On The Translator's Subjectivity From The Perspective Of Hermeneutics

Xu Yuanchong is an outstanding representative of contemporary Chinese translators. He has translated a large number of classical Chinese poetry,and made great contributions to promotion of the status of Chinese literature in the world.Based on his persistent translation practice,Xu has proposed his ideas about translation,which is an inheritance and development of the traditional translation thoughts in China.His translation thoughts have shed much light on the current studies on literary translation.After the cultural turn in translation studies,the studies on the translator's subjectivity has been carried out in the field,among which hermeneutics has become one of the important theoretical bases for the study on the translator's subjectivity as it is a theory about the interpretation of meaning.It focuses on people's understanding and interpreting activities that will definitely manifest the translator's subjectivity,no matter the translator is conscious or unconscious about this.It takes the translator as an active creator of meaning,not a passive receiver,positively affirming the translator's interpretation.Hence this thesis employs the three important concepts in hermeneutics to probe into Xu Yuanchong's translation thoughts and his translation of Li Qingzhao's Ci,namely prejudice,historicity of understanding and fusion of horizons respectively.The research is done with the investigation of Xu's choices of translation materials,his verse-into-verse translation approach,his translation purpose and his translation strategies,hoping to find out whether Xu Yuanchong has exerted his translator's subjectivity to a full play.The thesis consists of six chapters.Chapter one is a brief introduction to the research background,research aim and the major research methods.Chapter two firstly illustrates who is the subject in translation and what is the translator's subjectivity.Then it goes on to the present studies on the translator's subjectivity.The studies on Xu Yuanchong's translation are also mentioned in this part.Chapter three is mainly a discussion about the theoretical basis of the thesis—hermeneutics.The section probes into the studies on the translator's subjectivity from three important concepts in hermeneutics.Chapter four is a macro study on Xu Yuanchong's subjectivity manifested in his translation thoughts and translation practice.In this part,the thesis first employs the concept "historicity of understanding" to analyze the subjectivity manifested in his translation thoughts.Then the author explores Xu's subjectivity demonstrated in his translation practice from his choice of translation material,translation strategy etc.The author also makes a brief analysis about the historicity of Xu Yuanchong as a translator. Chapter five is a case study of Xu Yuanchong's translation of Li Qingzhao's ci from the perspective of fusion of horizons.This part is a micro study on how he manifests his translator's subjectivity from the perspective of fusion of horizons.Chapter six is the conclusion of the thesis.Through the analysis of Xu Yuanchong's subjectivity at the macro level and at the micro level,the thesis aims to illuminate that Xu has insisted on his translation thoughts throughout his translation practice to achieve his translation purpose.