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摘 要

本文所研究的《红高粱家族》是2012年诺贝尔文学奖获得者莫言著名的代表作品之一。整篇小说莫言打破传统的时空顺序与情节逻辑，叙述风格非常自由散漫。由美国著名汉学家葛浩文翻译的英文版 Red Sorghum 受到广泛好评，被认为是集忠实性与可读性为一身的当代中国小说翻译作品。

葛浩文的译作中针对意识形态、诗学和赞助人方面存在大量改写现象。本文回顾了勒菲弗尔的改写理论及影响改写的三要素，通过分析与对比译作和原作内容，分析《红高粱家族》翻译过程中的改写现象，并归纳出葛浩文对于相应改写现象的改写策略。

关键词: 《红高粱家族》； 翻译；改写理论

Contents

1. Introduction 1

2. Literature review 3

2.1 A Brief Introduction to Mo Yan and Hong Gao Liang Jia Zu 3

2.2 A Brief Introduction to Howard Goldblatt and Red Sorghum 3

2.3 A Brief Introduction to Lefevere’s Rewriting Theory 5

2.4 Previous Studies on Rewriting Theory and Its Application in Translation Studies 6

3. Methodology 7

3.1 Data Sources 7

3.2 Research Method 7

4 Rewriting in the Translation of Red Sorghum 7

4.1 Ideological Rewriting in the Translation of Red Sorghum 7

4.2 Poetic Rewriting in the Translation of Red Sorghum 9

4.3 The Effects of the Rewriting 11

5. Discussion 12

6.Conclusion 13

Works Cited 15

1. Introduction

1.1 Background of the Study

Traditional translation studies regard translation as a conversion between two languages. In that case, translation is entirely confined to the text analysis and language reference. However, translation, as a communicative activity across language and culture, is not just a mechanical conversion between the source language and target language. In 1980s, the emphasis of the translation studies was changed from the language level to cultural level, which is “cultural turn”.

Translation activity is doomed to be influenced by a number of social and cultural factors, such as translation purpose, object, text type and translation acceptable environmental and so on. The social and cultural factors out of language, such as power and ideology, are listed in the category of translation study, which has provided a broad and brand new field of vision for the research of translation theory. This greatly promotes the development of the study of translation theory. Rewriting theory, as a representative, is a kind of descriptive and systematic translation theory centered on translation from the cultural point of view, which is different from traditional research methods and emphasis.

1.2 Purpose and Significance of the Study

As one of the outstanding writers in contemporary Chinese literature, Mo Yan has captured more and more people’s attention in recent years. Therefore, a large number of scholars and critics spend plenty of time on the research on Mo Yan and his works. We can find that there are so many articles on the writing style and techniques of his works, but litter attention is paid to the translation of his works. So in this paper, the author lays emphasis on the study of translation, taking Hong Gao Liang Jia Zu for example.

Famous sinologist Howard Goldblatt is the translator of Hong Gao Liang Jia Zu. His English version Red Sorghum is a great success. Nevertheless, we can find the translated version has a lot of rewriting phenomena. The translation is not exactly equivalent or faithful to the source text. There are two papers on his translation thoughts, including Wen Jun’s A Probe into Howard Goldblatt’s Translation Thoughts（Wen Jun，2007），Howard Goldblatt: To Read in Chinese and to Write in English（Zhang Yaoping，2005）. As the most outstanding translator from Chinese to English, these researches are absolutely not enough. Hence, the author is intended to make an attempt to compare and analyze the source text and the target text in an integrated and systematical approach in order to find out the rewritings in Red Sorghum.

1.3 Research Questions

The present thesis attempts to explore the translation of Red Sorghum in the following aspects:

1. What rewriting does the translator adopt in Red Sorghum?

2. Why does the translator adopt the rewriting strategy?

1.4 Structure of the Study

The study consists of six parts.

The first chapter is brief introduction, such as the background, purpose, significance of the study and research questions.

The second chapter introduces the author Mo Yan and the source text Hong Gao Liang Jia Zu as well as the translated version and translator Howard Goldblatt. Besides, there is also a brief introduction to Lefevere’s rewriting theory and previous studies on rewriting theory and its application in translation studies.

The third chapter is the methodology. In this chapter, the data sources, the research methods are explained.

The fourth chapter is the analysis and comparison between the source and the target text. The author analyzes and compares the translation from ideological and poetic rewriting and the positive and negative effects of rewriting.

The fifth chapter discusses the reasons why Goldblatt adopts the rewriting strategy in accordance with Goldblatt’s translation view and Lefevere’s rewriting theory.

The sixth chapter is the conclusion part. Based on the previous studies, we can find the translation of Hong Gao Liang Jia Zu is a great success, but it does not mean there are mo limitations.

