The Reader In Howard Goldblatt’s Translation

For half a century, few translated works have entered Western mainstream market in China’s promoting project of Chinese literature overseas. However, Howard Goldblatt, hailed as the "chief translator" in translating Chinese literature into English, has produced many popular works which are characterized by their accurateness, readability and acceptability. A close reading of the works he has done and the interviews on him can tell clearly that it is "the reader" that plays a decisive role in his selection of translation strategies. This thesis, based on reception aesthetics, is attempted to make a detailed analysis of The Republic of Wine, the English version of Jiuguo (《é…'国》) to discuss how "the reader" influences Howard Goldblatt’s translation process. Hopefully, more emphasis could be laid on readers, especially on the mainstream readers, in the transmission of Chinese literature.The theory of reception aesthetics, which rose in Germany in the1960s, concentrates on target text readers as the source or the resource of meaning of literary works. This turn to target text readers provides new perspectives and research methods in literary translation studies. On the basis of the theory, the author classifies readers into the implied reader, target reader and authoritative reader, which can be jointly termed "the reader". The translation process can be accordingly divided into three receptions:approaching the implied reader, trusting or assisting the target reader and compromising or conflicting with the authoritative reader. In this way, we can see clearly the subjectivity and initiative of translators as well as the translation readers.Chapter one mentions the social background, significance and methodology of the research, emphasizing the importance of studies on reader and Howard Goldblatt in a reality which is characterized by the imbalanced communication between Chinese and Western culture. Literature review is included in chapter two, which summarizes previous studies on the two subjects respectively. The author finds that the application of reception aesthetics in translation study is still insufficient, especially in the discussion of translation process. Moreover, treatises on Goldblatt are few in number and have hardly noticed the underlying factor behind these phenomena, which is his awareness of the reader. Chapter three puts forward the theoretical framework of the thesis, namely a model of translation process enlightened by reception aesthetics, which is subsequently applied to examine Howard Goldblatt’s translation process through a case study of The Republic of Wine in chapter four. Chapter five makes a conclusion of the thesis and points out its limitations as well as future research directions.It is found that Goldblatt attaches great importance to the reading experience of target readers. His awareness of the reader can be well reflected through his effort to understand the original texts thoroughly in the first reception, his flexible translation of unconventional language, ubiquitous cultural terms and varied writing styles in the second reception as well as his negotiation with authoritative readers in the third reception. The underlying principle in his translation is to maximize the reading pleasure of target readers, instead of the domestication or simplification as most researchers have pointed out. Since Goldblatt’s selection of works worth translating is neglected here, the scope of discussion of translation process is therefore limited. Future researchers are expected to reveal Goldblatt’s awareness of the reader in his choosing original works so as to expand the discussion of translation process.To sum up, Howard Goldblatt’s approach to the implied reader, attention to target readers and negotiation with authoritative readers are precisely the factors contributing to his wide popularity. The examination of "the reader" in Howard Goldblatt’s translation of The Republic of Wine is expected to shed some light on the discussion of translation process in terms of readership, as well as on the overseas transmission of Chinese literature.