Translator’s Subjectivity In Robert Van Gulik’s Translation Of Celebrated Cases Of Judge Dee:from The Perspective Of Manipulation Theory

Robert van Gulik is one of the most famous sinologists in the twentieth century, and the English version of Celebrated Cases of Judge Dee is one of his translated works, well received by Western readers. Gulik once wrote in his diary that he published this version at his own expense, and it turned out it was very popular and within six months the money he made from publication was enough to cover and he made a profit (Shi Huiye, 2011, p.155). Zhang Ping commented that among the translated Chinese detective novels by Western translators, Gulik’s Celebrated Cases of Judge Dee can be said to be second to none, whether in terms of the length or in terms of quality. It caused no small repercussions among the Western readers, sweeping the Western world along with Judge Dee Series (2007, p. 21). Therefore, studying this translation version is of practical significance in terms of learning useful translation experience by Chinese C-E translators.This thesis analyzes Gulik’s translator’s subjectivity from the perspective of manipulation theory. Specifically, the author summarizes eight manifestations of Gulik’s translator’s subjectivity, namely, source-text selection, deletion of the latter half of the original, introduction to ancient Chinese legal system, translation of cultural expressions and cultural phenomena, unification of narrative mode, reservation of suspense, deletion and addition of contents and reservation of the moralizing and the supernatural, classifies them into three parts based on the constraints imposed on the translator, and studies them from the aspects of patronage, ideology and poetics of manipulation theory.Through the analysis, the thesis concludes that there are two reasons for Gulik’s translation behavior:first, to reduce the reading barriers for Western readers so that the translation could be well received; second, to rectify the name of the Chinese elements in the detective novels, and to carry forward the outstanding culture of Chinese detective novels. Since the book is well accepted among the Western general readers, it can be said that Gulik has achieved his goals. Thus, his translation behavior is worthy of recognition.