A Comparative Study On Two English Versions Of Lao She’s Li-Hun From The Perspective Of Cultural Translation Theory

In the light of Susan Bassnett and Andre Lefevere’s translation theory of Cultural Translation, this thesis researches into two translations of Li-Hun written by Lao She, which respectively are Divorce translated by Evan King and The Quest for love of Lao Lee translated by Helena Kuo. Specifically, the thesis is a comparative study from the aspects of linguistic translation and textual rewriting, so as to probe into the cultural factors and the translation strategies each translator adopted.Lao She was known as a master of language. His favorite novel Li-Hun is a masterpiece swarming with local language features and rich culture-loaded words. Firstly, to assess the translation strategies and the cultural representations in the two translation works, the author conducts a linguistic analysis among the translations of idioms, local dialects and proper names which are obviously full of cultural elements. The linguistic analysis sheds light on the different translating strategies of the two versions:Evan King’s translation featured literal translation, but was spoilt by word-for-word translation and mistranslation; while Helena Kuo chose free translation to make language concise and fluent at the cost of cultural features. To bring in exotic culture, Evan King aimed at presenting the novel with intricate descriptions and extra introductions. Differently, Helena Kuo rendered Li-Hun with succinct language and precise interpretations. Then, for broader investigation, the study turns to the textual rewriting of the two versions. Contrarily, the insights obtained from the comparison of textual rewriting suggest that Evan King made substantial changes to cater to the mainstream culture of the target readers; instead, Helena Kuo made minor changes so as to present the social background of the story that happened in China in the 1930s. At last, the thesis analyzes the reason for the popularity of Divorce among the target readers and reveals that cultural factors including both source culture and target culture have close relationship with target readers’expectation and acception.