing with the supervisor, colleagues, friends and referring those
terminologies, expressions and structures on the Internet.
- Completing and offering a suggested version of the text.

Student:Nguyen Thi Tra My

Code: 24203111468


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Supervisor: Phan Thi Le Huyen, M.A

CHAPTER 2. THEORETICAL BACKGROUND
1.1. Translation theory
1.1.1. Concepts of translation
Nowadays, society is developing more and more, English has become
very important, it is considered the second language widely used and most
effective in the world. Prominently used for international communication in
various fields such as commerce, science, media, economics, and technology.
Therefore, translation and interpretation are extremely important majors and

the pressure creates many difficulties in the work for students. As a language
student, students need to understand the theoretical background of translation
if they want to be a good translator.
There are so many concepts of translation, which are developed by lots
of famous linguists of translation.
 Translation is the replacement of textual material in one language (SL)
by equivalent textual material in another language (TL).
[J.C.Ca Tford]
 Translation has been instrumental in transmitting culture, sometimes
under unequal conditions responsible for distorted and biased
translations, ever since countries and languages have been in contact
with each other.

[ Peter Newmark ]

 Translation is a process of rendering the meaning of a text into another
language in the way that the author intended the text. "
[Nguyen Manh Quang]
 Translation is an act of communication which attempts to relay,
across cultural and linguistic boundaries, another act of

Student:Nguyen Thi Tra My

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communication.

Supervisor: Phan Thi Le Huyen, M.A

[Hatim and Mason –

1997]
These concepts support the idea that translation is a complex process
which requires also theoretical knowledge as well as practical experiences.
1.2. Types of categories
Types of categories of translation may be defined in terms of extent,
levels, rank of translation. There are many methods to translate; however, my
graduation paper used some types among of them.
1.2.1. Full vs Partial Translation
This distinction relates to the extent (in a syntagmatic sense) of source
language text which is submitted to the translation process. The text may be a
book, a simple volume, a chapter, a paragraph, a sentence, a clause, etc. It
may be a figment, not co-existence with any formal literacy or linguistic unit.
In a “full” translation, the entire text is submitted to the translation
process; that is, every part of the source language text is replaced with target
language text material.
For example: The race ended and ended the hopes too. What La Liga
has is just the name of Real Madrid. Barca has been left behind.
 Chấm dứt những hy vọng, cuộc đua đã khép lại. La Liga
vẫn chỉ còn mỗi cái tên Real Madrid. Barca đã bị bỏ lại phía sau lưng.
In a “partial” translation, some parts or parts of the source language text
are left non-translated: they are simply transferred to and incorporated in the
target language text.
Example: “Áo dài” là một trong những trang phục truyền thống của
phụ nữ Việt Nam

Student:Nguyen Thi Tra My

Code: 24203111468


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Supervisor: Phan Thi Le Huyen, M.A

 “ Ao dai” is one of the traditional costumes of Vietnamese
women.

1.2.2. Total and Retricted Translation
This distinction relates to the levels of language involved in translation.
In “total” translation, all levels of source language text are replaced
with target language material. Strictly speaking, “total” translation is a
misleading term, since, though total replacement is involved, it is not
replacement with equivalent at all levels.
In “total” translation, source language grammar and lexis are replaced
with equivalent target language grammar and lexis. This replacement entails
the replacement of source language phonology/ graphology with target
language equivalents.
For example 1: She is a good person.
 Cô ấy là một người tốt.
For example 2: Một bàn thắng, nhưng đằng sau nó là cả thiên đường
và địa ngục, và điều đó nói lên sự quyết liệt của V-League.
 A goal with both the heaven and the hell behind proves

the drastic competition of V-League.
Restricted translation means the replacement of SL textual material by
equivalent TL textual material at only one level that is translation performed
only at the phonological or at graphological level, or at only one of the two
levels of grammar and lexis.
For example: Internet  In-tơ-nét
1.2.3. Phonological Translation

Student:Nguyen Thi Tra My

Code: 24203111468


Graduation Paper

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Supervisor: Phan Thi Le Huyen, M.A

