Research On Intersubjectivity In Translation

Philosophy provides theoretical guidance to other disciplines. The appearanceof the theory of intersubjectivity is a natural outcome of western philosophydevelopment. The turn to intersubjectivity in translation is the result of such turn inphilosophy. Meanwhile, it meets the needs of its own development of translationstudies. There have been three paradigms in the history of translation studies, namely,the author-centered paradigm, the text-centered paradigm, and the reader(translator)-centered paradigm. These all belong to the category of self-centeredness,reflecting a kind of individual subjectivity characterizing “I” as the subject, whileothers as the object. By ignoring man’s social status, as well as the significanceothers have on “me”, research on subjectivity in translation has gone into a dilemma.It was under such circumstances that the theory of intersubjectivity made its debut.In western translation field, not much work has been done on intersubjectivity.We can count on the principle of function plus loyalty of Nord and the Dialogics oftranslation of Robinson. By adding the factor of loyalty to function, Nord made arectification on radical functionalism in translation studies which tended to consideronly the target language readers while ignoring the source language author.Robinson put forward the dialogical paradigm after the Luther paradigm and theGoethe paradigm. In his opinion, dialogue could best present the nature oftranslation. The Dialogical paradigm emphasizes the subjective role of translator intranslation, as well as the influence and restrictions he receives from idiosomatic andideosomatic restraints.In China, researchers began to show interests in the topic of subject andsubjectivity in1990s. To sum up, discussions about them mainly concentrate on thefollowing four aspects:1) the subjective consciousness and subjectivity of thetranslator;2) subject(s) in translation;3) the range of and limits on subjectivity;4)the turn from subjectivity to intersubjectivity. It took the western philosophy nearlytwo and a half century to initiate the transition from subjectivity to intersubjectvity.For our translation studies, it only cost less than ten years, during which some consensus has been reached. Such as: intersubjectivity has great importance ontranslation studies; intersubjectivity is shown in the equal interactions amongtranslation subjects; intersubjectivity is a rectification on traditional individualsubjectivity; subjects should obey certain codes of conduct and ethics incommunication. However, these researches were mostly about the introduction ofwestern classical philosophical thoughts, the discussion on some specific problemsabout intersubjectivity, and the significance intersubjectivity has on translationstudies, etc. Comprehensive theoretical elaboration on intersubjectivity is stilllacking. In addition, there has been some misconceptions and confusion concerningintersubjectivity, mainly falling into the following four categories:1) thecomprehension of the concept of intersubjectivity;2) the definition of subject inintersubjectivity;3) the understanding of the relation between intersubjectivity andsubjectivity;4) the evaluation of the effect of intersubjectivity.This dissertation follows such steps: theoretical retrospection, theoreticalanalysis and practical case studies. The origin of intersubjectivity has been traced.Intersubjectivity is a concept first brought forward by Husserl in constructing hisPhenomenology. Descartes’“I think, therefore I am” opened a new chapter inmodern philosophy of subjectivity. By excluding all possible things that could besuspected, a sole “I” who was thinking was left. Therefore, researches onsubjectivity could easily fall into the trap of Solipsism right from the beginning.Intersubjectivity was put forward on the reflection of subjectivity. Husserl carried onthe spirit of general skepticism of Descartes and, in a way called Phenomenologicalreduction, he got a Transcendental Ego. Differing from Descartes’ thinking andsuspecting “I”, this Transcendental Ego not only exists before all objective reality,but also is the foundation of every objective understanding. Descartes’“I” is athinking subject belonging to the objective world, while Husserl’s TranscendentalEgo is an original phenomenon before the appearance of the whole world and theseparation of subject and object. Through this Phenomenological epoche,intersubjectivity transcends the dualism in subjectivity. Once entering theexperiential sphere, ego gains the ability to constitute. By means of reflecting, itconstitutes other ego (alter ego), as well as itself. Other ego constitutes itself and his alter ego in the same way. That is to say, ego and others constitute each other and theworld around them. Therefore, they are given a dual identity of subject and objectwhich can be switched in specific interaction. Their equal status and the constraintson each other both derive from this. The unilateral and antithetical subject-objectrelation in subjectivity is replaced by a bilateral and equal subject-subject relation