CONTENTS

On the Why and the How of Re-reading Traditional Chinese Discourse on Translation Martha / P. Y. Cheung 5

Eco-translatology: A Primer / Hu Gengshen 11

A Parallel Corpus-based Study on Lexical Features of Translated Chinese / Wang Kefei & Hu Xianyao 16

Reflections on the Translation of Culture-defining Key Terms / Chen Kepei 22

Matteo Ricci’s Tianzhu shi yi (The True Meaning of the Lord of Heaven) and His Strategies for Translating Christian Terms into Chinese / Chu Chiyu 27

Thinking Aloud as a Useful Tool in Translator Training / Li Dechao 34

What Chinese Versions of Hamlet Tell Us about Translating Puns in Literary Texts / Zhou Ye 43

Semantic Discreteness and Integration in Translation / Bao Tongfa 49

Pragmatics and Appropriate Use of Symbolic Resources in Translation / Chen Xiaowei 55

An Intertextual Perspective on the Translation of Contract Laws and Conventions / Wang Haiyan & Liu Yingchun 64

E/C Translation Practice: Henry Bradshaw (Arthur Christopher Benson) / Liu Shicong 70

C/E Translation Practice: The Deer of Nine Colors (Chen Yu) / Li Guishan 72

Abstracts of Major Papers in This Issue / 92

 English Abstracts of Major Papers in This Issue

On the Why and the How of Re-reading Traditional Chinese Discourse on Translation

by Martha P. Y. Cheung (Hong Kong Baptist University, China) p.5

Abstract: In a collective bid to broaden translation theory’s scope of application, scholars around the world have been turning their attention to non-native discourses on translational practices. Yet how much do we know about our own tradition of conceptualizing translation? This article urges that Chinese scholars concerned turn their attention inward first and attach more importance to re-reading traditional Chinese discourse on and about translation. Arguing that this is the right approach to promoting both Chinese and international translation studies, the author also identifies some neglected topics and issues in traditional Chinese theories of translation as especially worthy of exploring.

Key words: tradition; Chinese discourse; translation; Chinese-to-English translation; international translation studies; soft power; cultural affinity

Eco-translatology: A Primer by Hu Gengshen (Tsinghua University, China) p.11

Abstract: A new model for translation studies, eco-translatology attempts to describe and interpret translation from an ecological perspective, taking as its conceptual foundation the assumption that translation could best be understood in terms of a harmonious eco-system. This article offers a brief introduction to eco-translatology, looking back at its origin and subsequent development, defining its current status and existing problems, and exploring the directions in which it might expand further. Although still in the initial stage of its development, this multidisciplinary approach reflects the trend toward theoretical diversification in translation studies and may mark a new point of departure for the discipline as a whole.

Key words: Eco-translatology; ecology; translation; adaptation; selection

A Parallel Corpus-based Study on Lexical Features of Translated Chinese

by Wang Kefei (Beijing Foreign Studies University, China) & Hu Xianyao (Southwest University, China) p.16

Abstract: This article identifies the salient lexical features of Translated Chinese (TC) by comparing it on the basis of the General Chinese-English Parallel Corpus with Non-translated Chinese (NTC). The corpus-based study of the two modes of Chinese finds that in contradistinction to NTC, TC is characterized by low lexical variety (type-token ratio), low lexical density, greater explicitation of functional words and pronoun usage, and a higher incidence of common words. These lexical features lend support to the hypothesis of translation universals.

Key words: corpus; Translated Chinese; lexical feature; translation universal

Reflections on the Translation of Culture-defining Key Terms

by Chen Kepei (Changsha University of Science & Technology, China) p.22

Abstract: In the 19th-century debate over how to translate Western key terms into Chinese, James Legge insisted that one turn to the Chinese classics for equivalents of these terms. By taking the position, he expressed his conviction of a fundamental correspondence between the two religions/cultures in question and showed an open-minded attitude towards the cultural other. Reexamining the issues which the 19th-century debate had generated and reconsidering them in conjunction with the more general issues over the name/substance dichotomy in philosophical debates, this paper reflects on possible approaches to, as well as the significance of, a cultural communication between China and the West.

Key words: translation; God; name; nature; James Legge

Matteo Ricci’s Tianzhu shi yi (The True Meaning of the Lord of Heaven) and His Strategies for Translating Christian Terms into Chinese

by Chu Chiyu (Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China) p.27

Abstract: In compiling Tianzhu shi yi (The True Meaning of the Lord of Heaven), Matteo Ricci made one of the first attempts to translate Christian terminology into Chinese. A close reading of this catechism in Chinese shows that Ricci did not adopt a “domesticating” approach, as Nida would later recommend. Instead, in turning the Confucian terminology to his own use and bringing about a fusion of Confucianism and Christianity, he employed a strategy of translation that could only be described as “foreignizing” in today’s terms. The adeptness with which Ricci applied the foreignizing method is rarely seen in the history of translation.

Key words: translation strategy; Matteo Ricci; Christianity; terminology; Bible translation

What Chinese Versions of Hamlet Tell Us about Translating Puns in Literary Texts

by Zhou Ye (National University of Defence Technology, China) p.43

Abstract: Many translation scholars are convinced that pun is untranslatable, which has prevented them from deepening their study of pun translation. This essay calls the belief into question by comparing multiple Chinese versions of Shakespeare’s Hamlet. The comparison not only establishes the feasibility of pun translation, but throws light on the basic strategies to adopt for the operation.

Key words: Hamlet; pun; hinge; literary translation; coherence