A Dialectic View Of The Relationship Between Aesthetic Object And Subject In Classical Chinese Poetry Translation

As is well known, poetry is a very important genre in literature. It distinguishes itself by its distinct style, refined language and fresh artistic conception. A truly fine poem never fails to impress readers with its poetic artistry and aesthetic value. Classical Chinese poems are the gems of our cultural heritage. But is it possible to translate them across literary and cultural borders so that the broad masses of English readers may gain access to this resplendent portion of Chinese culture? Or is there any possibility of satisfactory translation where the poetic artistry and aesthetic effect of the original poem can be appreciated by the target language readers? This paper will try to answer these questions by a close examination of the relationship between the original poem (the aesthetic object) and the translator (the aesthetic subject) from perspective of aesthetics. The author of this paper proposes that on the basis of the original poem, the translator should be competent and creative enough to bring about the aesthetic properties of the original poem to the highest possible aesthetic perfection. Large numbers of classical Chinese poems and their English translations, done by either foreign translators or domestic translators, are quoted and discussed as examples to support the author's view.The paper consists of five chapters. Chapter One is the general introduction to this paper. The author raises the question and introduces the aim and significance of the study. A brief outline of the paper will also be presented. Chapter Two makes a brief review of the related views on poetry translation both at home and abroad, including Huang Gao Xin's"emulation"method (三兼顾), Liu Zhongde's three-character principle(信,达,切), Xu Yuanchong's"Three-beauty"principle (三美原则)and his viewpoint that"translation is a competition between cultures"(文化竞赛论), and Susan Bassnett's view of poetry translation as"transplanting the seed". The author of this paper points out that they either lack due attention to the role that the translator plays in poetry translation or overemphasize creativity on the part of the translator and ignore his responsibility to be faithful to the original poem. The author suggests that a dialectic view of the relationship between the original poem and the...