In this translation, the main thing is source language phonology is
replaced with equivalent target language one, but there are hardly other
important replacements.
For example: Karaoke  Ka-ra-ô-kê
Video  Vi-đi-ô
1.2.4. Graphological Translation
In graphological translation, source language graphology is replaced
with equivalent target one without other considerable replacements.
For example: Catologue  Ca-tô-lô
1.2.5. Transliteration
This is a complex process involving phonological translation with the

addition of phonology-graphology correlation at both ends of the process, i.e.
in source and target language. First, source language graphological units are
replace with corresponding source language phonological units are replaced
with corresponding target language graphological units.
For example: Jackson John  Giắc-sơn John
1.2.6. Free, Literal, and Word-for-word Translation
A “free” translation is always unbounded while “word-for-word”
translation generally means what it says. “Literal” translation lies between
these extremes. It may start from a “word-for-word” translation, but changes
in conformity with target language grammar (inserting additional words,
changing structures, etc). This may make it a group-group or clause-clause
translation.
For example 1: She is second to none.
 Cô ấy là thứ hai đến không ai. (Word-for-word)

Student:Nguyen Thi Tra My

Code: 24203111468


Graduation Paper

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Supervisor: Phan Thi Le Huyen, M.A

 Cô ấy không là thứ hai với bất kỳ ai. (Literal)

 Cô ấy không bao giờ chịu lép vế người nào. (Free)
1.3. Principles and Methods of Translation

1.3.1. Principles of Translation
* Meaning
The translation should reflect accurately the meaning of the original
text. Nothing should be arbitrarily added or removed, though occasionally
part of the meaning can be transposed.
For example: If I were you, I would choose this book.
 Nếu tôi là bạn, tôi sẽ chọn cuốn sách này.
* Form
The order of words and ideas in the translation should match that in the
original as closely as possible. This is particularly in the form and order of
words. When in doubt, underline in the original text, the words on which the
main stress falls. In English, emphasis or main stress can be obtained through
inversion of word order and using different structure such as No sooner...
than..., It is/was ... that (who)..., Only by..., etc.
For example: Either Ha or My likes this car.

 Cả Hà và My đều thích chiếc xe này.
* Register
Languages often differ greatly in their levels of formality in a given
context (say, in a business letter). To resolve these differences, the translator
must distinguish between formal and fixed expressions.
For example: I would like to express my deep gratitude to my friends.

 Tôi muốn gửi lời cảm ơn sâu sắc đến bạn bè của tôi.
* Source language influence

Student:Nguyen Thi Tra My

Code: 24203111468

Graduation Paper

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Supervisor: Phan Thi Le Huyen, M.A

One of the most frequent criticisms of translation is that “It doesn’t
sound natural”. This is because the translator’s thoughts and choice of words
are too strongly moulded by the original text. A good way of shaking off the
source language influence is to set the text aside and translate a few sentences
aloud from memory. This will suggest natural patterns of thought in the first
language (Target language), which may not come in mind when the eyes are
fixed on the source language text.
For example: My father has a sweet tooth, so he is also overweight.

 Ba tôi hảo ngọt nên ông ấy thừa cân.
* Idiom
Idiomatic expressions are notoriously untranslatable. These include
similes, metaphors, proverbs, sayings, jargons, slangs, colloquialisms and
phrasal verbs. If the expressions cannot be directly translated, try any of the
following.
- Retain the original word, in inverted commas
- Retain the original expression, with a literal explanation in brackets.
- Use a close equivalent
- Use a non-idiomatic or plain prose translation
For example1: Tốt gỗ hơn tốt nước sơn.
Handsome is as handsome does.
For example2: Khỏe như trâu.
As

strong as a horse.

* Style and clarity
The translator in general should not change the style of the original. But
if the text is sloppily written, or full of tedious repetitions, the translator may,
for the reader’s sake, correct the defects.
For example: She is young, pretty, and well-proportioned.
Student:Nguyen Thi Tra My

Code: 24203111468


Graduation Paper
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Supervisor: Phan Thi Le Huyen, M.A

Cô ấy vừa trẻ trung, vừa đẹp và có thân hình cân đối.

1.3.2. Methods of Translation
* Word-for-word translation
This is often demonstrated as interlinear translation with the TL
immediately below the SL words. The SL word order is preserved, and the
words are translated singly by their most common meaning, out of context.
Cultural words are translated literally. The main use of word-for-word
translation is either to understand the mechanics of the SL or to construct a
difficult text as a pre-translation process.

