Translation, Biography, Intercourse: Studies On Arthur Waley's Sinological Strategies

Sinology, an important component of foreign academic studies, is a branch of learning investigating Chinese culture from the perspective of "the other", which is embodied not only in the visual angle of foreign culture, but in the adopted research strategies. Resembling other European countries, British sinology also transformed from the missionary stage to scholastic sinology. The missionary sinology abides by the Victorian literary tradition with adoption of domestication strategy, while the scholastic sinology focuses on the scientificalness of its academic studies. Arthur Waley, being a representative figure in the transitional period between these two stages, was known in British literary arena as a subverter of traditional sinology. When first engaged in translation, he at once introduced unmetrical approach though blemished with obvious signs of the Chinese, in stead of the metrical one conventional in traditional sinological poetry translation. And Arthur Waley set great emphasis on chinese antique culture while translating, virtually every translation from The Book of Songs, Nine Song to Pre-Tang poetry was laden by the concerns and discussions about Chinese philosophy and folklores. Furthermore, by utilizing the narrative strategy of the West, Arthur Waley wrote biographies for Chinese poets like Li Po, Po Chu-i and Yuan Mei, which results to subvert the single translation-oriented model of traditional sinology.Such being the case, Arthur Waley dissociated from the mainstream of thus British sinology and acted as a marginal role to whom, the distance from the British traditional sinologists was extended further for his Jewish identity and peculiarly uncommunicative character. Nonetheless Arthur Waley endeavored to seek the compatibility between the Jewish and sinology by devotion to the examination and translation of Japanese and Chinese literature, even to the extent of trying to live the secluded Chinese literati style of life. It was safely said in his mind, the ancient China was the most fascinated of holy palaces. To capture the essence of Chinese culture, Arthur Waley intercoursed sincerely with Chinese scholars, and Ding Wenjiang, Hsu Chih-mo, Hu Shih and Hsiao Ch'ien became his best foreign friends. Using the above three strategies, Arthur Waley strove to rid of the European prejudices of traditional sinologists for the purpose of seeking a kind of equal dialogue between China and British, but his British identity bred in the bone still led him to maintain the inextricable interrelation with his traditional culture. Though his unmetrical approach of literal translation with apparent foreignization, he kept a close eye on the smoothness to meet the demands of British readers'habits, which was coincident with a distinctive domestication. His biography-writing, framed by the western chronological narrative mode of historical biographies, remarked its biographers with the western values, which unavoidably resulted in many misinterpretations of Li PO, Po Chu-i and Yuan Mei. The thesis, penetrating from the transformation of British sinology, plans to investigate closely the three research strategies adopted by Arthur Waley in his sinological studies through careful textual analyses。I will disclose Arthur Waley's contradiction and paradox furthermore, which rendered him on the one hand dissociated from British sinological mainstream while inextricable from British cultural impact on the other hand.