Can syntactic complexity distinguish translator style?--A novel
stylometric analysis of Hongloumeng with dependency grammar
Abstract
The present study is perhaps the first study to examine the issue of
style in translation by dependency distance. Translator style has been
examined through different indicators, such as STTR and LR, MSL, and
typical language patterns, such as reporting verbs and loan words. Yet,
previous studies seldom consider syntactic structures, especially
syntactic complexity extensively discussed in domains like second
language acquisition, in the analysis. Dependency distance has been
considered a valid indicator of syntactic complexity. Studies have shown
that Dependency distance can effectively differentiate translational and
original English. If dependency distance can distinguish translational
and native texts, then it should be hypothesized that translation style
can be differentiated by dependency distance. To this end, the present
study examines the translator style of four English texts of the Chinese
classic novel Hongloumeng. The results confirm the hypothesis
that dependency distance can distinguish translator style. The findings
also show that dependency direction can be taken into consideration in
examining translator style.