从功能对等视角简析寒山诗中的意象翻译

 2021-11-25 02:11

论文总字数:42526字

摘 要

寒山诗是中国在国外影响力最广泛最久远的一类诗,寒山诗语言多数使用了白话文,通俗易懂,含义却博大精深。 它融合佛道儒三者的哲学精华,加上其作者寒山名号不知,生死日期不详及其淡泊归隐的传奇色彩,在国外大放异彩。寒山诗自北宋时期传入日本后,日本学术界对寒山诗及作者画像的研究热情高居不下。20世纪50年代,寒山诗传入美国,寒山诗中蕴含的淡然豁达的处世态度立刻成为“垮掉的一代”的精神支柱。寒山诗清新脱俗的风格也为美国当时的诗歌领域注入了新鲜血液。众多学者如斯奈德、赤松、华生对寒山诗进行了翻译和轻微的改写,使得该诗在美国的影响力一直持续到现在。

意象作为诗的灵魂,承载了一定的文化内涵和作者的思想感情,其类型也多种多样,因此在翻译时是一大难点。作为翻译界的正统理论之一,奈达的功能对等理论为本文提供了视角和参考。在此基础上,本文探究了美国学者在翻译寒山诗中的意象时是如何处理的。论文中的例子选自赤松和斯奈德的译本,其中赤松译本占绝大部分。本文总结出了寒山诗意象翻译中常用的六种翻译方法,分别为保留意象、意象加注、替换意象、删除意象、解释意象和添加意象,每种方法举出约2个例子予以解释。正文最后还指出了译本中的问题,如误译或译语不如源语等现象。

关键词:寒山诗;意象翻译;功能对等理论

Contents

Acknowledgements i

Abstract ii

摘要 iii

Chapter One Introduction 1

1.1 Background of the Study 1

1.2 Significance of the Study 1

1.3 Layout of the Thesis 2

Chapter Two Literature Review 3

2.1 Functional Equivalence 3

2.1.1 Contents 3

2.1.2 Standards of Judging Translations 4

2.1.3 Studies on Functional Equivalence 4

2.2 Hanshan’s Poems 5

2.2.1 An Introduction of Hanshan’s Poems 5

2.2.2 Popularity Aborad 5

2.2.3 Studies on Hanshan’s Poems 6

2.3 Image 7

2.3.1 Definition of Image 7

2.3.2 Studies on Image 7

Chapter Three Analysis of Image Translation 9

3.1 Methods of Image Translation 9

3.1.1 Literal Translation 9

3.1.2 Literal Translation with Footnotes 12

3.1.3 Substitution 14

3.1.4 Omission 16

3.1.5 Paraphrasing 18

3.1.6 Addition 20

3.2 Problems in Translating 23

Chapter Four Conclusion 26

Chapter One Introduction

1.1 Background of the Study

As an unidentified poet without exact name and date of birth and death, Hanshan and his poems were largely unknown in the Tang dynasty when poetry was at its height in the history of Chinese literature. However, Hanshan was a legendary figure especially loved by the Japanese and an important figure for Beat Generation writers in America. Hanshan’s poems spread to Japan in Northern Song Dynasty, making a stir among the Japanese and arousing interest of the academic circles in studying Hanshan and his poems. In 1950s, Hanshan and his poems also set a trend of studying the works in America after being translated there. Hanshan’s poems become the originator and laid a foundation for the following works of the “Beat Generation”.

Apart from the content and wisdom of poems, the extensive spread and the popularity of Hanshan’s poems in America also owe to the localization of the translation, which conversely attracted more scholars to translate or render the poems. However, as a difficulty, the interpretation of the image in the poems is crucial to understanding the message contained correctly. Therefore, the enduring popularity of the poems gives a new perspective for studying the image translation of the American local versions with the combination of functional equivalence.

1.2 Significance of the Study

On the basis of functional equivalence, the thesis gives a detailed analysis of examples from Red Pine and Gary Snyder to summarize six effective methods of image translation. Besides, the examples from American versions may be more convincing and inspiring by showing what is understood and accepted by the western readers. Most importantly, there have been few studies conducted on image translation of Hanshan’s poems in the past years in Chinese academic circle.

From a perspective of globalization, the interaction and communication of different ideologies and cultures create more opportunities for Chinese culture to go out. Therefore, to meet new demands, this thesis tries to provide practical and effective solutions on problems of image translation to make some contributions to carrying forward Chinese culture on the world arena.

1.3 Layout of the Thesis

The thesis consists of four parts. Chapter One gives an introduction to the thesis, including the background, significance of the study, and the layout of the whole thesis. Chapter two is the literature review about the study, and it mainly consists of three parts: the functional equivalence, Hanshan’s poems and image, with an introduction of previous study in each aspect respectively. Chapter three is the body of the thesis, which gives a summary of image translation methods in Hanshan’s poems, including literal translation, literal translation with footnotes, deletion, substitution, paraphrasing and addition. The final part of chapter three also gives reflection on the problems existing in image translation with some supporting examples. The thesis comes to a conclusion in chapter four, and the limits of the study are mentioned there.

