Research On The Translation Of Emotional Terms In Huangdi Neijing Based On Category Theory

Objective:When traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)accelerates its output and reinforces the communication with western medicine,it is extremely important to establish systematic translation criteria for terminologies in ancient TCM classics Yellow Emperor's Inner Classic(Huang Di Nei Jing)(hereinafter referred to as the Inner Classic),on which the theoretical system of modern Chinese medicine is established,is the most important ancient Chinese medical classic strengthening both physical and mental health.It proposed the "theory of emotion" which is the foundation of TCM psychology in later generations thus to be considered as one of the most significant contribution of TCM.To help westerners understand the "theory of emotion" is first of all to translate the terminologies accurately and effectively However,the terminologies on emotion are mostly abstract,perceptual and metaphysical.Besides,they are scattered in 129 chapters of Inner Classic and the corresponding translations are different in various English versions of Inner Classic Quite many terminologies on emotion are not included into the current two sets of national standards;hence it is necessary and urgent to conduct a comprehensive collation,classification and translation study on these terminologies.This study takes the linguistic categorization,a branch of cognitive linguistics,as the framework to establish the category model of emotional terminologies in Inner Classic.By observing the position of terminologies in "upper-level terminologies-basic-level terminologies-lower-level terminologies" frame as well as the relationship among the terminologies,the author explores the method to establish the systematic translation criteria,which can provide reference for the establishment of the translation system of terminologies in ancient Chinese classics,and provide a practical model of translation criticism for the theoretical construction and perfection of the emerging discipline:cognitive translatologyMethods:Taking the linguistic categorization as theoretical foundation,this paper categorizes terminologies on emotion in Inner Classic,defines the boundary of terminology research with the concept of "emotions",establishes two main categories with "seven emotions" and "five spirits" as the key concepts,and further divides them into 8 sub-categories with "spirit","joy","anger","anxiety","thought","sorrow","fear" and "fright" as the basic-level terminologies.They can be even further categorized into more detailed subcategories in depth.By observing the similarities in meaning and structure of the terminologies within each category and subcategory,this paper intends to work out the ideal translation principles,strategies and methods.Before the intensive study of terminology translation,a questionnaire was sent to experts at home and abroad to investigate the acceptance of translation versions of Inner Classic,several key terms,and the relevance between the translators' attitudes towards translation and their choices of translation versions and terminologies With the help of the questionnaire,the translation versions of Inner Classic by Maoxing Ni(1995),Wuqi,Wu Liansheng(1997),Li Zhaoguo(Su Wen,2005;Ling Shu,2008)and Paul Unschuld(Su Wen,2011;Ling Shu,2015)were selected as the main reference versions for the study.And this paper also includes the translation versions by Luo Xiwen(2009),Ilza Veith(1949),along with WHO International Standard Terminologies on Traditional Medicine in the Western Pacific Region and International Standard Chinese-English Basic Nomenclature of Chinese Medicine by World Federation of Chinese Medicine Societies,along with several Chinese-English Dictionaries of Inner Classic when necessary.All in all,guided by the methods of philology,linguistic categorization,translation,and history,with the knowledge of the basic theory of traditional Chinese medicine,and referring to the results of questionnaire survey,this paper puts forward ideal translation versions of 96 terminologies on emotion and the categorized translation principles,strategies and methods for each of them.Results:According to the theory of linguistic categorization,the terminologies on emotion are categorized into 2 categories,8 subcategories and some detailed subordinate categories.Each category and subcategory contains a key basic-level terminology and several lower-level terminologies.Based on category,the translation versions of the terminologies are clarified and the principles,the systematic translation principles,strategies and methods of terms in each category or subcategory are established.We found that(1)"five spirits" is a peripheral category related to"emotion" in Inner Classic,with "spirit" as the basic-level term,"five spirits" as its upper-level term and a series of core medical philosophical terms as its lower-level terms,such as "spirit brilliance","essence and spirit","spirit qi","spirit viscera"When the translation strategies and words of basic-level term "sprit" are determined,those of the subcategory terms as "sprit brilliance","essence and spirit","spirit qi","spirit viscera" and the upper-level terms "five spirits" and "sprit and will" are also settled down.(2)the category of "seven emotions" containes 7 basic-level terms:"joy","anger","anxiety","thought","sorrow","fear" and "fright",which belong to the upper-level "joy and anger" or "nine qi"(the later TCM classics put forward the term "five wills","seven emotions" and "emotion and will")and contains multi-level subcategories.The translation study based on linguistic category lays much emphasis on the basic-level terminologies,the core element of translation,which affect or decide the translation principles,strategies and methods of other terminologies(3)on the basis of six important translation versions of Inner Classic,the two sets of national standards and several dictionaries,and the result of questionnaire,this paper puts forward the ideal translation versions of 96 terms in 8 subcategories as well as the systematic translation principle,strategies and methods of the terms based on the linguistic categorization.Conclusion:Through the categorized translation study on the terms on emotion in Inner Classic,we can find out that(1)categorization is one of the preconditions to solve the problems of terminology translation in ancient TCM classics.(2)the category model of terms on emotion in Inner Classic is a multi-level structure with 8 basic-level terms as the key basic-level terminologies.(3)the systematic translation principles,strategies and methods of the terminologies can be established based on the categorization,which is a new perspective for the study of the translation of the terms in ancient TCM classics and also can provide a reference for the standardization of TCM terms.(4)Linguistic categorization,to some extent,is of universal significance to the translation of core culture-loaded words in traditional classics.(5)The study on the translation of emotional terms in Inner Classic based on linguistic categorization is an innovative practice of the cognitive translatology,a new branch of cognitive linguistics,which,in turn,can provide methodological reference to the further construction of this theory.(6)The monographic study of the translation on the terms on emotion in Inner Classic can promote the communication between Chinese and western psychology.