| In February 2018,A Hero Born,English version of the first volume of Jin Yong’s martial arts fiction Shediao Yingxiong Zhuan,was published and distributed across the world by Mac Lehose Press in the U.K.Chinese history and culture are rich and magnificent in Shediao Yingxiong Zhuan.However,there exists huge difference between Chinese and English,and Anna Holmwood(Chinese name:郝玉青),translator of A Hero Born,sticks to the cultural connotation of source language(SL)to the largest extent,and then primarily resorts to rewriting parts of culture-loaded expression,thus to translate and introduce this fiction in the western world.On this basis,rewriting phenomena in the translation of culture-loaded expression,including kung fu,moves,cults,weapons,hidden weapons,as well as characters’ full names,nicknames and communication appellations are analyzed under a theoretical framework of rewriting theory put forward by André Lefevere.Then,this thesis further discusses potential cultural factors and resulting effects of rewriting,as well as significance of rewriting for its circulation and popularization.Ultimately,it is expected to contribute to the future translation of martial arts fictions and relevant translation studies.Analysis results show that,manipulated by the ideology of the translator and the publisher,the patronage of the publisher,as well as the TL poetic norms for naming and addressing,Holmwood rewrites parts of or the entire information of culture-loaded expression through addition,omission,replacement,annotation and free translation,to respond to the publicity of the publisher,make the translation more readable,and stimulate interest of the TL readers.Some Buddhism,Confucianism and Taoism-related messages are cut down;Christianity-related expressions are added properly;and SL images are rewritten as target language(TL)images particularly in magic novels or fantasies.Translation of moves vividly reproduces fierce fighting scenes adopting various syntactic structures.Translation of cults adds a comic and humorous effect using a metaphor.Translation of hidden weapons reinforces characters’ images by creating new words.Alliteration,metonymy and metaphor are applied into the translation of characters’ full names to expound cultural connotations.Then,the TL naming order in a mode of “given name + family name” is employed to replace the SL one in most cases,conforming to the TL naming customs.Translation of communication appellations reflects an obvious tendency toward westernization or domestication,by replacing the SL expressions with the TL ones such as English polite and humble appellations according to the TL addressing customs,thus to clarify relations in dialogues.By searching and analyzing paratexts such as introductions,prefaces and book reviews,as well as reviews of the TL readers,acceptability of these rewriting phenomena,and the significance for the popularization of this translation are discussed against the background of the TL culture.In this thesis,it is concluded that rewriting in the translation of kung fu,moves,cults,weapons,hidden weapons,as well as characters’ nicknames and communication appellations can facilitate an understanding of the text and is generally well accepted among the TL readers.However,acceptability of rewriting in the translation of characters’ full names among the TL readers is polarized.The proponent supports that westernization or domestication can help create the images of these characters and understand their implied connotations.Nevertheless,the opponent disagrees that the strange and inconsistent translation of characters’ full names makes it more difficult to understand,hinders its readability and fluency,and thus further affects the acceptability of this translation.It also proves that rewriting theory is feasible to the translation studies of culture-loaded expression in martial arts fictions like Shediao Yingxiong Zhuan. |
