Self-Translation In Literary Translation

The main aim of this thesis is to investigate the phenomenon of self-translation,especially the literary self-translation with the help of self-translation studies made by othersscholars. Self-translation, translations carried out by the author of his or her own work, is asubject, which, though little studied, is relevant to the study of translation in general.In the West, studies on the self-translations of Samuel Beckett, Vladimir Nabokov andother self-translators have been done. Unfortunately, in China, few scholars have noticed thisphenomenon. And this thesis attempts to introduce and clarify some issues in self-translation,and examine the roles played by the self-translator during the process of self-translating byfocusing on the self-translated works by Bai Xianyong.The author of this thesis is interested in examining Bai's self-translation, as she believesthat the writer-cum-translator is a unique phenomenon with the ultimate license mosttranslators do not have.The purpose throughout this research has been: to define the concept of self-translationand to determine the competence the self-translators should have;to clarify some issues andmatters concerning self-translation, such as the role it plays within translation field, and towhat extent self-translated literary texts provide valid models for the study of translation;toverify that the self-translating authors act essentially as translators and to show that their dualidentity as author and translator thereby conferring them an authority, and the "privilegedtranslator" status facilitates their self-translating;to give a brief yet pertinent introduction ofself-translation at home and abroad;finally, by means of a contrast and comparative analysisof Bai Xianyong's works whose fictional universe is located in the original language andculture, to observe how far the author, as a bilingual and a bicultural subject, acts as atranslator with respect to the original cultural and linguistic context.It is believed that this kind of analysis will not only give a better understanding ofself-translation and Bai Xianyong's psychological and cultural consciousness during theprocess of self-translating, but will also contribute to the theory of translation and literature ingeneral. It is not fortuitous that in recent years bilingual writing and self-translation have beenattracting increasing interest.