inintersubjectivity.After a deep exploration into Husserl’s theory, this dissertation studies thedevelopment of intersubjectivity in the fields of Religious Theology, Existentialism,Hermenutics, Dialogism, and Sociology. Buber’s “I-Thou” relation was an importantinterpretation of intersubjectivity in the Philosophy of Religion. Heideggerdemonstrated the significance of intersubjectivity from the perspective of Ontology.The Fusion of Horizon of Gadamer, from the angle of Hermenutics, expounded theconnotation of intersubjectivity in practical communication. Bakhtin’s Dialogismshowed us the manifestation of dialogic relation at three levels. The CommunicativeAction theory of Habermas brought intersubjectivity down from the altar of puretheoretical philosophy, and walked it to the field of practice.After a comprehensive review of its theoretical development in westernphilosophy, we give intersubjectivity a tentative definition: intersubjectivity is arectification and supplement of traditional individual subjectivity. In essence, it is akind of subjectivity exerted in the equal interactions between a subject and othersubjects in social communication. It includes two layers of contents, namely,initiative of the subject, and interactive relation between subjects. The idealsubjectivity (intersubjectivity) is a unity of initiative and passivity.When theoretical retrospection has been done, this dissertation carries onanalyzing the theory of intersubjectivity in the translation context, beginning with itsconnotation. Intersubjectivity in translation is the kind of subjectivity exerted inequal interactions between a subject and other subjects in translation activities. Itconsists the following two layers of connotation: initiative of this subject intranslation and equal interactive relation among subjects. It is a rectification andsupplement of individual subjectivity that is either translator-centered,author-centered or reader-centered. Since intersubjectivity involves subjectivity and interactive relation, while the latter is taken by many as the meaning of “主体间性”，we tend to translate intersubjectivity into “交互主体性”.Intersubjectivity in translation has four qualities, namely, difference, equality,equilibrium and holism. The first three confirm and supplement each other, whileholism is more like a comprehensive and unifying way of thinking. What should benoted is that, equilibrium is by no means equal to evenness. Evenness is an absoluteand static result, while equilibrium is a relative and dynamic process. Equalitydiffers from evenness too. Equality asks for an equal start, while evenness demandsan identical result. The significance intersubjectivity has on translation studies canbe summarized into three points: it contributes to build a healthy ethical relationamong subjects; it helps translation studies to get out of the dilemma caused bybinary opposition; it calls for a renewed emphasis on practice in translation studies.The next chapter is about concrete manifestation of intersubjectivity in specifictranslation activities. Both Yang Xianyi and Hawkes have translated Li Sao andHong Lou Meng. Their translation strategies vary according to the periods whentranslation occurred, the text types and the purposes of translation. This indicatesthat, although intersubjectivity advocates communication and dialogues on an equalbasis among subjects in translation, it doesn’t mean their interests can be evenlydistributed. Translation is a dynamic process during which translator pursuits arelative balance among other subjects. In the translation of Li Sao, both Yang Xianyiand Hawkes demonstrate a tendency to approach “they-culture”, while in thetranslation of Hong Lou Meng, both of them display a tendency towards“we-culture”. This shows a diversion from seeking recognition from others at thebeginning to recovering one’s self-consciousness in latter days. Then this dissertationdiscusses about the English translation of Chinese literary Classics from theperspective of intersubjectivity.In Chinese classical culture, some propositions shared similar thoughts withintersubjectivity. Such as the Benevolence and Polite Arts of Confucius, the HumaneMan and the Goodness of Human Nature of Mencius, as well as the Universal Loveand Mutual Benefit of Mozi. Intersujectivity in western philosophy emphasizes therelation between others and me from My point of view. That in Chinese classical culture focuses on the dimension of “inter”. These propositions advocate harmoniousinterrelation and mutual benefits among people. But these basically depend on moralcultivation and kind human nature. Comparatively speaking, intersubjectivity inwestern philosophy is much more rational.Intersubjectivity contributes to Translation studies in developing towards asystematic and independent discipline. Various translation schools and approachescan, in some extent, be integrated into a whole. Under the influence ofintersubjectivity, it is encouraged to learn from others yet still preserve one’s ownindividuality. In this process of complement and cooperation, Translation Studies caneventually grow into a well-developed and comprehensive discipline.