Research On Rexroth's Translation Of Chinese Poetry

The cultural turn of Translation Studies has brought about Descriptive Translation Studies (DTS), which has, in turn, greatly enlarged the space for translation research, for it has got rid of the constraints of the translating standards of"faithfulness","equivalence"and"fidelity"in traditional translation theory, and located translation activities in a wider scope of context to carry on descriptive research instead of prescriptive research. Holmes classified Translation Studies into Pure Translation Studies and Applied Translation Studies, of which Pure Translation Studies contains Theoretical Translation Studies and Descriptive Translation Studies. Gideon Toury pointed out that Descriptive Translation Studies was an empirical discipline, describing, explaining and predicting phenomena pertaining to its object. (2001:1) In Descriptive Translation Studies, translation is far from a simple exchange of words or codes and it does not take place in a vacuum. On the contrary, any translated text is produced in a given cultural context, so, no description of translation practice and reasonable explanation can be successful without the reference to the context concerned, that is, the people who translate, the conditions in which the translation is done, to whom it is targeted, when, how and why the translation is performed and especially what effect the translation brings about on the targeted literature and culture. (Liao Qiyi, 2001:307). This thesis is constructed in line with the above clue: first, to explore the content, themes and historical background of Rexroth-translated Chinese poetry, then to analyze the translating strategy Rexroth employed and the reason why he employed it, and finally to discuss the Rexroth-translated poetry's canonization and its influence. [0]In this sense, this thesis is among the first few ones in China to apply the principles of Descriptive Translation Studies to a hopefully comprehensive analysis of all Rexroth-translated Chinese poetry. Therefore, the thesis has, to some extent, enriched the research on English translation of Chinese poetry in China, bringing with it a significant guidance as to how to spread the excellent Chinese culture and how to improve the exchange and dialogue between Sino-American cultures.This thesis consists of three parts: Introduction, Body and Conclusion, of which Body includes three chapters. Introduction reviews the current researches and studies on Rexroth at home and abroad, revealing that Rexroth has received totally different literary treatment in China and west countries. In this part, Descriptive Translation Studies, the thesis's research basis is also explained. In addition, the theoretical and practical significance of the thesis is also pointed out.Chapter one focuses on the historical background and content of the Chinese poetry translated by Rexroth. During the life span of Kenneth Rexroth, he experienced and witnessed a great many historic movements, of which, the most influential on Rexroth-translated Chinese poetry include Chicago Renaissance Movement, Counterculture Movement and Feminism Movement. Corresponding to the above three great movements, the themes of Raxroth-translated Chinese poetry have undergone visible and constant transition. The themes in those three different historical periods are Revolutionary Magnanimity, Taoism and Zen and Feminist concept respectively. In regard to the content of Rexroth-translated Chinese poetry, it can be classified horizontally into three categories: landscape poetry, love poetry and narrative-lyric poetry.Chapter two mainly deals with the translating strategy Rexroth employed and the reasons why he employed it. The translating strategy Rexroth employed is often referred to as Creative Treason. According to Descriptive Translation Studies, one of the most pivotal factors ascribes adopting the translating strategy of Creative Treason to the subjectivity of translator. As far as translated poetry is concerned, creation is closely linked with treason and both creation and treason combine to be an indivisible entity. Such Creative Treason acquires its evidence from the great amount of mistranslation in Rexroth-translated Chinese poetry. Mistranslation consists of deliberate mistranslation and involuntary mistranslation. Deliberate mistranslation is the main study object in this thesis, because it not only reflects the translator's subjectivity through the manipulation of the translated poetry when the translator takes its active and creative role in the translating process, it is also the blockage point in the process of cultural exchange, revealing how two heterogeneous cultures collide with, integrate and distort each other. In this thesis, mistranslation is elaborated at three levels: vocabulary, sentence and text. It is the mushrooming research on the translator's subjectivity that enables creative translation to find its own value and theoretical basis. The subjectivity of the translator is mainly explored by analyzing the translator's personality and aesthetic values.Chapter three mainly discusses the canonization of Rexroth-translated Chinese poetry and its cultural effect, that is, the spreading process and the effect of the translated texts in the theory of Descriptive Translation Studies. Such mass media as publishing houses, poem readings, art festivals, periodicals and radios play huge part in pushing Rexroth-translated poetry into the canonical status. The overall cultural context, poetics and ideology play the key role in canonizing Rexroth-translated Chinese poetry. In terms of the cultural effect, it can be proved by two sections: the influence on Rexroth's poem creation and the dialogue between Sino-American cultures. As for the former, the Chinese poetic style, the direct citation of the lines from Chinese poems and the use of Chinese characters in the translated Chinese poetry combine to illustrate the influence that Chinese poetry exerts on Rexroth's poem creation. And as for the latter, no matter how Rexroth identifies himself with Chinese culture, it is impossible for him to get rid of West-centralism and be free from the constraints of"colonizer's eyes", therefore, misreading and misinterpretation of Chinese poetry are, in the process of its translation, the dialogue between two heterogeneous cultures on a deeper level.The conclusion tries to make clear that translation is in essence the exchange and dialogue between two cultures, which follows the general rule: first mechanically understanding others with misreading and mistranslation, and then developing into the dialogue on a deep and equal level. This rule works for Rexroth. In his career as a poetry translator, he finished the first step in the Sino-American cultural exchange and brought Chinese culture to American consciousness and established the"discourses"of the dialogue on a deep and equal level. In this sense, Rexroth has made outstanding contributions to the cultural exchange between China and the United States, though there still exist a lot of misreading and mistranslation in his translation of Chinese poetry. In spite of this, his contribution should neither be ignored nor denied. However, considering the fact that Rexroth cannot shake off the framework of West-centralism and the"colonizer's eyes", the task to participate in the world cultural dialogue, and the burden to spread the excellent Chinese culture have historically and logically fallen on the shoulders of Chinese translators and scholars.