Paratextual Narratives In English Translations Of Shan Hai Jing: A Comparative Study From The Cognitive Perspective

Researchers have introduced narrative studies into the English translation studies of Shan Hai Jing.However,few have probed into how translated narratives change in translation,nor have they explored the impacts of narrative changes in translation on the expressions of meaning in the translated text.Peritext,paratext within a book,plays a crucial role in the expression of meaning and the construction of narrative context in the translation of ancient classics.Despite its importance in translation studies of ancient Chinese classics,the English translation of Shan Hai Jing has rarely been explored in paratextual narratives and their relationships with the semantic expressions of the entire translation.The present study compares paratextual narratives in two versions of English translations of Shan Hai Jing from a cognitive perspective.It probes into the cognitive mechanisms involved when changes of paratextual narratives in translations occur and investigates topics concerning reconstructive functions in narrative contexts,contextualized concepts and integrity,and cognitive coherence in translation.The present study finds that the two chosen English translations of Shan Hai Jing�one by Anne Birrell and the other by Wang Hong and Zhao Zheng�have both noticed the presence of reconstructive functions of paratexutal narratives in translation.However,Birrell's translation puts more emphasis on the reconstruction of meaning of paratextual narratives in translation.The two chosen versions both make efforts towards authenticity and readability of the text in three ways:to add explanatory paratextual narratives into the translation;to mutually shift narratives between peritexts and the ones in the core text;to internalize the paratextual narratives into the ones in the core text.The study reveals that the translations of ancient Chinese classics should be based on a thorough understanding of the local culture and knowledge of the source language,and it should take into consideration the addressees' cognitive culture system.It is suggested that Chinese and English-speaking translators should cooperate in translation practice,especially in the translating of ancient Chinese classics.