Study On The French Translation Of Shi Jing By Xu Yuanchong

In the context of globalization,exchanges between different cultures are becoming increasingly frequent.With the economic development and the enhancement of soft power,Chinese culture is accelerating its pace of internationalization.In the field of literature,the brilliant Chinese classical literature is primarily synonymous with the best Chinese literature and draws particular attention from sinologists and foreign readers.In the process of spreading the Chinese classical literature,translation plays a very important role.As the first collection of Chinese poetry,Shijing,as well called The Book of Poetry,is one of the remarkable masterpieces of Chinese classical literature.It established the beautiful tradition of poetic creation in China and has inspired Chinese following poets.It occupies a high position in the literary history of China and has profound influences on the Chinese literature.Literary critics point out that The Book of Poetry is as remarkable as The Epic Poems of Homer of ancient Greece.It is not only an artistic treasure of China,but also a precious heritage of the world culture.Therefore,the study on the translation of The Book of Poetry contributes to the retranslation and diffusion of this book;it can furthermore facilitate the export of Chinese culture as well as the cultural exchanges between the East and the West.France is the first western country that introduced this classic Chinese book.The translation and studies of The Book of Poetry in France went through a long process,in which they passed from prosperity to decay.In the late twentieth century,the renowned Chinese translator Xu Yuanchong selected 50 poems in The Book of Poetry and translated them into French rhymed verses.Xu Yuanchong has been engaged in the literature translation for more than 60 years and has translated a large number of ancient Chinese poems.He not only actively participated in the translation practice,but also built his own theoretical system based on the traditional theories of Chinese literary translation and his rich translation experiences.In particular,the "three beauties" theory,as its basic translation theory,is quite influential.As one of the representatives who favor the principle of "translate poetry into poetry",Xu Yuanchong enjoys the reputation of"the only one that can translate Chinese classical poetry into English and French".His translation works and theories have attracted much attention in the world of translation.In this context,this dissertation selects the French version of Shijing(The Book of Poetry)translated by Xu Yuanchong as its object of study.This study aims to answer a series of questions on the translation of Xu Yuanchong's Shijing and his translation theories.For example,what method and strategy of translation did the translator use under the guidance of the theory of "three beauties"?How did these methods and strategies work?Has the translator managed to convey the beauties of meaning,sound and form of the original poem in the translation?Has the translator achieved the goals of translation?How to evaluate the theory of "three beauties"?Based on these questions,this dissertation will select some typical translated poems to analyze and examine the practice of Xu Yuanchong's poetic translation theory.This dissertation consists of five chapters.In the first chapter,we will present Shijing from different angles such as the completion time of the book,the collection of these poems,the edition of Shijing,the diffusion of different versions,the classification of contents,the artistic characteristics of Shijing,its various human and scientific values,its status in the history of Chinese literature as well as its diffusion and influence around the world.Next,books related to the translation and study of Shijing in France,from the 17th to the 20th century,from the translation of some poems of Shijing to in-depth study of this book,are introduced in chronological order.The second chapter will give an introduction of Xu Yuanchong,highlighting his life and study experiences that lay a solid foundation of literary and linguistic knowledge for his literary translation.It will then present Xu Yuanchong's main translation theories,including the ontology,the theory of "three beauties",the methodology,the principle of "three isations",and the teleology,the theory of "three tions",and will concretely explain their concrete meaning.The third chapter will focus on transmitting Shijing's beauty of meaning by analyzing the translation of images,meanings and figures of speech.These analyses aim at examining whether the translator uses the "three isations" method and how he makes use of them to translate the original poems or to recreate on the basis of original poetry.The success and failure of each example will be presented through analysis;for example,the beauty of meaning of the original poem cannot be conveyed by translating images bearing cultural connotations with the method of generalization;the translator can creatively use the rhetorical devices and convey the beauty of the original poem to the readers,and so on.The fourth chapter will deal with the transmission of the beauty of sound of Shijing,which is reflected in the use of rhymes,the treatment of rhythms and the translation of repetitions of all kinds.With some examples,it is evident that Xu Yuanchong has made great efforts to convey the beauty of sound of the original poem.He translates Shijing with the rhymes and rhythms which are similar to those of French poetry,and he strives to reproduce the beauty of repetition of Shijing without harming the beauty of meaning or sound.The last chapter intends to evaluate the poems translated into the French by Xu Yuanchong in terms of the beauty of form.This chapters will mainly examine the stanza,the line and the syllable correspondences between translated poems and original poems and the situation of the translation of the circulation phenomenon.Through analysis,it will be found that the beauty of form of Shijing is more easy to convey in comparison with the beauty of meaning and sound,and that Xu Yuanchong reflects fundamentally in his translated poetry the beauty of form of the original poems.Finally,the dissertation will come to a conclusion.Xu Yuanchong's theory of"three beauties" can be considered as a milestone in the theory of poetic translation in China.It focuses on conveying the beauty of the original poetry in terms of meaning,sound,and form.In the context of "the untranslatability of poetry",it directs the translation path to translators and encourages them to actively try to give the readers as much as possible the enjoyment of beauty.The theory of "three beauties" has a certain feasibility in the process of poetic translation,but it sometimes falls into idealization because we are often subject to the objective difficulties brought about by different languages and cultures so that we usually catch one and lose another among the "three beauties".Under the guidance of this theory,Xu Yuanchong has produced some remarkable translated poems and has been successful in his French translation of Shijing.At the same time,there are also some unsatisfactory and less convincing translated examples.Therefore,the theory of "three beauties" plays a important guiding role to some extent;however,it could still be questioned in practice.