Creative Misreading: A Deconstructionist Perspective On Translation

Faithfulness was once considered the rigid rule in translation in the history of translation both in western countries and in China. Yet when we take a closer look, betrayal is found in most published translation. Just as Prof. Xu Jun claims that: the seemingly clumsy faithfulness may lead to real treason, while ingenious treason at the level of language may lead to real faithfulness (1997: 42). In the process of translation, each translator with his particular education, disposition, historical and cultural backgrounds, comes to a different interpretation of the original text. In doing so, misreading is unavoidable. What this thesis enquires into is creative misreading, that is, using some specific translation techniques, the translators consciously change some of the contents and forms of the source text and achieve a kind of reasonable and positive creativity with a strong tendency of faithfulness. This thesis first of all elaborates the theory of creative misreading and distinguishes unacceptable translation errors from creative misreadings.This thesis then attempts to analyze the creative misreading from the perspective of deconstructionism. The principal essence of deconstructionism is the creativity (Lu Jun, 2002: 50). Deconstructionism brings a pluralistic study method for translation study. This thesis probes into the impact that deconstructionism exerts on creative misreading from the following four aspects: (1) differance determining the meaning, (2) intertextuality, (3) the play of meaning, and (4) translation as survival of the original. The aim of translation is to demonstrate the differences, not to hide them. And faithfulness exists just in creative misreading.The author of this thesis then enumerates the manifestation of creative misreading in different respects, such as in culture, ideology, poetics, and by patronage, and etc. This thesis then gives a comprehensive illustration of creative misreading with living examples: (1) different translation styles of the original, (2) conscious mistranslation and omission, (3) abridged and supplementary translation, and (4) adaptation.Based on the deconstructionist translation theory, the existence of creative misreading has positive contribution to translation. Creative misreading in translation should not be neglected, even more, we should pay more attention on it and even be thankful for it. In the last chapter, this thesis demonstrates the positive significance of creative misreading, which not only gives a shift in translation criticism but also uplifts the translators' status as well as the translated works'. But creative misreading should not be taken as excuse for abused translation and misinterpretation. However the "dancing" translator with "shackles" may not follow too much criterion of abusive faithfulness, and the "dancing motion" can still be more graceful.