A Report On The Chinese-English Translation Of The Chapters On State Governance In The School Sayings Of Confucius

Throughout history,the Confucian philosophy of state governance has far-reaching influence that transcends regions and times and provides nutrients for the development of human civilization.It still has certain inspirations for the present world.The thoughts of “the virtue primary and penalty secondary” and “the integration of propriety and law” are still applicable to today’s society.The School Sayings of Confucius is one of the classics of Confucianism.Chapters 11 through 17 on state governance are chosen as the source text(ST)of the translation report.The selected chapters mainly discuss political propositions,ethical thoughts,moral concepts,educational principles and self-cultivation on governing a state,which embodies the universality and has certain instructive significance for individuals,families,society,the whole country,and even the whole world.The report consists of five parts.The introduction part introduces the background,purpose and significance of the report.The task description part introduces the source text,features of the source text,and target readers.The translation process description part includes pre-translation,translation process and quality assurance.In the case analysis part,under the guidance of Kwame Anthony Appiah’s “thick translation” theory,different translation methods are applied to the translation of cultural-loaded words,proper nouns,four-character phrases,function words,historical background and figure relations.The last part is conclusion.The process of the translation practice and report writing is constructive.Firstly,the translator has a better understanding of the language features of Chinese classical text and the Confucian philosophy of state governance;secondly,as interlingual translation and intralingual translation involved in the translation of classics,it is necessary to work out the meaning of difficult words and complex sentences to express the meaning of Chinese classics accurately;thirdly,with a rigorous attitude and exploratory spirit,the translator has made visible progress in translation and academic research.In the process of translation,translation practice is guided by translation theory and,and it takes into account the target readers’ reading experience while ensuring the transmission of cultural connotation.It is hoped that this translation project will shed light on the research of state governance and the translation of Chinese classics,and spread Chinese stories to the world.