TCM Classics Translation From The Perspective Of Semantic Translation And Communicative Translation ——A Case Study Of The Translations Of Nanjing

Traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)has a rich history and is enthralling to people worldwide.Due to the Coronavirus,every country has made every effort to create therapeutic procedures in recent years.At the time,China provided TCM instructions for treating the epidemic,and TCM reclaimed the world's attention.Furthermore,the Chinese government has fiercely supported TCM's global spread;hence,translation plays a vital role in promoting TCM culture.Reading TCM classics will be one of the most acceptable ways for international readers to understand TCM culture because they cover a wide range of TCM theories and because they contain ancient Chinese wisdom.On the other hand,TCM classics are frequently opaque and difficult to understand.Translators may use many translation tactics to help readers understand the TCM classics and their translation aims.However,they may also translate too directly or too meaningfully,causing readers to fail to understand or even misinterpret the original writings.As a result,the goal to promote the TCM classic may fail,resulting in low translation acceptance.As a result,this thesis aims to investigate what kinds of translation procedures can improve reader acceptance and aid in the dissemination of TCM culture.The English versions of Nanjing by Unschuld,Flaws,and Li Zhaoguo were chosen for this thesis's research object.Nanjing is one of China's most representative TCM classics,including many TCM theories and cultural features.Many existing TCM classics studies focus on Neijing and Shang Han Lun but not Nanjing.Using literature and comparative research method,the thesis analyzed and compared the three English translations of Nanjing,and then defined the translation strategies of the three versions.Under the guidance of Newmark's semantic and communicative translation theory,this thesis also determined whether the three versions were closer to semantic or communicative translation,and how such theory could better assist in the dissemination of TCM classics.Later,this thesis applied the web-based ethnography research method to explore the reader acceptance of the Nanjing.The study discovered that the three translators were driven by their various translation goals,resulting in different translation methodologies.Four sentences and twenty TCM terms were chosen as examples from the two perspectives of sentence structure and TCM terminology,demonstrating that Unschuld's translation technique was closer to communicative theory.Flaws focused more on semantic translation,whereas Li Zhaoguo's translation was somewhere in the middle.Annotations,literal translations,and transliteration are examples of semantic translations that can preserve the cultural qualities of the original writings,which are helpful in the propagation of Chinese culture abroad.In contrast,communicative translations such as adaptation and division may help international readers grasp TCM vocabulary by breaking down the language barrier.According to data from book review websites,Unschuld's translation was the most widely accepted,with readers appreciating the additional notes and explanations in the translation.In contrast,Flaw's version received criticism for being too brief,demonstrating that the communicative translation was more satisfactory among foreign readers.Unschuld's translation,on the other hand,is thought to be overly annotated and challenging to understand.In short,the thesis discovered that translations of TCM classics should use both semantic and communicative translations to maintain TCM culture while also assisting readers in better understanding TCM theory.On the other hand,TCM translations could lean more toward communicative translation,allowing international readers to learn TCM more comprehensively.Through this thesis,future translators might consider their translation practices and contribute more to the transmission of TCM culture.