The Perspectives Of The English Translation Of Chinese Classics

Zhuangzi is one of the essential Chinese classics,but it did not arouse interest in English academia until the late 19~thh century.An outstanding feature of Zhuangzi is its profusion of imaginative fables.These fables,ingenious in terms of philosophy and literature,not only convey the unique thoughts of the author Zhuangzi but also afford various possibilities of interpretation.By far,there are have been more than 20English translations of Zhuangzi(including complete translations and excerpts),and the translator’s background and professional identity are distinguished from each other.In terms of time span,the number of renditions,the style of translation,and the translator’s personal identity,the English translation of Zhuangzi is a research object worth exploring and investigating.The first chapter is Literature Review.This chapter summarizes the different versions of English translation of Zhuangzi at home and abroad,in an attempt to demonstrate the various research perspectives of Zhuangzi and its fables.Moreover,the review also points out the absence of the systematic analyses and researches focusing on the literary genre of“fable”in the study of Zhuangzi in English academia.The second chapter of this thesis focuses on the translation of some critical metaphorical images in Zhuangzi’s fables.These images,containing either philosophical or literary implications,are differently translated in various English versions of Zhuangzi,which illustrates the diversity of translation perspectives.By comparing the translations of metaphorical images in different renditions,the thesis attempts to give an overview of how these metaphorical images have been culturally understood in English academia,and to summarize the trend of translators’interpretations.The third chapter concentrates on the two most celebrated fables of the Inner Chapters in western academia—“Zhuang Zhou’s Dreaming of Being a Butterfly”and“Cook Ting Cutting up the Ox.”Different from the lexical analysis in Chapter One,this chapter highlights the translation of specific sentences and the elucidation of the fable moral.Through comparison and analysis of the internal logic and the cultural implication of the different translated texts,the diversified perspectives of translation are further demonstrated in this chapter.Chapter Two and Chapter Three in the thesis jointly exhibit the characteristics of the English translation of Zhuangzi.Although different translators share some common features,their translations have reflected the diversity of translations perspectives,which leads to different interpreting inclinations.Therefore,the fourth chapter explores the underlying factors of the translators’preconceptions,exemplified by three selected renditions produced by translators of different nationalities with different historical backgrounds.This chapter points out the decisive influence of the translator’s personal identity,translation intention and social background on translation.The significance of studying this topic is summarized as follows.First,English translations and interpretations of the Zhuangzi’s fables provide referable perspectives for domestic research,reflect the thinking mode and research trend of the English academia to a certain extent,and stimulate more constructive discussions concerning the cultural interaction between China and the west.Second,the attention to fables can deepen the understanding of the classical book Zhuangzi,to the benefit of re-translation of classical works,and promote the international dissemination of unique Chinese culture.