ABSTRACT

Acclaimed as the sole expert in translating poetry from Chinese to both English and French, Xu Yuanzhong makes a great contribution to spreading the Chinese poetry to the world. Of the great translations by Xu, 300 Song Lyrics has been highly praised in the translation circles. The translation ethics underlying the rendition of these Chinese Ci-poetry stanzas into English has aroused the attention of many scholars. 

The five translation ethics models proposed by Chesterman are adopted in this paper to explore the ethics underlying Xu Yuanzhong’s translation. After giving a brief review on translation ethics, including its definition and current studies at home and abroad, the paper analyzes the representation ethics embodied in his versions in the aspects of rhyme, form, etc. The paper also points out the conflicts occurred among different models and Xu’s adjustments. In conclusion, Xu’s rendition puts representation ethics first and adopts the ethics of communication and ethics of service as coordination to make it better understood by target readers.

Key words：Translation Ethics; Xu Yuanzhong; Song Lyrics

CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

ABSTRACT

摘要

Chapter One INTRODUCTION-2

Chapter Two LITERATURE REVIEW-3

2.1 Previous Studies on Translation Ethics-3

2.1.1 Definition-3

2.1.2 Antoine Berman’s view on translation ethics-3

2.1.3 Lawrence Venuti’s view on translation ethics-4

2.1.4 Anthony Pym’s view on translation ethics-4

2.1.5 Studies in China-4

2.1.6 Andrew Chesterman’s models of translation ethics-5

Chapter Three  XU YUANZHONG’S TRANSLATION THEORY-6

3.1 His Theory of “Three Beauties”-6

3.2 His Theory of “San zhi”-6

3.3 His Theory of “San hua”-7

3.4 His Theory of “three resemblances”-7

3.5 Rivalry Between Two Cultures and Creation in Compensation of Loss-7

Chapter Four  XU YUANZHONG’S CI-POETRY TRANSLATION IN VIEW OF TRANSLATION ETHICS-9

4.1 Representation Ethics in Xu Yuanzhong’s Ci-Poetry Translation-9

4.1.1 Rhyme-9

4.1.2 Repetition-12

4.1.3 Form-13

4.2 Norm-based Ethics, Ethics of Service and Ethics of Communication in Xu Yuanzhong’s Ci-Poetry Translation-15

Chapter Five CONCLUSION-18

WORKS CITED-19