Bonnie S. McDougall’s “Pleasure Principle” in Literary Translation: A Study Based on Reception Theory

The study aims to examine the explanatory power of Reception Theory to the “Pleasure Principle” in literary translation proposed by Australian sinologist Bonnie S. McDougall, and to investigate the concrete realization of this principle through an analysis of McDougall’s translations. The study finds that the core concepts of Reception Theory provide robust theoretical support for this principle and offer a basis for evaluating McDougall’s translation effect. It is argued that translation can be understood as a dynamic process in which the translator, oriented toward the target readers’ horizon of expectation, reconstructs the appeal structure in the text through strategic translation adjustment, thereby stimulating the reader’s aesthetic pleasure.