从译者主体性角度看李煜词《虞美人》的三种译本

论文总字数：30956字

摘 要

本文以李煜的《虞美人》的许渊冲、徐忠杰和Frankel的三种译文为本，来分析主体性在翻译过程中的体现。分析何为译者主体性，译者的身份经历了怎样的变化，译者主体性和创造性是怎样的关系并且受到哪些因素的制约。通过分析三位译者对于原文的理解和表述，来展现出他们各自的主体意识。最后结论认为，译者主体性会反映在译者对作品的解读以及重建过程中，是翻译中不可缺少的。

关键词：译者主体性；虞美人英译；三种译本

Contents

1. Introduction 1

2. Translators’ Subjectivity 2

2.1 Translator: From Periphery to Center 2

2.2 Definition of Translators’ Subjectivity 3

2.3 Creativity of Translators and Conditionality 4

3. Li Yu and his Ci Poem 5

3.1 A Brief Introduction of Li Yu 5

3.2 A Brief Introduction of Li Yu’s Ci Poem 5

4. Translator’s Subjectivity in the Process of Reading 6

4.1 Bilingual Ability 6

4.2 Bicultural Ability 8

4.3 Literary Quality 9

5. Translator’s Subjectivity in the Process of Representing 10

5.1The Purpose and Principle of Xu Yuanchong 10

5.2 The Purpose and Principle of Xu Zhongjie 11

5.3 The Purpose and Principle of Frankel 12

6. Conclusion 13

Works Cited 14

1. Introduction

For a long time, the centre of the study of literature translation in the 20^th century was the translation theory of Yan Fu, which was called “Faithfulness, Expressiveness, and Elegance”. His theory has so profound effect that many publications and textbooks cannot break the stereotyped rules. But theories like spiritual conformity raised by Fu Lei and sublimed adaptation by Qian Zhongshu have apparently opened up a new field for translation. And at the same time, the status of translator has also been discussed as faithfulness was no longer the only standard. After the cultural turn in the late 1970s, the creativity and subjectivity of the translator have been emphasized and Robert Escarpit has put forward a term “creative treason”. Venuti also called for the visibility of the translator. But the study of translator’s subjectivity really appeared in China in recent years. For example, Xie Tianzhen says that “the creativity of translation manifests the subjective efforts of the translator who tries to approach and reappear the original text” (1998: 137). Moreover, Zha Mingjian and Tian Yu (2003: 20) hold that the “translator is the subject of translation”. So far, studies on the translator’s subjectivity have the following aspects: studies on translator’s subjectivity in the written translation or oral interpretation; studies on translator’s subjectivity in the literary or non-literary translation; studies on composition and restraining factors of translator’s subjectivity; studies on relationship between translator’s subjectivity and translation tasks ,strategy and standards. Studies on the visibility and liberation of translators are raised to an important degree.

As to the Ci poems, it enjoys equal popularity with poetry of the Tang Dynasty. It is also called lyrics because each length of sentence is not the same. It is first used to sing and every poem has the name of the tunes that contains lots of cultural meanings and different sources of culture. From the end of the 19^th century to 1970s, many foreign writers translated some famous poems into English. For example, Ezra Pound translated nineteen poems in Cathay. However, few of poems can fully display the beauty of original poems. Some Chinese translators, such as Xu Yuanchong, Sun Daxi, and Zhu Shenghao, have also translated many traditional Ci poems.

The Beautiful Lady Yu has been analyzed from different aspects: from the context adaptation, the cultural linguistics, the experiential function, the Sikong Tu’s Three Dimensions of Aesthetics and so on. In this paper, I choose to explore the translator’s subjectivity demonstrated in The Beautiful Lady Yu, taking into consideration creativity and restrictions as a whole.

