A Comparative Study On The Two English Versions Of Teahouse From The Perspective Of Stage Performability

As a special literature genre, the creation of drama is to serve the stage and meet the need of the audience as well as to provide good reading texts for the readers. It is due to the complicity of the creation of drama that the translation of drama should take the dualistic nature of the translated text into consideration, namely, readability and performability. Two eminent translation theorists, Susan Bassnett and Patrice Pavis, have made tremendous contributions to the principle of stage performability of drama translation. They hold polarized attitudes toward this principle and put the translation of drama to the extremes of readability and performability respectively.This thesis takes two English versions of Lao She’s Teahouse translated by Ying Ruocheng and John Howard as linguistic data. A comparative study is carried out majorly by means of qualitative analysis along with some concrete data from the four aspects of stage performability:language colloquialism, language actability, language individuality and language acceptability, which are derived from the thirteen systems of drama signs by Prague Semiotic School. The writer of this thesis also gives explanation for the different translation behaviors of the two translators. Through the comparison, the writer reckons that drama is different from other literature genres and the direct purpose of its creation is to perform itself on the stage. So accordingly, the translation of drama should be aimed to provide a text fit for stage performance. In the process of translating drama, one single strategy is hard to fit in with the various and complicated problems, so the translators must take flexible methods to handle all the difficulties and carry out the practical translation on the level of stage performance. The great success of Ying Ruocheng’s version on foreign stage proves that it’s feasible to realize stage performability in drama translation, and offers valuable experience for the Chinese-English translation work of the Chinese classic dramas.This thesis consists of five chapters. Chapter One is the introduction part, introducing thesis structure and the objectives and significance of this thesis. Chapter Two is literature review, combing the research achievement on stage performability at home and abroad, majorly introducing the views of Susan Bassnett and Patrice Pavis; meanwhile, Teahouse and its two most influential English versions will be discussed, and the great success of Teahouse on foreign stages is going to be expounded too. Chapter Three is theoretical framework, distilling four features of drama language indicating stage performability from the thirteen signs of Prague Semiotic School. Chapter Four is the core part of this thesis. A detailed comparison of the two versions will be conducted in the aspects of the four features, and the analysis of different translation behaviors will be related in the light of different purposes of the two translators. The reasons why Ying Ruocheng’s version is more suitable for stage performance are given at the end of this chapter. Chapter Five is the conclusion part, pointing out that on the premise of readability, the translation of drama needs to realize performability, which should take both actors and audience into consideration. The inclusion of the audience broadens the theoretical connotation of drama typology; By sorting and expounding the principle of stage performability, the writer of this thesis hopes to provide some help for those who love drama translation, thus promoting the globalization of Chinese drama.