abstract target-oriented approaches to translation studies are regarded as recent theories of translation. one of the most famous theories among these approaches is descriptive translation studies presented by toury (1995). this theory gives a new dimension to translation studies and gives importance to the descriptive rather than prescriptive studies. it also identifies three sets of translational norms which can change during the course of time to contribute to the description of translations. this research, setting dts as its main framework, mingles this theory of translation studies with debates over gender linguistics. this study concentrated on the function- and product-oriented branches of dts and studied the aspect of gender and language in the translation of henry jamess the portrait of a lady by majid massoudi. the function-oriented branch was investigated through performing four questionnaires based on fischers (2000) feminist identity composite (fic) on an iranian sample. the result was compared with the persian novel, i put off the lights, by zoya pirzad. it is concluded that they fulfill the same function. the product-oriented branch was investigated through a comparison between tt and st, and an attempt at discovering norms had been made. the findings manifested that the translation is source-oriented, and adequate, tending to show interference from the st, without the translators major interference with gender discussions.