For example 1: He is a small boy.
 Anh ấy là một nhỏ cậu bé.
For example 2: Từ phía đơng thổi về một ngọn gió lạnh và ẩm.
 From side east blow back a wind cold and wet.
* Literal translation
The grammatical structure of the source language to be transferred to
the nearest structure of the target language but the words are translated most
conventional sense, integral context but still sticking literally.
For example: He looked up at the Milky Way.

 Anh ấy nhìn lên vào con đường màu sữa.
* Faithful translation
A faithful translation attempts to reproduce the precise contextual
meaning of the original meaning within the constraints of the target language
grammatical structures. It “transfers” cultural words and preserves the degree
of grammatical and lexical “abnormality” in the translation. It attempts to be
completely faithful to intentions and the text realization of the source
language writer.
For example: He was a fast as a kangaroo.
Student:Nguyen Thi Tra My

Code: 24203111468


Graduation Paper

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Supervisor: Phan Thi Le Huyen, M.A

 Anh ấy nhanh như một con kangaroo.
* Semantic Translation
This method must pay more attention to the aesthetic (that is, the
beautiful and natural sound) of the SL text, compromising on “meaning”
where appropriate so that no assonance, word-play, or repetition jars in the
finished version. The distinction between “faithful” and “semantic”
translation is that the first is uncompromising and while the second is more
flexible, admits the creative exception to 100% of fidelity, and allows for
translator’s intuitive empathy with the original.
For example 1: Coral reefs fringing the Okinawan islands just like a
necklace can be seen only in warm and very clear water.
 Những rặng san hô bao quanh các đảo vùng Okinawa giống
như một chiếc vòng cổ nổi bật trên nền nước biển trong xanh.
For example 2: Ten European Union countries on Friday expressed
regret at U.S. plans to withdraw from the Open Skies treaty and vowed to
uphold the pact, as NATO envoys met to discuss developments.
 Thứ 6 vừa qua, mười quốc gia thuộc Liên minh châu Âu đã bày tỏ
sư tiếc nuối về kế hoạch rút khỏi Hiệp ước Bầu trời của Mỹ và đã cam kết sẽ
duy trì hiệp ước, khi các phái viên NATO đã gặp nhau để thảo luận về các
diễn biến tiếp theo.
* Adaptation translation
This is the “freest” form of translation, used mainly for plays
(comedies) and poetry. The themes, characters, plots are usually preserved,
the SL culture is converted to the TL one, and the text is rewritten.
For example 1: She is my lovely Snow White.

 Cơ ấy chính là nàng Bạch Tuyết của tôi.

Student:Nguyen Thi Tra My

Code: 24203111468


Graduation Paper

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Supervisor: Phan Thi Le Huyen, M.A

For example 2: “Boscombe Valley is a country district not veryfar from
Ross, in Herefordshire. The largest landedproprietor in that part is a Mr. John
Turner, whomade his money in Australia and returned someyears ago to the
old country. One of the farmswhich he held that of Hatherley was let to
Mr.Charles McCarthy, who was also an ex-Australian.”
(Conan Doyle, The Boscombe Valley Mystery, The Adventures of
Sherlock Holmes)
“Thung lũng Boscombe là vùng nông thôn gần thị trấn Ross, thuộc
miền Herefordshire. Một chủ đồn điền lớn nhất vùng ở vùng ấy là ngài John
Turner. Ông ta đã làm giàu bên Áo và vài năm trước đây đã trở về tổ quốc.
Ông ta cho ngài Charles McCarthy thuê một trang trại của mình, trang trại
Hatherley - người này trước kia cũng sống ở bên Áo.”
(Nhà văn Conan Doyle, Bí ẩn tại thung lũng Boscombe, Những cuộc
phiêu lưu của Sherlock Holmes)
* Free translation
The maner in which the transaltor translate secape binding of the
original form original language, translation language used to interpret the
meaning of the original. Thus the translation tends longer original.
For example 1: Have a good trip!
 Chúc thượng lộ bình an!
For example 2: The film is beyond any words.

 Bộ phim không chê vào đâu được.
* Idiomatic translation
This method reproduces the “message” of the original again but tends
to distort the nuances of meaning by preferring colloquialisms and idioms
where these do not exist in the original.
For example 1: He was as quiet as a mouse.
 Anh ta im như thóc.
Student:Nguyen Thi Tra My

Code: 24203111468