Study On Ci-poetry Translation From The Perspective Of Context Of Culture

Translation is conditioned by various factors which are complicated, multifaceted and related to translation activities. This dissertation is intended to discuss ci-poetry translation from the perspective of context, especially context of culture -one of the most important factors. Ci-poetry, also translated as ci lyric, lyric poetry and song poetry, is the gem of traditional Chinese literature. In the age of globalization, more and more foreigners are getting interested in classical Chinese ci-poetry and more and more translators feel it's their responsibility to introduce them to the foreign countries. Thus lots of Ci-poetry have been translated into English or other languages and at the same time painstaking efforts have been made on various aspects to explain the theory of ci-poetry translation. In the dissertation, the issue of translatability and untranslatability is discussed, and a historical survey of the main contributions to ci-poetry translation is presented -from Cicero's to the Peter Newmark's. The development and classification of the context theory is also discussed in detail. The main part of the dissertation is to analyze the relationship between context of culture and translation and also to establish a translation model of ci-poetry translation in context of culture, and to test the validity of the model by a comparison of existing translations of Li Qingzhao's ci-poetry-To the Tune of Slow, Slow Song. The three translated versions are analyzed in terms of the five levels of context of culture as well.