3.2 The Essence of Translating Color Images 5

3.3 Two General Translation Strategies 5

3.3.1 Literal Translation 5

3.3.2 Free Translation 5

4. The Analysis of the Translation of Metaphorical Meanings of Color Images in The Great Gatsby 7

4.1 Translation of Red Images 7

4.2 Translation of Green Images 8

4.3 Translation of Black Images 10

4.4 Translation of Pink Images 10

4.5 Translation of White Images 11

5. Conclusion 12

References 13

1. Introduction

 The Great Gatsby is Francis Scott Fitzgerald’s most outstanding work. The Great Gatsby shows the social characteristics of the United States in the 1920s. At that time, the material civilization was highly developed, but the spiritual civilization was depraved. That era is called the “Jazz Age”. With his own experience, Fitzgerald reproduced in his novel the social features, the breath of life, and the rhythm of feelings in the 1920s. From Nick's point of view (2013), the novel takes us into the life of Gatsby and witnesses the vanquishing of the “American Dream” from the vanity and emptiness of upper-class society. The glorious elegy of the “Jazz Age” became poignant under the writing of Fitzgerald, leaving a deep impression in the history of American contemporary literature. It is not only a historical record of the brief period of prosperity of the United States in the 1920s, but also an artistic treasure of the character of the classic works in American literature.

In The Great Gatsby, color is one of the most important features. Color as an objective existence of a special material form, not only depends on specific objective things, but also depends on the feelings and perceptions of human's subjective world. Different language symbols are different in color marking. In other words, colors have cultural connotations. 

The translation version of The Great Gatsby, which is translated by Wu Ningkun (2006), reproduces the brilliance of the Jazz Age in Chinese, conveying the artistic realm of the original and giving people the feeling of beauty. Compared with the original, the translation and the original work are also rich in literary value and artistic appeal. There are a lot of wonderful translations that are appreciated by readers. For the novel, it is difficult to translate its “taste”, because the language style of the original is easily distorted and lost in translation. Fitzgerald’s style, as described by Mr. Wu in the preface to the translation: concise and with a strong lyric atmosphere, has been successfully reproduced in his translation of The Great Gatsby. The readers of the translation version have roughly the same feelings as the original readers. The translation and the original match in every small detail, and the translation is smooth and natural. The meaning and charm of the original between the lines are expressed incisively and vividly in the translation. The translator creatively reproduces the language form of the original, seeking the best translation equivalents. The style of the original is preserved and conveyed to the maximum extent.