A Contrastive Study Of English Versions Of Wang Jiao Luan Bai Nian Chang Hen From The Perspective Of Gadamer’s Hermeneutics

San Yan consists of three collections of vernacular fictions,which was compiled by the novelist,Feng Menglong in the Ming Dynasty.It is one of the most representative works of Chinese classical vernacular fictions.Since the first time that stories from San Yan were translated into English in the 18^thcentury,its translation and overseas dissemination has remained in an unsystematic and tepid state until now.As one of the most typical and famous story from San Yan,Wang Jiao Luan Bai Nian Chang Hen was translated into English by a British diplomat who came to China in 19^thcentury,Robert Thom and published in 1839 in Canton,but scarce attention has been paid to this translation work.In 2005,two overseas Chinese scholars,Yang Shuhui and Yang Yunqin translated one collection from San Yan into English and published it in the United States,and this translation work also includes the English version of Wang Jiao Luan Bai Nian Chang Hen.Two English versions of this story have spanned one and a half century,thus to probe into their disparity and the factors that caused the disparity is the starting point of this research.As one of the pioneers of modern hermeneutics,Gadamer viewed understanding from the philosophical perspective,and proposed three principles of hermeneutics,namely the historicity of understanding,fusion of horizons and effective history,which enables the scholars to justify the value of a translation in a specific period from a historical and dynamic angle.This thesis is a contrastive research based on Gadamer’s philosophical hermeneutics,which aims to answer these questions:What are the differences between two versions of Wang Jiao Luan Bai Nian Chang Hen,why would there be such differences under the framework of Gadamer’s philosophical hermeneutics and what experience can be sought for the future translation of Chinese classical literary works such as San Yan?This study will take two English versions as the research objects,exploring the differences of the translators’translation choices and analyzing the causes of these differences and their respective translation effects based on the Gadamer’s philosophical hermeneutics.According to the research findings,there is an obvious disparity between the translation styles of two versions due to the translators’different cultural identities and life experiences.In the historical time when Robert Thom lived,many British who came to China tried to introduce Chinese language and culture to more British people through translating Chinese literary works,thus Thom’s translation of Wang Jiao Luan Bai Nian Chang Hen was characterized with time features.In his version,Thom combined the strategies of domestication and foreignization together,which not only catered to the aesthetic preference of British readers in his time through an elegant and idiomatic language style,but also conveyed an exotic flavor by preserving various items specific in Chinese culture.While another version translated by two overseas Chinese Yang Shuhui and Yang Yunqin is more tailored to the reading habit of more English readers in modern times through complete domestication.They have created a more understandable translated text with a concise linguistic style,aiming to expand the popularity of San Yan in foreign countries and further promote its dissemination.From the perspective of philosophical hermeneutics,the differences of two translations are resulted from the influences of respective historical contexts where translators exist.And to improve the translation of Chinese classical literary works such as San Yan and promote their overseas dissemination require the translators to achieve the balance among the original text,their individual subjectivity and the readers’acceptance based on their time backgrounds.