"Co-working Of Tao And Xiang" And Translation Of "Zhuangzi"

"Zhuangzi"is a piece of outstanding work among Chinese classics and features high research value in the area of Chinese philosophy and literature."Zhuangzi","The Book of Changes"and"Laozi"are labeled as"Three Occult Masterpieces"in Chinese literary history. Due to its philosophical and literary fascination,"Zhuangzi"has constantly attracted a variety of influential sinologists and translators world-widely. Unfortunately, although there is a lot of research on and translation of"Zhuangzi", the systematic and theoretical research concerning the translation of"Zhuangzi"is very limited and restricted, most of which are from literary or aesthetic point of view. Actually,"Zhuangzi", as a philosophical work with spiritual wisdom, is full of the expressive ways of perceptual"Xiang thinking mode"and rational reasoning as well, which explains why we can never penetrate the essence of"Zhuangzi"by purely employing the rational thinking mode. Therefore, in this thesis the author will try to carry out research on the translation of"Zhuangzi"from a totally new point of view, i.e., from the philosophical dimension of"Xiang thinking mode"and"co-working of Tao and Xiang"."Xiang thinking mode", as the philosophical and intellectual pattern of traditional Chinese culture cultivated by five-thousand-year civilization, is a way of thinking featuring rationality as well as spiritual comprehension. Serving as the critical media between words and meaning,"Xiang thinking mode"plays a significant role for the Chinese people to pursue the true in the world, to explore the wisdom of life and to conduct literary creation; as the special cognitive mode of our traditional culture, it not only has exerted a great impact on Taoism and other philosophical schools, but also on various types of literature including Chinese poetics, lyrics and songs for more than one thousand years. However, people rarely combine the research of"Xiang thinking mode"with the translation of Chinese classics in spite of the frequent attention paid to"Xiang thinking mode"at home and abroad. We shall be aware of the fact that"Xiang thinking mode", and the translation, diffusion and recognition of the intellectual pattern of traditional Chinese culture are interdependent, which determines the significance and research value of this topic. Generally speaking, under the influence of traditional"Xiang thinking mode", almost all the Chinese classics are its products ----"Zhuangzi"is no exception. Therefore, translators shall actively employ their"Xiang thinking mode"to fully comprehend and perceive the artistic images in the original works as well as the creation process through which"Xiang thinking mode"is utilized and then try to present the same artistic images and aesthetic experience to readers of different cultures. By doing so, the profound meaning of the original works and the rich culture of source language can be vividly displayed, thereby carrying forward the Chinese culture and promoting cultural exchanges.The first chapter is"Introduction", demonstrating the research background, significance and motivation, perspective and possible answers, and the overview of the thesis. The second chapter"Literature Review"introduces the English translation of"Zhuangzi"and the status quo of its research. The third chapter discusses the relationship among"Xiang","Xiang thinking mode"and"Co-working of Tao and Xiang". The fourth chapter explains the significance of the translation of Chinese classics, and the relationship among"Xiang thinking mode", the poetics of translation and the aesthetics of translation. In the fifth chapter,"Wandering in Absolute Freedom"from"Zhuangzi"is chosen to compare the English versions of"Zhuangzi"translated by Wang Rongpei and James Legge from the perspective of retaining"Xiang". The sixth chapter summarizes the whole thesis and retrospect major findings, limitations of the research and the directions for future studies. The English translation of Chinese classics is of great significance for the dissemination and development of Chinese culture. Since most of the Chinese classics are accomplished under the influence of"Xiang thinking mode", therefore, we shall never confine ourselves to literary or aesthetic point of view, instead, we shall raise our perspective to the dimension of philosophy and make continuous efforts to employ"Xiang thinking mode"during the translation of Chinese classics.