2. Translators’ Subjectivity

2.1 Translator: From Periphery to Center

It seems to have long been a unanimous attitude in the translation circle that translation is equal to the reproduction of the original text (Hereinafter refereed to as OT). Therefore, translators are always acknowledged as subordinated servants. Although there are some appreciative appellations such as “prophet of people” by Johann Goethe, translators are still given many various odd ones like mouthpiece, traitor, sculpture and servant with two masters. This may reflect that “translation should give a full and exact expression of the ideas of the OT without any change, distortion, addition, deletion or omission” (Ma Zuyi 1980: 2) and translators should be “hidden” so that readers couldn’t perceive translators’ thoughts. That is to say, they are invisible and overlooked. Their marginalized status is not in accord with their contribution. Actually, they cannot be invisible entirely for the reason that translation is more or less subjective in consideration of the difference of cultural background. After the “cultural turn” in translation studies during 1970s, more and more people began to be aware of the significant role the translator plays in the translation. “Subjectivity is to reveal the subjective initiative during translation on the premise of respecting the original text and writer. It contains conscious sense and traits of culture as well as creativity of aesthetic”.（Zha Mingjian, Tian Yu, 2003: 20）Translation is no longer like a pane of glass or a pure imitation. As a matter of fact, in the relationship of OT, the translator and the target text (hereinafter refereed to as TT), the translator is the hinge between the adaptation of OT and the selection of TT. The translator is the reader of OT and simultaneously the writer of TT. The subjectivity is embodied in his comprehension of what the original writer wants to transmit and in his expression affected by English proficiency, attitudes, values and so on.

2.2 Definition of Translators’ Subjectivity

In the first place, we should make clear who the subject of translation is. Xu Jun has concluded four kinds of opinions: “the translator is the subject of translation; the original author and translator are the subject of translation; the reader and translator are the subject of translation; the original author, the reader and translator are the subject of translation” (2003: 8). But I think that the core of the subject of translation is the translator because the subjectivity of translator can be shown through the whole process of translation while the subjectivity of the author and readers is seldom shown during the steps of translation. The original writer is the subject of creativity of the OT and the reader is the subject of acception. And this paper focuses on the subjectivity of the translator. Factors like authors of source text and readers are references for the translator to understand the original text and to express.

“Subjectivity” is a word of philosophy and is the essential characteristic of subject. The translator does not simply transfer the original text to the target text but also the culture in the certain context. Subjectivity includes creativity，restriction and intentionality. Creativity is the most significant. Sometimes, a good translation is equal to creativity and even superior to creativity. Translation is never a boring job.

But at the same time, it must have some restrictions to be the foundation of translation. If we all translate as what we want and there are no determinate standards, no one could tell which translation is better and express the true meaning of the original text. We can say that certain restrictions make sure the display of subjectivity.

And each translation has his purpose. The application of creativity is to achieve his goal of translation. Translation, using another language, is to transfer the artistic conception of the source text and to have readers enlightened as if they were reading the original text.

Moreover, the subjectivity of translator not only emphasizes the moment when translation happens, but also includes the selection and comprehension of the source text and representation. For example, what kind of articles would I translate? What stagey should I apply? And it is a process that the translator achieves his intention successfully through the application of creativity. The feature of translator’s subjectivity can be the awareness of culture and creativity of the translator.

To sum up, translator’s subjectivity means the display of a translator’s initiatives in the translation practice on respecting of the original text and objective environment. It reflects autonomy, purpose, cultural background and passivity.

2.3 Creativity of Translators and Conditionality

A translator is neither a servant nor a master. Then what kind of role does he play in translation? Robert Escarpit provides us a new term, which is called creative treason. “Translation is creative, because the original text is endued with new appearance…not only prolong the life of the text, but give it a second life”.（Escarpit, 1987: 137）For translation is based on the creative contemplation of the translator with his own manner, it particularly reflects and strengthens what the translator comprehends and is a process of recreation. The relationship between faithfulness and subjectivity is not oppositional but compatible. Even though it is above reproach to produce some creative treason for the purpose of showing subjectivity, but the focus should be on the word “creative” rather than “treason”. And the recreation must be faithful to the original writer and readers. By deeply understanding the intention of OT and keeping them in mind, translators can utilize a kind of form which readers in their cultural convention can get across to embody his apprehension. Therefore, to be faithful is to be creative.

