A Comparative Study Of Three English Translations Of Liao Zhai Zhi Yi From A Cultural Perspective

Liao Zhai Zhi Yi (or Liao Zhai in abbreviation) is an important work in the history of Chinese literature. It came into being at the very beginning of the 17th century when the classical Chinese writing was on the wane. Its appearance injected vigor and vitality into the classical Chinese literature and marked that the classical Chinese novel had reached its pinnacle. Besides profound social significance and lively depicted images, vivid and accurate diction as well as frequent use of allusions are another two features of Liao Zhai. These features combined make it of high artistic value. It is honored as the culmination of classical Chinese writing. The translation of the novel album certainly provides a chance for foreign readers to better understand this great work and appreciate the profound Chinese culture.However, the translations of Liao Zhai are by no means the same due to the different historical, cultural and social backgrounds of the translators. The thesis is aimed to, from cultural perspective, inspect what strategies and tactics were adopted by the translators in different backgrounds to deal with Chinese cultural terms in the marvelous work. By comparing the three major English translations of Liao Zhai, the author is aimed to reveal how the historical backgrounds of the translators, the cultural communication between the West and East in particular in their living time, shape their cultural attitudes and exert influence on their translation strategies. At last, the author draws the conclusion that English translation of Chinese literary works has been greatly affected by the historical and cultural background of the translator and the strategy of foreignization, which emphasizes maintaining the original features in translation, is gaining momentum.Besides Introduction and Conclusion, this thesis consists of four chapters.Chapter One is an introduction of Liao Zhai-its background, artistic features, status in the Chinese classical literature, its three major English translations as well as the studies on the three translations up to the present;Chapter Two is a brief historical survey and introduction of cultural studies, culture turn in translation studies and different cultural approaches to translation studies. And it also expounds the significance of cultural approaches to the English translations of Liao Zhai.Chapter Three focuses on the comparative studies of the three English translations of Liao Zhai from cultural perspective. After a comparative analysis of the translators different treatments of the Chinese cultural terms of the original text, the author summarizes their translation strategies and points out the merits and demerits of the_translations and reveals that different living backgrounds of the translators, especially the status difference between the Oriental and Occidental cultures in their living times, have shed great influence on their practical translation.Chapter Four overviews the English translations of Liao Zhai and points out that different historical backgrounds of the translators, especially the state of communication between Oriental culture and Occidental culture in their living times, have exerted great influence on their cultural attitudes and practical translation.The Conclusion summarizes the whole thesis and highlights the significance of cultural approaches to the English translation of Chinese classical literature. At last, the author emphasizes the communication between Oriental culture and Occidental culture should be carried out on an equal footing.