The Interplay Of Logos And Tao～1 Between Tolkien's The Lord Of The Rings And Its Chinese Translations

This thesis will explore how the logos concept that greatly influenced J. R. R. Tolkien's mythology interplays with the concept of tao in the Chinese translations of The Lord of the Rings. The method employed will be an analysis of the "One Ring" poem found at the beginning of the book. The analysis will be line-by-line, with a primarily lexical focus, and will compare the original English and the three published Chinese translations. The rationale for choosing this as the text for analysis is that in a concise format it contains the thematic material about which the narrative revolves. It involves the two races of people of Middle-earth through which Tolkien explored his central theme of death and immortality: Elves and Men. It also places each race in relation to contexts that shape its self-consciousness. Elves are placed in their context of linguistic, spiritual, and cosmological self-perception in relation to light, as they are pictured as "under the sky". Men are placed in their context of spiritual struggle with mortality, as they are described as "doomed to die". The poem also contains a central conflict of The Lord of the Rings: Sauron's plot to bind all the free peoples of Middle-earth in Darkness and enslave them under his total domination through the power of the One Ring. This theme of light against shadow is also a central theme throughout Tolkien's mythology.The thesis is composed of eight chapters. Chapter One introduces the language-making and mythmaking of Professor Tolkien, his own views on the translation of his works, and previous analysis of The Lord of the Rings in Chinese translation. It also presents the research questions to be answered in this thesis, the methodology for answering them, and the rationale behind these methods. Chapter Two reviews and employs some critique and expansion of previous study on the influence of the logos concept on Tolkien's views of language, creation, and sub-creation. Chapter Three reviews studies of key concepts in traditional Chinese thought, especially in cosmogony and cosmology, and centers on the concept of tao. It also reviews previous study that compares and contrasts logos and tao and that summarizes their relationships to thought and language. It then shows how similarities in Eastern and Western thought shown in this work are illustrated in Tolkien's mythology. Chapters Four analyzes the first line of the "One Ring Poem". The second line, as it is not germane to the focus of this thesis, is omitted. Chapter Five analyzes line three; Chapter Six analyzes lines four and five; and Chapter Seven analyses lines six through eight. Chapter Eight summarizes four main ways in which logos and tao interplay in the three Chinese translations, and concludes with how these findings may contribute to Chinese and Western comparative language and culture and help the Chinese-speaking world better appreciate Tolkien's works and their wisdom.