3. Li Yu and his Ci Poem

3.1 A Brief Introduction of Li Yu

Li Yu(937-978)，is the last emperor of Nan Tang and at the same time a Ci-poet. He was an incompetent emperor but a great Ci-poet. He cared little about politics but was proficient in writing articles and poems. The characteristics of his works can be divided into two styles. His early works were mainly focused on the description of comfortable life in palace. After he became a prisonor of the Song Dynasty, his works was filled with sigh of the past and sorrow of the perishing of Nan Tang. No matter his early works or later works, the emotion of them is always expressed sincerely. He seldom uses allusions but line drawing to express his thoughts clearly. His works is considered to be “each word full of sorrow and blood”.

His cowardice makes him not suitable for being an emperor, however, his gifts and sensibility makes him an irreplaceable Ci-poet.

3.2 A Brief Introduction of Li Yu’s Ci Poem

The Ci-poems of Li Yu can be divided into two parts. The former part of his Ci-poems always focuses on the life in palace and affections between men and women. After he was in prison, his poems were full of sorrow of his lost country.

The Beautiful Lady Yu was finished after the perishing of the Southern Tang. Li Yu had become prisoner of the Song Dynasty for about one year. He had suffered inconceivable mortification and always recalled the life of an emperor. Yumerien is one of his Ci-poetries which express his discontent and indignation. The sorrow and pain of a conquered nation is cordially embodied with the use of line drawing. There are three contrasts in which he places his agony on the fine scenery. In this poem, he compares the endless agony to the running water, which is not “unprecedented or since”. The verse “恰似一江春水向东流” together with “自是人生长恨水长东”is very popular.

4. Translator’s Subjectivity in the Process of Reading

The characteristics of Chinese poems and Ci-poems make room for the subjectivity of the translator. Ci-poems lay emphasis on the antithesis and rhyme, which increases the difficulty of translating them into English. The reflection of images is always expressed concisely and the emotion is concealed implicitly. And different readers can have different understandings according to their state of mind. “Poetry has no absolute interpretation.”（Mu Shixiong, 2004: 207）During the translation process, translators should pay attention to the selection and reading of the source text so that they can represent it well. This paper analyzes translators’ subjectivity of the Ci-poetry the Beautiful Lady Yu as follows.

“Most translators prefer a text with generic vocabulary, since highly specific vocabulary often requires a translator to use a dictionary or encyclopedia more frequently”. (Nida 2001:98). But sometimes, it may be just difficult because the variance of two languages is too large to understand. Even a simple meaning is perplexing in another context due to polysemy. As a result, it is not easy to understand the source text accurately especially when a translator is not a user of native language. If a translator wants to translate the source well, he should own three abilities which are bilingual ability，bicultural ability and literary quality.

In the following analysis, “Xu Yuanchong” is referred to as “Xu”, and “Xu Zhongjie” s “Jie”. The expression of “Frankel” will not change.

4.1 Bilingual Ability

Above all, the bilingual ability is the basic ability for translators. A translator must firstly comprehend the meaning of the source text itself and its related information such as historical background and the purpose of the original author. Xu Yuanchong began to learn English at the age of 4 and he tried to translate a work of Lin Huiyin in his first grade. He entered the foreign languages department of China Southwestern United University in the year 1938. During his study in the university, he paid much attention to the Chinese traditional poems and culture. Many famous people have once been his teachers such as Zhu Ziqing and Wen Yiduo. He excelled in French and English. We can see his bilingual ability in the translation of “春花秋月何时了” and “雕栏玉砌应犹在”. By describing the eternity of the nature and the vanishment of the past, Li Yu expresses his indignation and regret. Li Yu is unable to do anything else but to be imprisoned all day long. How beautiful the spring flowers and the autumn moon are! However, it is impossible for the author to return to his country. He wishes the beautiful scenery to be end but at the same time he clearly knows it is impossible. Using the phrase ‘no more’, Xu has manifested the helplessness and hopelessness of Li Yu. Li Yu describes steps and rails exaggeratedly, and Xu just translates it into “marble steps.” The word “marble” has expressed the texture of the steps. They are not really made of jade.

