A Study Of The English Translation Of Jin Yong's Novel Martial Arts Culture From The Perspective Of Mediotranslation

The limited dissemination of Louis Cha’s fictions outside of the Sinophone world was partly determined by external factors like publishing press and cultural difference,what’s more important in the process of translating and introducing those works is the unfamiliarity among Western readers of martial arts culture,which lies at the heart of martial arts fictions.English readers’ limited knowledge of martial arts culture leads to a failure in appreciating this unique literary genre that exists only in China.This paper conducts a systemic investigation on the martial arts culture in Legends of the Condor Heroes by using literature analysis,case analysis,data investigation,induction and deduction as the main methods.Under the framework of “media-translatology”,this paper analyzes the translation and acceptance of four aspects of martial arts fictions: moves,character and sect names,martial arts cultural texts and traditional culture-loaded texts.It is found that the translation of martial arts fictions should be in line with serious literature’s translation principles,despite its genre nature.The reason is that martial arts novels contain rich cultural connotation and has beauty in its language no lesser than serious literature.It is also reasonable to believe that it reflects a unique existence in the history of Chinese literature and deserves to be seriously examined.In terms of translation principles,"creative treason" in translation is also applicable to martial arts fictions,and it can even be said that it is necessary to use it.Flexible methods must be adopted to convey the unique style,moves,monikers,fight scenes to the English language.It is not enough to take just one translation strategy,instead,creative changes must be made to the target text.Under the premise of faithful translation,the translator shall create a popular form that would eventually promote the acceptance of the translated version.On a communication level,such work cannot be done merely by one translator,but rather needs the joint effort of martial arts professionals and experts in cross-cultural communication.Chinese culture “going out” relies on more than the publication of one book,more importantly,a well understanding of martial arts culture and its connotation,intention of the original text,cultural background of the recipients,cultural images and associations of certain concepts are all factors need to be considered when translating.Only by taking all these elements into consideration can we be “treasonously creative” and further improve the coverage of this translation.Under the guidance of “media-translatology” theory,this paper conducts an integral analysis on the strategies and effects of martial arts culture in translation,and then sums up the pros and cons in this process,hoping to provide some theoretical reference for the translation and acceptance of Louis Cha’s fictions in English-speaking world and make contribution in the process of Chinese culture “going out”.