2. Literature review

2.1 A Brief Introduction to Mo Yan and Hong Gao Liang Jia Zu

Mo Yan, born in February 17, 1955, is the first Chinese writer who wins the Nobel Prize for literature. He has obtained high reputation on account of a series of vernacular works since 1980s. As his works are all full of complex emotion of ‘homesickness’, he is classified as ‘root-searching’ writer. In 2003, American Publishers Weekly remarked that Mo Yan was a Chinese Kafka.

Hong Gao Liang Jia Zu was a landmark in Chinese literary world in 1980s and has been translated into more than 20 words in the word. Through the narrative ‘I’, the novel shows my ancestors’ vigorous and heroic scene in Northeast town, Gaomi in the Anti-Japanese War era. They, on one hand, rise up against the brutality of the Japanese invaders, and on the other hand, burst out legendary love that makes descendants feel dwarf. The whole novel is permeated with rich imagination and surges the strong vitality of the Chinese notion.

2.2 A Brief Introduction to Howard Goldblatt and Red Sorghum

2.2.1 An Introduction to Goldblatt’s Translation Career

Howard Goldblatt, with the Chinese name as Ge Haowen, is a famous American sinologist. He was born in 1939. In 1960s during his service in the army, he learned Chinese in Taiwan. Later, he got a doctoral degree in Chinese literature in Indiana University. At present, he is a Chinese literature translator of the highest status in English world.

As a diligent translator, in the past decades, he has translated nearly 50 works of Chinese literature of about 25 well-known contemporary Chinese writers, including Xiao Hong, Zhang Jie, Mo Yan, A Lai, Liu Heng, Qiao Yin, Zhu Tianwen, Wang Shuo etc.

2.2.2 Goldblatt’s Translation Views

When Goldblatt translates, there are three translation criteria.

1. Faithulness “The satisfaction of knowing I’ve faithfully served two constituencies keeps me happily turning Chinese prose into readable, accessible, and - yes - even marketable English books,” Goldblatt was quoted as saying in the Washington Post, 2002. The responsibility and obligation of a translator is to express others’ thinking in different languages, so loyalty turns into a primary task as translating.

2. Change

As a matter of fact, translation can’t be completely equivalent, even to be loyal, but no translation can be exactly the same as that of the original. Translation is like reading a poem, owing to the differences of background, living environment, contact people and received education, there are different understandings, inspirations ad explanations of poems, because people are used to mixing their own experiences as well as knowledge into poetry. Therefore, favor, opposition or extension may be possibilities. The process of translation must involve in changing, hence, it is inevitable to have a change during translating on account of the differences of language and culture.

1. Cultural Communication

Communication between two cultures is a difficult question when translators reflect on how to deal with the translation, how to cope with the complex cross-cultural communication activity and how to conduct a conversion between two languages. Translation involves in the mind of a social group in the language of another social group, which will involve a cultural decoding, recoding and encoding process.

2.3 A Brief Introduction to Lefevere’s Rewriting Theory

2.3.1 Ideology

In Lefevere’s mind, ideology not only is limited to political arena, but also refers to the form, norms and beliefs that command our actions. Meanwhile, ideology, one part of patronage system, restrains the translator’s choices of literary forms and themes. Lefevere divides ideology into dominant ideology and potential ideology. The former refers to the mainstream ideology where the translator plays a role of obvious manipulation in the social life. The latter refers to the personal ideology that potentially presents in the translator’s thought. They respectively constitute the external and internal system form of literary works. If the translation does not conflict with people’s ideology in the target culture, the translator’s aims are easy to achieve.

2.3.2 Poetics

In Lefevere’s view, poetics consist of two elements. “One is an inventory of literary devices, genres, motifs, prototypical characters and situations, and symbols; the other a concept of what the role of literature is, or should be, in the social system as a whole” (Lefevere, 2004b: 26). As influence out of literary system only involves in the second element, the second element injects new vitality to the literary system.

2.3.3 Patronage

Patronage is regarded as the most important element in Lefevere’s rewriting theory. It is “the dominant concept of what literature should be or be allowed to be” (Lefevere, 2004b: 24). It can be discussed in two aspects: “one is literary devices, including the range of genres, symbols, leitmotifs and protypical situations and characters; the other is the concept of what the role of literature is, or should be, in the social system as a whole. The latter concept is influential in the selection of themes that must be relevant to the social system if the work of literature is to be noticed at all.” (Lefevere, 2004a: 44) For the trend of translation, the rise and fall of translated literature and the position or even life of the translator, patronage plays a crucial role.

