| This dissertation begins with an introduction to the history of translation in China, which covers a period of more than two thousand years from the establishment of the translation office in the Zhou Dynasty, the translation of Buddhist scriptures since the 2nd century, the translation of Christianity and Western science since the 16th century, the translation of Western philosophy and literature since the 19th century, to the scene of translation in China in the 80s of this century. Then it tries to explore the locus of Chinese translation theory in all its complexities, projecting from various angles the diverse aspects of Chinese translation theory against the historical context and giving a systematic description and analysis of the development of Chinese translation theory with reference to its shifting currents and periodization, its salient characteristics, and its relationship with Chinese poetics in general and critical theory in particular, and with the development of translation in China. The study shows that Chinese translation theory in general is (1) a theory with its theoretical basis in traditional Chinese principles of writing, (2) a theory whose methodology consists of impressionistic/imagistic criticism typical of traditional Chinese literary criticism, and (3) a theory with literariness as one of the criteria, which is determined by the special course of translation undertaken in China: that of grafting instead of transplanting. |
