A Study On The Translation Activities Of Weiming Society(1925-1930)

Weiming Society is a small literary group that appeared in the later years of May the Fourth Movement. As a small literary group, however, the attention it gets in later literary and translation histories has been great. Such titles and recognitions as "a professional translation team" and "great contributions to the translation of works from Soviet Union" have been given to it, but the actual translation activities of this so well acknowledged society have never been closely examined. This current study, therefore, sets out to be a comprehensive descriptive-explanatory project of the translation activities of Weiming Society.By using the theoretical framework of Macro-Polysystem Hypothesis developed by the Hong Kong scholar based on his reflections of former polyssytemic theories, the current research would have both a macroscopic and microscopic level. On the macroscopic level, the socio-cultural environment in which Weiming Society existed would be reconstructed in the polysystemic terms and the important tendencies in their translation activities explained. On the microscopic level, there would be a careful study of the first part of Gulliver’s Travels translated by a member of the society, Wei Congwu. Finally, some reflections are done on the limitations of the hypothesis and on the bearing of the current research on future projects of a similar nature.The thesis consists of seven chapters, with the first one and the last one being an introduction and the conclusion. In the Introduction, the object of study is presented, and the scope and aims of the research are clarified. In the second chapter, a literature review at home and abroad is done, the limitations of these past studies analyzed, on the basis of which several research questions are phrased. The entire Chapter Three is given to the elaboration of the theoretical framework of this study, explaining how it has come about, its main point of views and its applicability to the current research. Chapter Four gives an overview of the Weiming Society in its period of existence. There is a summary of the translation activities of the society and a list of its major translated works is made. Chapter Five starts with a characterization of the translation activities of the society and goes on to deconstruct these tendencies in their socio-cultural environments, which are described in the polysystemic terms. The case study is done in Chapter Six, which begins with the reasons for sample selection and ends with a polysystemic analysis of the sample text. The significance and limitations of the study is summarized in the last chapter, so does some reflections on future studies of a similar nature.With plentiful historical materials and a workable theoretical viewpoint, this current study is the first one of its kind featuring a comprehensive account of the translation activities of Weiming Society. Some longstanding problems concerning Weiming Society are answered and the interdependencies between translation activities and the culture as a whole are uncovered. Moreover, the advantages and limitations of the hypothesis are tested. Hopefully, these results would be illuminating to future scholars.