Xu Zhongjie is also proficient at English and Chinese. He has achieved Doctor’s degree of English literature. He translated poems on the proficiency of Chinese and English. In the translation of “春花秋月何时了”, he has chosen the phrase “too long”, which expresses Li Yu’s dissatisfaction. He had been the prisoner for about one year, during which he suffered not only physically but mentally. And his second wife was always humiliated by Emperor Song Taizhong. These all gave Li Yu a heavy blow that he couldn’t protect his beloved wife. After knowing his bitter experience, we may find that the use of “too long” can embody Li Yu’s sufferings that can’t be alleviated.

Frankel is an American scholar who did research in Chinese poems last century. He was invited by Hu Shi to be a teacher of foreign languages in Peking University. During his teaching, he met his wife Zhang Yunhe and after the marriage he turned his research to Sinology. He studies Chinese poems on his own. When Frankel translate “春花秋月何时了”, he chooses the word “end” to translation the finishing of spring flowers and autumn moon. It is a momentary word which brings us a feeling of sudden stop of something. It seems that the author is waiting for the end of the beautiful scenery and once it ends he will get rid of the painful life. Maybe Frankel focus on the description of Li Yu’s wish for freedom.

4.2 Bicultural Ability

It is always assumed that translators are at least bilingual, but this is really not enough. “To be a fully competent translator, one needs to be bicultural in order to read between the lines”. (Nida, 2001: 99) From this we can find that bicultural ability is also important.

Jie’s translation of title Yumeiren belongs to transliteration. But this situation happens most frequently because the original title has covered the main idea of the whole poem. However, this name of the tune can’t describe the main meaning but gives some information of the structure of the OT. Poets often compose a poem in accordance to the name of the tune. It is like a process to compose a song according to the music. If we are just given a piece of music to a listener, how could he know what is its lyrics? As a result, even though the translation “Yumeiren” looks like an English word but it is a transliterated word. We may have some association with the OT when we read the title according to Chinese Pinyin if we have read the OT, but if we don’t, we have to move our eyes down to the content. As a matter of fact, the name of the tune comes from a beautiful woman called Yu Ji, who is the wife of Xiang Yu. In ‘the Records of Histories’, Sima Qian writes ‘there is a beautiful lady called Yu’. Thus, Xu and Frankel’s translation ‘Beautiful Lady Yu’ has a more historical origin, which can better manifest the origin of the name of the tune. Even though neither the “Yumerien” nor “Beautiful Lady Yu” can cover the meaning of the content, it is a necessary part of Ci-poetry.

The specialty of Xu’s translation lies in the four words before the name of the tune: The Last Land Recalled, Tune: the Beautiful Lady Yu. Xu added the description of content on the basis of his understanding. It is supplement that makes readers recognize the main ideal. It conveys the worry feeling through the word ‘lost’ and ‘recalled’.

And three translators have their own understanding of “东风”. As for the image of “east wind” which represents the coming of spring, Xu translates it as “vernal wind”. “Vernal” has the meaning of spring and youth. Using it to describe wind has strengthened the value of things which is newly born. Everything will revive again besides the author’s lost land. How heartbreak! I respect this deliberation of choosing words. Frankel translation “east wind” is an error if readers of his translation are English men. Due to the difference of position of geography, the east wind of England is cold but ‘west wind’ is warm. “Spring breeze” conveys the wind is soft. The wind coming from the lost land is so soft that triggers much more sorrow.

