The Same Music In Different Notes

Classical Chinese artistic essays, in the narrow sense of prose, are also called"beautiful essays". They are highly graceful, refined and expressive works of art, rich in personality, wisdom and literary charm. On the one hand, they are adept in expressing people's emotions, on the other hand, they greatly satisfy people's demand for aesthetic appreciation and enjoyment, namely, they are distinctively characterized by their expressive and aesthetic functions, and therefore, studying the translation of classical Chinese artistic essays from the aesthetic perspective is of great significance.Focusing on the problem of aesthetic communication between translators and readers, adopting the methodology of drawing samples, making comparisons, constructing the model as well as making deductive reasoning, and following the research pattern of"discovering problems-analyzing problems-raising hypothesis- making the elaboration- summarizing solutions", this dissertation is devoted to making a study, in theory and in practice, on the possibility and the feasibility of the aesthetic communication between translators and readers in the translation of classical Chinese artistic essays. The study is done from the following aspects: discovering problems through comparisons, analyzing and expounding the possibility of the aesthetic communication, setting forth the theoretical foundation for the model, constructing the model of the aesthetic communication between translators and readers, as well as exploring the specific translation strategies on the operational level.The dissertation consists of seven chapters:Chapter One: IntroductionSix points are introduced and illustrated: literature review, the goal and the significance of the study, the methodology, the working definition of"the aesthetic communication", the originality of the study, and the structure of the dissertation. Chapter Two: Studies on the translation of classical Chinese artistic essays in the vision of aestheticsThe comparative studies are made in this chapter for the purpose of finding out problems and deciding upon the studying focus and the penetrating point of the dissertation. First, the study is made on the aesthetic constituents in the formal system of the source texts and their gains and losses in the target texts. Secondly, the artistic images and the artistic conceptions (Yi Jing) as the non-formal aesthetic constituents are taken into consideration, and the translation strategies as well as their conveying effect are under observation. Thirdly, the comparative studies are made on the translations of different Chinese translators and those between Chinese and foreign translators. By the above studies, we see the problems in translating classical Chinese artistic essays lie in translators, readers and target texts, the studying focus therefore falls upon the link of"translators-target texts-readers"and the point of penetration is put forward: Is the aesthetic communication between translators and readers possible and feasible?Chapter Three: The possibility of the aesthetic communication between translators and readers in the translation of classical Chinese artistic essaysHistorically speaking, the gradual spreading of the Chinese culture to the west has made some preparations for western readers to accept and understand Chinese literary works. Nowadays, the calls for the cultural exchanges, the active and important role the governments play, as well as the positive attitude of translators and readers provide the possibility for the aesthetic communication. As is known, a perfect translation cannot ensure the accomplishment of the aesthetic communication, the above factors exterior to the texts, with regard to the predominant poetics, the cultural factors, the ideological influences and the role the sponsors play, should all be given much consideration and emphasis. Besides, the points in common between classical Chinese artistic essays and English essays in terms of the themes, the writing manners and the language styles make readers not very strange about the targets texts, which provide the basis for their communication. The differences in aspects of the languages used, the spirit embodied in the essays and the ways of emotional conveyance may arouse readers'interest, which results in their strong motivation in reading. All of the above demonstrate that there is the possibility in achieving the aesthetic communication between translators and readers. Chapter Four: The theoretical foundation for constructing the model of the aesthetic communication between translators and readers in the translation of classical Chinese artistic essaysA model of the aesthetic communication between translators and readers applicable to the translation of classical Chinese artistic essays is to be constructed and the theoretical foundation for the construction is as follows: theories of the contemporary Chinese translation aesthetics, aesthetics of reception and Croce's expressionist aesthetic theory, basic principles of aesthetics and the classical Chinese aesthetic thoughts as well as the observations and the speculations of my own. These theories are not simply pieced together with total and uncritical acceptance; instead, they are adopted and applied critically in accordance with the studying object and the studying goal. The illuminating theoretical points are selected and integrated so that these points can complement and coordinate each other for the ultimate purpose of solving problems in translation.Chapter Five: The model of the aesthetic communication between translators and readers in the translation of classical Chinese artistic essaysThis is the focal part of the dissertation and thus takes up more space. A model with its own logic is constructed, in which all the elements involved in the process of the aesthetic communication and their interrelations are studied and deliberated on. The following points are elaborated in the model: the fundamental qualities of qualified translators, the readers'capability of aesthetic acceptance, the features of target texts, the aesthetic ideal of the translation, the three dimensions of the target texts, the main translation problems in each dimension, and the referential translation norms. The function of the model is to explore and expound the feasibility of the aesthetic communication in a more orderly and complete way. In addition, in view of the inadequacies of the contemporary Chinese translation aesthetics, the model makes some complementary work and contributes to the further development of translation aesthetics.Chapter Six: The translation strategies for the aesthetic communication between translators and readers in the translation of classical Chinese artistic essaysThe specific translation strategies are the predominant concern of this chapter. The beauty in sound, conciseness and classic elegance in the dimension of the discourse, the artistic images and the artistic conceptions (Yi Jing) in the dimension of the imagery, and the ancient Chinese scholars'spirit embodied in the dimension of the implication and their translation strategies are all studied and illustrated with examples. Being practice-oriented and under the guidance of the norms in the model, the study on the strategies puts all the previous discussions into concrete and practical application.Chapter Seven: ConclusionThe aesthetic communication between translators and readers in the translation of classical Chinese artistic essays is possible and feasible. In addition, speculations and summaries on some specific problems in theory and in practice are made.The above chapters are not written in average length, but in a gradational and progressive sequence so that the focal part can stand out.Five appendixes are included: the questionnaire and the analysis, 90 samples of classical Chinese artistic essays,"The Pavilion of the Old Drunkard"and"The First Ode to the Red Cliff"and their translations, the introduction of classical Chinese artistic essays in the west, and translation studies on the sampled essays in China.