An Analysis Of The Translating Of The Physics Treatise Gewuxue In The Late Qing Dynasty

Translation is not only a main means of heterogeneous cultural exchange,but also the lifeline of science communication.The scientific translation activities during the second period of western learning is another peak introduced by modern western learning.The modern scientific translation activities during the second Western learning to the East made another peak of the introduction of Western learning in this period.From the perspective of translation elements,the practical subjects of translation activities in this period include foreign missionaries,Chinese believers and Chinese scholars;there are two forms of interpretation:written interpretation and independent translation;the important subjects of organizing translation activities include church organizations,government-run institutions and private institutions;the main achievement forms of translation include translated works and journal articles,among which translated works are the main achievement form;The subject matter of translation basically covers all fields of science and technology.As a model discipline of modern science,the translation activities at that time paid full attention to the field of physics and translated a large number of western typical physics works.Among them,Gewuxue is a physics work organized by the translation hall of Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau in 1880 and translated by Lin Lezhi and Zheng Changyan in the form of interpretation and writing.It has the typical characteristics of physics translation during the Westernization movement.In the process of translation,the translators,Lin Lezhi and Zheng Changyan,had to localise the terms,terminology,metrics and symbol systems in the original text,and at the same time,the translators also adapted and translated the original knowledge based on their own cultural positions and knowledge systems.The process of translation can therefore be regarded as a process of conceptual adaptation and knowledge system translation.These micro-processes in the translation process are portrayed in different forms in the translated work.Based on the translation perspective,it can be seen that the translator’s conception is the key factor for the first meeting of the two heterogeneous knowledge systems between China and the West,and is also the first level of conceptual filter and debugger for the introduction of Western learning into China,while the translated work itself is the wrestling ground for the translator’s ideology.The thesis is divided into five chapters,the first of which is an introductory chapter that explains the significance of the topic and the content of the study,the research work of previous scholars,and the research methodology and innovation points,laying a solid foundation for the subsequent research.The second chapter mainly investigates the background,content,and characteristics of Physics as a base book.It includes the investigation of the basic operating systems of culture in British society in the 19^thcentury and the national education system at that time;and centred around the publication of Physics,the life and achievements of the author Stewart,as well as the main contents and key features in Physics.The third chapter describes the adjustment of macroscopical and accompanying texts in the publication and translation of Gewuxue,including the background of physics translation in late Qing Dynasty,the translation and circulation of Physics published by Stewart in the late Qing;the context of the translation of the Gewuxue,the translation agency and the combination of translators;and an analysis of the structure,style and adjustments made to the Gewuxue with reference to the original.The fourth chapter mainly takes the original Physics as a reference,and identifies the differences between the original and the translated text through textual comparison between the translation and the original text,so as to examine the strategies and techniques used by the translators in handling the text,including the additions and deletions in terms of style,terminology,illustrations,metrics,experimental content,and adjustments to the intellectual structure,and then analyses the possible reasons and effects of the adjustments.The last chapter is the conclusion,which summarizes the translation practice of the Gewuxue by Lin Lezhi and Zheng Changyan of Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau.The overall picture of the translation of the Gewuxue,the translation techniques and strategies,and the social and intellectual structures and cultural differences behind the translation treatment are sketched in terms of the writing characteristics,translation strategies,the experimental concepts embedded in the Gewuxue,and the localisation treatment of the Gewuxue as a whole.Finally,the direction of the further development of the subject and the unfinished issues that need further reflection and in-depth research are discussed.