Course Description

As one of the modern mass media, magazines are periodical publications containing a variety of articles; it is a mechanism for providing the general public with current information on a broad range of topics. According to the latest Publication Annual (2011) issued by the Government Information Office, there were 7,544 officially registered magazine publishers in the year 2010 and more than five hundred commercially available magazines in Taiwan. Among the popular magazines, many have relied heavily on translation (some of them even wholly composed of translations) to give readers the updates in various fields and to bring changes to the world; in these magazines, translators play an important role in making changes happen. Although the articles in a magazine can come in various text types, be they informative, expressive and/or operative, these texts produced or selected for translation should always conform to the unique style (form) and pursue the mission (content) of the magazine, and aim at a specific readership, be it the general public or those with special interest. When translating, translators are not only guided by the source text alone, but also strive toward catering to the need of readers from the perspective of the magazine. The task of the translator, therefore, is to produce a translation as an integral part of the magazine that serves the above-mentioned function, by having a thorough understanding of the purpose of the translation activity, from the source text to the history, mission, style, and readership of the magazine.

Students learning to translate for popular magazines in this class will form groups and each group chooses a magazine from the six categories on the list provided by the instructor, for a 20-to-30-minute group presentation on the background of the magazine and the text analysis for the article to be translated. Students can also choose the magazine and the article that they feel interesting for translation. All students will need to read at least three issues from each magazine in order to learn about the style and content specific to the publication. Translations and journals will be discussed in class. If time allows, the instructor will arrange for student translations to be published.

Grading:
Attendance 10%; Class participation 10%; Presentation/Teamwork 20%; Translation practices and journals 30%; Mid-term exam 15%; Final exam 15%.

單元主題 Syllabus
Course introduction
《大師輕鬆讀（Master 60）》
《哈佛商業評論全球繁體中文版（Harvard Business Review）》
《今周刊》
《天下雜誌》
《Elle國際中文版》
《GQ（瀟灑）》
《Vogue（時尚）》
Mid-term Exam
《孤獨星球國際中文版（Lonely Planet）》
《科學人（Scientific American）》
《知識通訊評論 (Knowledge Review)》
《台灣光華雜誌（Taiwan Panorama）》
《看守台灣（Taiwan Watch）》
Magazine article chosen by students to translate as practice or by the instructor to be published
Ditto
Ditto
Final Exam