A Study On British Sinologist Arthur Waley And His Research On The Ning Songs

Arthur Waley (1889-1966) is regarded as one of the most successful British Orientalists and Sinologists in introducing Chinese and Japanese literature and culture in 20th century. It is Waley who introduces ancient Chinese poetry to a wide public in the West and exerts a great influence on Western Sinology. However, Waley has received very little critical attention in China and the studied on him and his achievements are still far from enough.At the very beginning, Waley focused on translating Chinese poems of Tang Dynasty. In his old ages, he turned to make research on Ch'u Tz'u and treated it as important documents of the Shamanism in ancient China from cultural aspect. His research book, The Nine Songs:A Study of Shamanism in Ancient China, contained not only the English translation of'the nine songs', but also the study of Shamanism in ancient China. In the beginning of The Nine Songs, he explained that why he chose 'shaman'to translate the character of'wu'. Then he found the records of Shamanism in the history of China from Han Dynasty and tried to establish the development of Shamanism in ancient China. Meanwhile, he took the resources from different areas which around China and used them as examples to figure out the relationship between the deity and the shaman. Waley's research showed the brand new ideas in the study of'the nine songs'. However, he did not notice that the'wu'was originated in China actually.This thesis attempts to make a systematic research on Waley's The Nine Songs:A Study of Shamanism in Ancient China. First of all, it will discuss the distinguishing features of Waley's translation of'the nine songs'. Secondly, it will discuss some questions of his research approaches of Shamanism in ancient China. Thirdly, it will explore the influences of his research on Ch'u Tz'u study in Europe.