Outward Translation And Cultural Exportation

One important function of outward translation is to render information of the source culture to readers in the target society. As an effective way of cultural exportation, outward translation is an important approach of reducing cultural deficit and improving the source culture's image. Ku Hungming was one of the pioneers of outward translation in modern China. His English translation of Confucian classics was intended to export Chinese culture and change the stereotype of China in the world. This thesis tries to examine Ku's translation from the perspective of cultural exportation. It takes Ku Hungming's English translation of Zhong Yong as an example to explore the relation between translation and culture from aspects of translation purpose, selection of source text, translation strategy, and reader awareness.This thesis reviews the history of outward translation in China and points out that outward translation is an important approach of cultural exportation. It introduces Ku's English translation activities and his views on Chinese and Western cultures. Based on these studies, it discusses the cultural function of Ku's translation of Zhong Yong in introducing Confucianism and improving the national image of China.Ku's translation of Zhong Yong is an activity aiming at exporting Confucianism and improving the image of Chinese culture. Ku's translation decisions were made under the circumstance of the then Eastern and Western societies and cultures. His translations were well accepted by readers in the West. To a certain extent, they fulfilled the purpose of exporting Chinese culture. Ku Hungming's English translation of Zhong Yong played a special role in the history of culture exportation in China and it can still be of some inspiration to the translators today.