Chapter Two Literature Review

2.1 Functional Equivalence

2.1.1 Contents

Eugene A.Nida was a famous linguist and expert in translation, and he developed the functional equivalence theory. He thinks meaning must be given priority in translation. As two of his most important works, The Theory and Practice of Translation as well as Toward a Science of Translation embodies his achievements in translation study.

There is no absolute equivalence between two cultures, under which there is no exact equivalence between two languages. According to Nida, three basic factors account for the differences in translations: the nature of the message, the purpose of the author and the translator, and the type of audience (156). He considers the message and the audience as two most significant points.

In Nida’s Toward a Science of Translating, he concludes two types of equivalence: one is formal equivalence (gloss translation), the other is dynamic equivalence (159),. D-E translation, as the most crucial theory of Nida, is defined as “the closest natural equivalent to the source language message” (166). The standard of D-E consists of equivalent, natural as well as closest. Dynamic equivalence was developed into functional equivalence in the later period, which is a mature theory. The priority of meaning to form in D-E may mislead people that meaning contradicts with form, and Nida employed the term “functional equivalence” to emphasize the communicative function in translation to dispel the misunderstanding (qtd. in Zhang 2008: 392-393).

Based on a culture to culture level, the functional equivalence are set to achieve a goal as conveying the message and spirit of the source language. Traditionally, structural features of equivalence are composed of phonology, morphology, syntax, lexical, etc. However, dynamic equivalence is not achieved by these specific aspects, but achieved by the whole load carried by the units.

2.1.2 Standards of Judging Translations

According to Nida’s functional equivalence in his Toward A Science of Translating, there are three standards to judge whether a text is well translated and achieves the dynamic equivalence. Firstly, if the readers of target language maximally receive the message with minimal effort of decoding the text, the translation could be seen as an efficient one. Secondly, through D-E translation, the original intent must be understood by the readers under their culture. The last but not least is the equivalence of response, which means under a different cultural context, the readers may make a corresponding response. The cultural distance in the context determines the similarity of the responses (182). As one of the most crucial points of Nida’s theory, the dynamic relationship between the receptor and the message should be the same with that between the original receptors and the message. In all, translations can be judged by the standards above from the perspective of correspondence.

2.1.3 Studies on Functional Equivalence

The functional equivalence spreading into China in 1980s had great impact on academic circles at that time. However, it was challenged and queried in 1990s by Chinese translators, the attitudes of whom to the theory transferred from total acceptation in early time to complete negation, and several shortages and limits were raised. Firstly, the differences in two cultures and languages make the equivalence of texts an unachievable dream. Secondly, the functional equivalence is established on the basis of the practice of translation in Indo-European languages, which is not necessarily applicable to English-Chinese translation. Thirdly, due to the differences in cultures and the individualities of readers, reader-response may not be the only standard of the judgment on translation. Lastly, the functional equivalence theory may cause cultural hegemonism by using foreignization to eliminate the differences in languages (Ru 187). Fortunately, the functional equivalence continues to be studied nowadays. Nida’s theory should be critically inherited and developed with the combination of the features of Chinese culture, and an effective English-Chinese translation system needs to be established and improved.

2.2 Hanshan’s Poems

2.2.1 An Introduction of Hanshan’s Poems

As a legendary figure in Tang Dynasty, Hanshan is famous for his poems combining the philosophy of Buddhism, Taoism and Confucism. There is no solid proof or records for his identity, name and the exact time of his birth and death. Hanshan is an optimistic, open-minded person, fond of traveling around. Failing the imperial examinations for many times as well as his natural disposition of being solitary makes him a monk.

Hanshan mainly uses colloquial words in the form of five-character verse to express his feelings and thoughts. Due to the identity of Hanshan as a monk and his large store of knowledge, the themes of his poetry generally can be classified into three categories. The first one is the exhortations to the people to help them expel evil thoughts and regain a pure heart. The second one is the transcendental poems containing the wisdom of Buddhism, Taoism and Confucism, and the third one is the poems chanting for objects, in which way Hanshan discloses and criticizes the dark social realities, as well as expresses his feelings of missing friends. Hanshan often uses images of nature to show his purity, broad-mindedness and transcendence, such as rocks, moon, grass, forest, mist, wind, etc. Hanshan’s poems have natural and free styles, and they also have profound philosophy and wisdom.

2.2.2 Popularity Aborad

The collections of Hanshan’s poems were brought to Japan in the 11th century, Northern Song Dynasty, and then his poems were widely spread there. Many famous Japanese poets were influenced by Hanshan, such as Matsuo Basho, Natsume Soseki, Akutagawa Ryunosuke, etc. Generally speaking, the common language, the religious wisdom hidden between the lines, the philosophy of Zan and the yearning for the nature may account for the popularity of Hanshan’s poems in Japan.

Intensive response was also aroused in America by Hanshan’s poems. It is Gary Snyder’s first encountering with a picture of Hanshan on a Japanese art exhibition in 1950s that made Hanshan’s poems flowed into America, because the picture attracted Snyder and he then translated the poems into Ameirca. Soon, many various versions translated by many scholars came out, such as Burton Watson, Arthur Waley and Red Pine. The philosophy of Buddhism, Taoism and Confucism in Hanshan’s poems echoed with the “Beat Generation”, therefore Hanshan’s poems became the originator of the “Beat Generation” works.

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