Translating Humor for Children in Beijia Huang’s I Want To Be Good

This article examines the translation of humor in《我要做好孩子》(Wo Yao Zuo Hao Hai Zi, I Want To Be Good) by Beijia Huang, first published in 1996, and translated by British sinologist Nicky Harman in 2021. The study investigates the types of humor present in the original text and the target text and the strategies employed by Harman to render these humorous elements in a way that resonates with English-speaking young readers. Utilizing the General Theory of Verbal Humor (GTVH) and the Variation Theory of Comparative Literature, this research scrutinizes the linguistic and cultural dimensions of humor translation. This article focuses on the humorous effect conveyed in translation and the translator’s balance between domestication and foreignization. Analyzing the translation of rhetorical devices and culture-specific items (CSIs), it shows that Harman selectively maintains culturally rich images familiar to the target audience while translating with substitutions or omitting others to enhance readability. The findings point to the use of Chinese humor in colloquial usage and how such elements are adapted or omitted in translation to ensure accessibility. This paper also calls for further research into humor in other types of literary genres and the reception of humor translation in children’s literature.