“The lost moonlit land” combines the image of the lost land and moon. The lost land is illuminated by the moonlight, which seems that it is in the moon. It is in sight but beyond reach. Xu has hided the sorrow in his construction of image but Jie just use some words like “gloom”, “defeat” and “despair”. He can make foreign readers to understand that Chinese moon is one of the images standing for loneliness and desolation. While western people usually consider it represents power and hope. When it comes to Frankel’s “old land” , I want to say that the Chinese word “Gu”(故) does not mean “old” but “something no longer retained.” So if Frankel had known the this meaning of the word “Gu”(故) and checked the translation on the basic of whole poem, he would not choose the word “old”.

4.3 Literary Quality

In Li Yu’s poems, there are some common images which contain literary meanings, such as “楼” “水” and “栏”. These images can transfer Li Yu’s ample feelings. This gives translators a big problem: his translation of these images should contain both the physical meanings in practice and aesthetic needs in literature.

As for the word “楼”, Xu chooses “attic” to describe the place where Li Yu was put in jail. This word can express the position of room and give us a discarded feeling. It means “room or space just below the roof of a house, often used for storing things”, which tells readers it is high and usually used to store superfluous things. This indicates that the room of Li Yu may be cold, lonely and cheerless. Otherwise, the attic’s shape of roof is similar to Chinese ancient buildings. The word has embodied three aspects. However, Jie has used “upper room” which is a little simple. We can’t know what is it almost like and there is no emotion which can be conveyed. Frankel’s “balcony” makes is ambiguous. Maybe he wants to describe a scene in which Li Yu was overlooked.

As for the word “春水”, Jie and Frankel translated it into “spring”. Xu uses the word “overbrimming”, which convey the information of season. Li Yu compared water to his endless sorrow, so the river should not be a silent brook but grand and magnificent. The word “Overbrimming” displays a picture to us: the river is more and more fast-flowing due to the melt of snow; the water is so full that it looks like to spill. The selection of this word shows Xu’s creation.

As for the word “朱颜”，Xu and Frankel considered that it refers to the appearance of palace maids while Jie thinked it is the appearance of the author. I will not talk about the meaning in the dictionary for the moment. If we consider it as the appearance of beautiful palace maids, there will be a corresponding relation to the formal image. Rails and steps are still the same as before but those charming women have become old. If we translate it as the appearance of the author, there also can be some reasons. The country which has once belongs to the author is still there but its possessor who misses his lost land so much has turn older and older.

5. Translator’s Subjectivity in the Process of Representing

When a translator has tried his best to understand the source text, he will use some constructions and principles to organize those images and achieve his purposes. Translation needs to have a certain intention so that a translator can know whether the result of translation achieves the ideal goa and whether it can be understood well by readers. Then translator’s subjectivity will be exposed in this process.

5.1 The Purpose and Principle of Xu Yuanchong

Xu Yuanchong considered that it is the duty of Chinese translators to introduce traditional poems to the world. He wrote in his English memories like this: “I realized that Chinese poetries are seldom known well by foreign scholars, so I decided to show them the real beauty of Chinese oriental literature”. (Xu Yuanchong 2003: 91) For this purpose and influenced by his teachers, he has translated so many Chinese poems and forms a translation theory of himself which is called “three beauties”: the beauty in sound, form and sense. He thinks that poem translation should move readers as the original text does, must have pleasant sound and imitate the form of the original one.

In the Ci-poetry the Beautiful Lady Yu, it is divided into two parts. Each part has four verses rhyming in every two verses, which is “ao” “eng/ong”, “ai” and “ou/iu”. The first three rhymes correspond to three contrasts of ‘beauty scenery’ and “agony”. The rhymes in Xu’s translation are aʊəz, ænd, ɛə⁄and iːst. Xu keeps the unmediated slice of the original in the form of imitating its rhyming scheme. This can give readers an intuitive feeling of beauty in rhyme. And Xu’s translation is the most similar to the OT, which completely displays three contrasts before readers so that they can understand the profound agony of author through the repetition of rhymes. It is Xu’s deliberate arrangement of strength that reproduces the OT. His subjectivity is embodied in the process of reproduction.

