On The Role Of Native Chinese Translators In The English Translation Of Chinese Classics

With the consecutive publication of the Chinese classics under the collective title Library of Chinese Classics (LCC), substantial progress seems to have been made in the systematic translation and introduction of* the Chinese classics to the English-speaking world. It is indeed encouraging for Chinese translators to see the task being headed by the General Administration of Press and Publication and fulfilled mainly by the Chinese translators and publishers, which has been a long-cherished dream of many Chinese translators. What's more, the success and significance of this series was confirmed when they were granted an award at the Fifth National Book Awards, soon after the publication of the first issues. However, things turned out to be not so optimistic. Six years have passed by since the first issues were published in the year 1999, but seldom can the issues be found in the reference materials of the research both home and abroad. Meanwhile, the series turns out to be a failure in the market. Therefore, the series actually fail to live up to the expectations both academically and economically. The warm acclaim they received in the beginning and the lack of enthusiasm in the present academic circle forms a sharp contrast. What is it that has caused the above-mentioned problem? Is the quality of the translation poor? Or is there something wrong with the editing? Should Chinese translators produce their own versions when there are already well-established versions available abroad? Should the Chinese participate in the translation and introduction of Chinese classics? If they should, then what role will they play?The present article intends to inquire into these problems by studying Mencius, which is among the first issues of the LCC publication. The article is composed of five chapters in addition to an introduction and a conclusion.Chapter One is an introduction to Mencius, his thoughts, artistic features ofMencius, and a brief history of its translation in the English-speaking world. In this chapter information is also provided for the three versions of Mencius to be analyzed.Chapter Two analyzes the problems caused by classical Chinese when the Chinese classics are translated. And then proceeds to see how well these three versions have conquered these problems. In addition, problems are also analyzed from a cultural perspective and then the strategies of the three translations are studied to see how they have recreated the original.Chapter Three studies the LCC version as a retranslation by first presenting theories concerning retranslation and then proceeding to study its merits and demerits in comparison with the two earlier versions: namely Legge's and Lau's. Then the chapter is concluded by a summary, which intends to offer some suggestions as to the attitudes and ways when decisions have to be made whether a retranslation is justified, or if it is to be done, how the work may be carried out more effectively.Chapter Four studies annotations of the LCC version in comparison with the other two versions and examines the problems in the preface and introduction to the LCC version. Patronage is introduced in this chapter to account for the problems and is viewed as a two-edged sword.In Chapter Five, with the LCC version of Mencius as a case study, the author points out that there are great differences between dreams and realities. Then different voices concerning the translation and introduction of Chinese Classics are introduced and reflected on. The chapter goes on to study respective advantages and disadvantages of Chinese translators and their foreign counterparts, the significance of the participation of the Chinese patronage and eventually comes to the conclusion that more attention should be paid to how (the translation and introduction ofChinese classics can be done more effectively) than to who (is the one to do the job). Conclusion: The main reason for the failure of the LCC version of Mencius to live up to the initiators' expectations is not so much translation-quality-related as editing-associated, although as a retranslation the LCC version could have done better. China is noted for its long history and has much to introduce and translate to the foreign countries. Thus, the participation of Chinese publishers as well as translators is essential so as to offer the foreign readers a comprehensive picture of what China and the Chinese culture are like. In cases where well-established versions exist, the Chinese translators may focus on a critical study and provide corrections to possible errors or constructive translations where different interpretations may co-exist; in cases where there are no translations or the translations are of poor quality for the works that we cherished, efforts should be made to translate or retranslate. The quality of such translations or retranslations may be guaranteed by strengthened cooperation between Chinese translators and their English-speaking counterparts. Such being the case, the introduction and translation of Chinese classics can be further promoted by cooperation between the publishers home and abroad.