2.4 Previous Studies on Rewriting Theory and Its Application in Translation Studies

In 1980s, multiculturalism of translation appeared. An American scholar, Lefereve, one of the representatives, put forward the prototype of the rewriting theory - the theory of refraction in his published article “bold and mother cucumber: the text in the literary theory, system and reflection”, (Lefereve, 1987: 86-89) but the reflection means adaptation of literary works. In 1990, Lefevere adjusts the theory of reflection in his book Translation, History and Culture. He clearly puts forward translation is rewriting as well as rewriting is “manipulation” and rewriting is often to meet the need of ideology and poetics. Nevertheless, the essence and maturity of rewriting is in Lefevere’s book The Translation, Rewriting and Control of Literary Reputation. In this book, he points out the effect of rewriting and the reasons why rewriting is needed to be studied. Besides, he, from the perspective of literary system, thinks literary system is restricted by two factors. One is the internal factor, that is, the dominant poetics and ideology; the other is the external factor out of literary system, namely, some power has an impact on literary reading, writing and rewriting.

Foreign scholars developed the Rewriting Theory from different aspects. Gentzlert elucidated the development process of it, but he did not have a systematical induction to several controlling factors. Snell-Hornby held that Rewriting Theory has three controlling factors, that is, ideology, poetics and patronage, but she did not have further study. Domestic studies are similar to those of foreign countries. Some made detail introduction to Rewriting Theory and deep reviews on it; however, they did not list controlling factors explicitly. Besides theoretical studies, domestic scholars also applied Rewriting Theory to the analysis of the concrete text in literary translation.

3. Methodology

3.1 Data Sources

The source text is Hong Gao Liang Jia Zu written by Mo Yan and the target text is Red Sorghum translated by Howard Goldblatt, both of which have gained high reputation in the world. This paper aims to study the translation strategy in Goldblatt’s English version.

3.2 Research Method

In this paper, I would like to adopt the approach of descriptive translation studies rather than source-oriented theory to study Goldblatt’s translation Red Sorghum, especially adopting Lefevere’s rewriting theory. The traditional translation studies’ single standard is whether it is equivalent to the source text. It doesn’t take the language, literature and culture of the target system into consideration, so it is inadequate. While the descriptive translation approach aims to the target text, hence, it is in consideration of the readability and acceptability for the target people.

4 Rewriting in the Translation of Red Sorghum

4.1 Ideological Rewriting in the Translation of Red Sorghum

Literature has a close relationship with ideology. According to Lefevere, ideology is “the conceptual grid that consists of opinions and attitudes deemed acceptable in a certain society at a certain time, and through which readers and translators approach texts” (Hermans, 2004:126-127). So here the author is intended to compare and analyze the ideological rewriting in Red Sorghum from the angle of religion, poetics and effects.

4.1.1 Rewriting of Religious Information

As we all know, religious beliefs play an important role in the western world. Hence, when translating, the translator has to take religious factors into consideration so as to cater to the readers’ taste. It is common that there are a few rewriting phenomena when necessary.

Example 1：余司令说：“你好大的命！”

——《红高粱家族》（莫言，2003：8）

“The heaven have smiled on you,” Commander Yu said.

——Red Sorghum (Howard Goldblatt, 1993: 12)

In Chinese, “你好大的命” means somebody is extremely lucky and can avoid disasters, which has no relation with heaven or God. However, the Chinese sentence is translated into “The heaven has smiled on you,” which has a link with heaven. Perhaps it is because westerners think religion has a vital role in their life, so they believe in God. When confronted with troubles or difficulties, they prefer to give their hope to God or heaven.

4.1.2 Rewriting of Political Information

When translating, the author tends to rewrite or omit political information. In the case, he tries to avoid the conflict between different backgrounds of culture.

Example 2: 父亲对我说过，任副官八成是个共产党，除了共产党里，很难找到这样的纯种好汉。

——《红高粱家族》（莫言，2007:52）

Father told me that Adjutant Ren was a rarity, a true hero.

——Red Sorghum (Mo Yan, 1993:59)

“共产党”is a proper noun used only in socialist countries. If Goldblatt translates“共产党” into “a member of Communist Party”, maybe he must explain the word in a large number of descriptive words and western readers still can’t understand well. Instead, he translates “共产党”into “a rarity” that means someone or something that is interesting or valuable because they are so unusual. In this way, to readers or translators, the political tendency is avoided.

4.1.3 Rewriting of Sex-Related Information

Although Goldblatt is an outstanding sinologist, because of his ethnic values different from Chinese people’s ones, there are still some mistranslations in details.

Example 3: 奶奶不理孙五，向倚在墙边的一个长脸姑娘走去。长脸姑娘对着奶奶吃吃的笑。奶奶走到她眼前时，她忽然蹲下身，双手紧紧地捂着裤腰，尖声哭起来。她的两只深潭般的眼睛里，跳出疯傻的火星。

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