On Translator's National Cultural Identity In Globalization

Translation is an important way of cultural communication, on which the communications between China and the outside world rely. With the development of open and reform policy and the influential strength of China, the outputting of Chinese culture is becoming an exigent demand to the world, in which we are also confronted with challenges in traditional culture under globalization. Therefore, we must pay more attention to our traditional culture and the translator's national cultural identity.The traditional Chinese culture is a treasure among the cultures of the world, and The Analects of Confucius is the brightest pearl among the ancient Chinese Classics. This brilliant book began to show its splendor as early as 2400 years ago between the Spring and Autumn and the Warring States Period. Compiled by his disciples, The Analects of Confucius records the saying and deeds of the great sage and his disciples. It is the major classic of Confucianism as well as the most authoritative book in the history of China. With only 12,000 characters, it is terse and comprehensive, rich and profound. It has influenced the Chinese society for about 2000 years. Its ideas have taken such firm root in the Chinese people that all the Chinese people have been more or less influenced by it.In 1990, Andre Lefevere and Susan Bassnett edited a collection of essays entitled Translation, History and Culture. They co-wrote the introductory articles for the volume, which we see as a major change of emphasis in translation studies. We call this shift of emphasis "the cultural turn" in translation studies, and it suggested that a study of the process of translation combined with the praxis of translating could offer a way of understanding how complex manipulative textual processes take place. Closely related to this cultural turn, the role and identity of a translator are heatedly discussed. And researchers seemed to have reached an agreement that the translator is the subject of translation. Because of the close relationship between culture, translators and translation studies, a research into translator's national cultural identity has become more significant. In order to settle intercultural issues, people have already moved from theory to practice. This thesis starts with the definition and dynamic construction of the translator's national cultural identity, which are the core of this research.The theoretical part mainly analyses the dynamic construction of the translator's national cultural identity. Under the core of Functionalist Approach—Skopos Theory, the thesis analyzes the influences of the mainstream of the translator's national culture, which includes cultural tendency, attitude and habit. Then it analyzes the opening of the translator's national cultural identity under the situation of globalization. In the case study part which is based on the overseas translators' versions of The Analects of Confucius, their cultural tendency, attitude and habit that determine their motivation which exerts great influence on their interpretations of the text and the strategies they used in translation are discussed. For example, in his translation activity, Legge's national cultural identity plays a vital role and he made great contributions to the service of his nation by using the Chinese Confucianism. Under the situation of globalization, the transaction of the cultural information in Pound's version manifests its dynamics. The case study continues and the different interpretations of some special culture-loaded terms both at home and abroad are discussed. Then the author draws the conclusion of the whole thesis.According to the cultural turn in translation studies theoretically, by using Functionalist Approach—Skopos theory, this thesis aims at the localization of the translator's national cultural identity under globalization. This thesis considers this question as a manifestation of the transition in translation studies from character level to cultural and political levels, which changes the plight of narrow character level in translation studies. Moreover, from the viewpoint of the relationships between globalization and nationalization, the thesis points out that the translators should persist in their national cultural identity, keep its uniqueness and at the same time hold its opening and extraversion.