A Descriptive Translation Studies Approach To Zhou Jianren As A Translator

Zhou Jianren,a famous biologist and statesman in twentieth-century China,was also a diligent and prolific translator who first rendered into vernacular Chinese(baihua)The Origin of Species,a masterpiece of evolutionary biology.Nevertheless,relevant studies are lacking because Zhou Jianren usually pales into insignificance compared with his elder brothers Lu Xun and Zhou Zuoren,two literary giants that every educated Chinese has long been familiar with.Therefore,Zhou Jianren?s translational activities,ideas and influence deserve scholarly inquiry.With special reference to Zhou Jianren?s single-handed translation of The Origin of Species,this thesis takes a descriptive approach to the study of Zhou Jianren as a translator by employing both quantitative and qualitative methods.To begin with,Zhou Jianren?s translation views,which scatter in translational paratexts,can be boiled down to the equation of literal translation with liberal translation,the priority of meaning over form,the orientation to the target reader,the coinage of Chinese neologisms through copyism,and the adherence to established conventions in proper noun translation,etc.Viewed from the product-oriented angle,the single-handed translation is chiefly characterized by literalism and colloquialism with traces of classical Chinese dictions,some inappropriate proper noun translations,and several cases of translator?s intervention.Reasons are that Zhou translated The Origin of Species in time of wars with few authoritative dictionaries for reference,and that the convention of adopting foreignization and staying faithful to the original text was the mainstream in his era.But if examined from the function-oriented perspective,Zhou?s single-handed translation has been indirectly acknowledged in the target culture,for it has influenced the 1954-1956 co-authored version by Zhou Jianren,Ye Duzhuang,and Fang Zongxi in terms of expressions,phrases,and sentence patterns.And the co-translated edition has been well accepted among Chinese readers up till now.This thesis initiates the academic study of Zhou Jianren as a translator,enriches the research field concerning the translation of The Origin of Species,and can hopefully serve as a valuable work of reference in reviewing and studying Chinese translators as a whole.