Xu’s translation is the most similar to the OT in the form. It is more concise and compact than the other two translations. The source text has long sentences and short sentences alternately. And Xu’s translation is also arranged like that.

And the beauty of sense is displayed in the creative translation of images which I have talked above.

5.2 The Purpose and Principle of Xu Zhongjie

Xu Zhongjie has his own translation strategy. He translates poems for the purpose of making foreigners understand the true meaning of Chinese verses. The translation principle can be called expansibility and explanatory strategy. And in the translation of the sentence “雕栏玉砌应犹在”，we can find Xu Zhongjie has used this strategy. In Jie’s translation, he has added “The palace should be like there as before”. Some scholars consider that this sentence is unnecessary because readers can know this through the contents of the following sentence and can be omitted. However, I hold the opinion that “the palace” is for the comparison with the following “my completion”. And in the translation of the sentence “故国不堪回首月明中”, Xu just translates it as “Reminds me cruelly of the lost moonlit land” and hided the sorrow in his construction of image, but Jie just uses some words like “gloom”, “defeat” and “despair”. Even though Jie’s expression is not as implicit as Xu’s, he can make foreign readers to understand that Chinese moon is one of the images standing for loneliness and desolation.

Xu and Jie both maintain the use of rhymes. “Jie insists to translate verses into verses”. (Li Zhengquan, 2005: 26) In Jie’s translation, there are not rhymes but also middle rhymes. In the first two verses, the thyme is ɑːst. In the second two verses, it does not have rhymes, but the rhyme of the last word of each is separately the same with that of the word before the dash such as “room” and “gloom”, “recall” and “all”. The situation is similar in the second part: “before” and “galore”, “entail” and “pale”, and “found” and “bound”. May be a little complex, but when we read the whole translation we can have a deep memory of these repetitions of rhymes.

5.3 The Purpose and Principle of Frankel

Frankel’s translation is prudent. He was born in a family of German classical philology and achieved practices of European philology for a long time and he advocated spirit of technology. His translation is for western people to understand. He pays more attention to the transformation of information rather than aesthetic needs. He tries to reflect the source text calmly but sometimes we can feel a little stiff. In his translation, the place of English words is almost corresponded to the place of Chinese words. For example, we can find this phenomenon in the sentence “春花秋月何时了” and “Spring flowers and autumn moon-when will they be end?” Seldom does he add some other surplus words. As a result, his initiative of translating this poem is not too evident.

He has great interests in Chinese poems. He just translated the Ci-poem into unparallel sentences and there are no fixed rhymes, which makes it looks like an English poem. Numbers of syllables in the long sentences and short sentences were separately almost the same, which strengthened the rhythm. And the alternation of long and short sentences combined celerity and slow together and sounded like a man full of sorrow bringing out all grievance to you.

6. Conclusion

This article explores how translation is influenced by translators’ subjectivity. The role of a translator has went from periphery to center and their function in the process of translation will not be neglected. Xu Yuanchong applies the theory “three beauties” to translate the Beautiful Lady Yu. While the expansibility and explanatory principle is reflected in the translation of Xu Zhongjie. They both express their subjective thought in the whole process of translation.

We can find that it is necessary to give full play to the subjectivity. But we should not recreate groundlessly. Even though it is difficult to translate Chinese poetry, there should be more and more translators translating much more works which have vitality. Since it is the first time to do research on the translation of the Beautiful Lady Yu, analyses of subjectivity are not sufficient. It is hoped that this research may shed light on the recognition of translator’s subjective creativity so as to raise translator’s status.

Works Cited

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