A Historical Survey Of Xi You Ji In English Translation

As one of the “Four Masterpieces” of Chinese Classical novels,Xi You Ji(The Journey to the West)has been quite popular among readers since its coming out.Its first translation,done by the famous Japanese novelist Korenori,can be dated back as far as to 1758.After that,the novel began to draw attention from western Christian missionaries in China.Hereafter,its translation into the west has never been called a halt although the subjects of translation are constantly changing.Among them,this novel's English translations is the most influential.From the initial entry of its several idioms of the novel into the A Chinese and English Dictionary by Robert Morrison in1822 to its complete translation by Anthony C.Yu in 1983,the process of translation from the germination to its maturation lasted 160 odd years.In 1961,its well-known translation entitled Monkey by Arthur Waley has been incorporated into the Penguin Classics,and was thus regarded as a milestone in that it was the first book of Chinese literature selected by this world-famous press.However,compared with The Story of the Stone,Romance of the Three Kingdoms and All Men Are Brothers,the study of its English translation is comparatively lagging behind.So far,no systematic and comprehensive study of Xi You Ji's translation has ever been carried out.In light of its significance,the author holds the view that a systematic exploration of its translation is very necessary.This paper adopts the method of Descriptive Translation Studies and History of Translation,probing into the following questions: firstly,since the interpretations of this novels' theme are quite varied in china,how would these translators approach them? Do their interpretation have some connection with the academic research of this novel? Secondly,why do the translators of different historical periods choose to translate this novel? Do their identities affect their understanding of this novel?Thirdly,Andé Lefevere once pointed out that translation is a kind of cultural rewriting.Then would the translated images of the main characters be consistent with the original after the novel underwent such rewriting in translation? And,if not,whyshould this deviation occur?The study finds that each translation version carries distinctive features that have to do with certain factors,such as historical and cultural contexts,translator's cultural identities and translation purposes.These factors also contribute to the transformation of main characters in each translated version,producing quite different images from that of the original work.Also,translators' interpretation of the novel seems to be highly dependent on contemporary academic research findings of Xi You Ji.Taking translator's identity,translation purposes,translation texts,and translator's interpretation of the novel into consideration,the study roughly divides Xi You Ji's journey in the English-speaking world into four historical stages.The first stage is from 1822 to 1916,when missionaries played major roles in the translation of Xi You Ji.At this stage,the translated texts of this novel to a large extent acted as missionary tools and the literariness of the original was largely overlooked.The second stage is from 1917 to 1932.Samuel Couling for the first time in the English-speaking world argued against the view that Qiu Chu-ji is the author of Xi You Ji.After that,Helen Hayes' s excerpt translation came out in the UK.Although Hayes' s Buddhist interpretation of Xi You Ji seemed to be overgeneralized,this version marked a new era in the translation of this novel,as the preface of which enormously quoted Hu Shi's latest findings about the novel.From then on,Xi You Ji started a “modern”journey in the English world.The third stage is from 1942 to 1968,when the famous Sinologist Arthur Waley's translation was widely praised by English readers.Waley's translation not only brings the original's literary quality into full play but also masterfully creates an impressive “Monkey King”.In addition,it was because of his translation that critics of this period came to regard Xi You Ji as a mythical fiction or comical novel.The fourth stage is from 1969 to 1983.With the efforts of Glen Dudbridge,Anthony C.Yu and other scholars,the academic research of “Xi You Ji”has entered a brand-new stage,where the Taoist elements of the novel received full recognition.The Sinologist Anthony C.Yu,being a researcher and translator Xi You Ji,applied the latest findings into his translation of the novel,making it both a literary and academic reading.It is of great significance to systematically and comprehensively examine a century-long history of Xi You Ji's English translation.As “Xi You Ji” is one of the representative works of Chinese classical literature,an exploration of its translation inthe English-speaking world will help us to unravel the factors affecting the spread of Chinese classical literature as a whole outside China,and grasp its specifics about the translation in the English world.In so doing,we can sum up the experience and provide guidance for the future translation of Chinese classical literary works,hence speeding up the pace of Chinese literature's going global.