A Contrastive Analysis Of The English Versions Of Huangdi Neijing From The Perspective Of Philosophical Hermeneutics

Huangdi Neijing is the earliest existing medical classic in China.It involves a large number of knowledge of various disciplines,such as TCM,philosophy,meteorology,biology,etc.Until today,it still has a guiding significance for the theoretical and clinical practice of Chinese medicine and plays a crucial role in the inheritance of Chinese traditional culture.Up to now,there have been 12 English translations of Neijing,covering various translation forms such as abridged translation,selective translation,transediting and complete translation.Among them,Wu Liansheng and Wu Qi's version and Li Zhaoguo's version are complete translations and widely acclaimed in the academic circle,which are most representative.What's more,Wu Liansheng,Wu Qi and Li Zhaoguo have different academic backgrounds,which makes their translations show different translation styles.Thus,the two versions are comparable.Gadamer's philosophical hermeneutics has established a unique ontology of understanding,whose great influence covers not only the field of philosophy but also the field of translation studies.Its three basic principles,“historicity of understanding”,“fusion of horizons” and “effective history”,have been used to explain various translation problems.Under the guidance of the three principles of philosophical hermeneutics,this thesis takes the chapters relating to the theory of zangxiang in Neijing as research object and carries out a contrastive analysis of Wu Liansheng and Wu Qi's version and Li Zhaoguo's version.This thesis tries to answer two questions: how do the translators interpret Neijing diversely in the process of fusion of horizons? how does the historicity of the translators influence the generation of multiple interpretations? The research findings are as follows.First,in the first fusion of horizons,the translators mainly interpret TCM terms,clause relations and metaphorical expressions in Neijing diversely.Second,in the second fusion of horizons,the translators adopt different hermeneutic ways to make multiple interpretations--Wu Liansheng and Wu Qi mainly apply implicit annotation which belongs to implicit thick translation,while Li Zhaoguo uses preface,interlinear note,endnote and appendix which belong to explicit thick translation.Third,the reason why the translators interpret Neijing diversely is that they possess special historicity.The differences of their personal experiences and the historical environments they live in make them focus on different values of Neijing.Wu Liansheng and Wu Qi highlight its medical value,while Li Zhaoguo highlights its comprehensive value.Finally,under the guidance of the principle of effective history,this thesis concludes the translators' advantages and puts forward three suggestions for future retranslation of Neijing: the translator should have complete knowledge structure;the translator should have times consciousness;the translator should have reader awareness.By doing so,this thesis aims to provide reference for the translation of Neijing and other TCM classics.