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In this book, James Canton tells the story of an oak tree in its ecological, spiritual, literary, and historical contexts, using it as a prism to see his own life and human history. The Oak Papers is a reflection on change and transformation, and the role nature has played in sustaining and redeeming us. The source material of this translation practice and report is taken from the first part of the book: “Seeing the Oak”, which is a series of diary entries that recount his observations of nature when he sits by the oak and records the discoveries he makes in his research and his conversations with his guides. Then in the second part “Knowing the Oak”, he gains a deeper understanding of the tree and the role of oaks in human culture and literature, from Homer’s Odysseus. But as he draws closer to his subject and his goal of acquiring oak knowledge, he finds that there is a transcendent aspect of the oak’s presence that goes beyond what can be found in libraries or even what words could express. This leads to the final section of the memoir, “Being with Oaks”, where he tackles more mysterious issues regarding the effect oaks might have on humans’ minds and well-being, moving beyond ecology and history to art, psychology, and spirituality.

As the book draws to a close, there is no formal denouement, but Canton achieves a sense of closure that transmits to the reader some of the peace and calmness that he has found by being with oaks. After reading this book, the translator also feels gladdened to have accompanied James on his journey of healing through oaks.

2.2 Features of the Source Text

Like various ecological literature, the common feature is that the writer combines what he has seen and heard with what he feels and understands, and presents them one by one in chronological order or spatial layout. Canton uses the first-person, reflecting what he has seen and heard and his subtle personal feelings, which not only presents the praise but also the awe to nature. This technique shortens the psychological distance between the reader and the author. Therefore, it is necessary to achieve semantic equivalence in translation to present the emotions that the author wants to convey to the reader.

The author of the source text employs adjectives to create an atmosphere and simple verbs which makes the article more vivid. When the author faces nature, he uses the five sense organs to feel the beauty of nature: listening to the splash of the waterfall; touching the rough bark of the oak tree; tasting the rain splashed on the face; smelling the fragrance of the grass in the air. He seeks the most simple and direct connection with nature. In terms of sentence structure, long and short sentences are used together, which is flexible and changeable. Most of the long sentences contain attributive clauses. The flexible logical relationships between the sentences are a huge challenge for translating. When translating, translators should follow Chinese grammar. In addition, Canton uses metaphor, personification, synesthesia and other rhetorical techniques flexibly to make the article full of interest. In the eyes of the author, these natural objects are fresh and lively. Although the text itself is not complex, the fu本论文由英语论文网提供整理，提供论文代写，英语论文代写，代写论文，代写英语论文，代写留学生论文，代写英文论文，留学生论文代写相关核心关键词搜索。