When Skopos Meets Logical Meaning in a Korean Bible Translation: implications of using clause combination as an analytic tool
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.14456/nvts.2012.3Keywords:
Bible translation, clause, Korean, logical meaning, skopos, Systemic Functional LinguisticsAbstract
In Korean Protestant churches, the Korean Revised Version (KRV, first published in 1911) has until very recently been the only Bible translation used for liturgical purposes, despite its archaic structures and expressions. Such longevity stems from criticisms among many Bible scholars of the quality of new translations produced to replace the KRV. Drawing on skopos theory (Nord 1997), this paper attempts to move beyond the endless cycle of faithful versus free translation and points towards the possibility of generating different Bible translations for different purposes and readerships. Using Systemic Functional Linguistics, this paper critically analyses a chapter of a new Bible translation in light of the translation’s introductory section to see whether its skopos is satisfied in rendering its logical meaning (how clauses are combined). The main data of this study is Chapter 7 of the Book of John in the New Testament.