From A Passionate Writer To A Devoted Patriot

Sino-Japanese relation has gone through different periods after WWII.Nanking Massacre,as a significant historical event between the two countries,has been mentioned and rementioned during these years,resulting in frequent publication and republication of relevant historical books,among which The Rape of Nanking written by Iris Chang is a representative one.It is retranslated four times in only sixteen years in Mainland,China,while little attention has been paid to the uncommonly frequent retranslation or even any of its translated versions.This case study gives a textual and paratextual analysis of the 2013 translation of The Rape of Nanking,comparing it with the previous three translations.Using Mona Baker’s interpretation of narrative theory as a framework,it examines the repositioning of Iris Chang in retranslation and makes a further attempt to explore the influence of bilateral relations on translation and retranslation.In theoretical aspect,it also intends to clarify the application of narrative theory to translation studies.Various textual shifts and paratextual changes have been found in the retranslation published in 2013 including frequent use of four-character phrases with additional effects,addition of adjectives and adverbs,shifts in naming practice,subjects,emotional tone and political expressions.All these shifts together lead to the repositioning of Chang from an objective humanitarian writer into a passionate fighter and devoted patriot.It is also found that the repositioning of Iris Chang is embedded in the narratives of Sino-Japanese disputes and at the same time influencing these narratives and its participants.Findings in both aspects provide great possibilities for further research.