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Abstract：As the most remarkable Chinese classic fiction, Hong Lou Meng has been studied from various angles. The author of Hong Lou Meng took advantage of euphemism and dysphemism in referring sexuality. The analysis and discussion on the two translated versions proved that David Hawkes and the Yangs utilized both free translation and literal translation methods in their translations of sexuality in Hong Lou Meng.
Key words: Hong Lou Meng, free translation, literal translation, euphemisms
As the most remarkable Chinese classic fiction, Hong Lou Meng has been studied from various angles, among which description of sexuality is one of the most controversial topics. This research paper will analyse sexual euphemism and the two translated versions of them by David Hawkes and Xianyi and Gladys Yang respectively.
There are two main strategies that are taken advantage of in translating euphemism of source texts. The first one is finding exact equivalence between source languages and target languages, namely, literal translation. Secondly, explaining euphemisms, instead of translating them word for word, enables translators to convey implications from source languages to target languages by means of free translation.
It is well known that Xianyi and Gladys Yang usually utilized literal translation methods according to the analysis of their translations. For instance, the Yang’s translated “云雨之情” (having sex) as “the sports of cloud and rain”. This was a typical word-for-word translation that exactly kept the original text. In terms of Hawkes’s translation, in fact, literal translation was also applied. In Chapter 67 of HLM, “抹了脖子了” (suicide) which was translated as “she cut her throat” by Hawkes.
Although David Hawkes has been considered a remarkable translator who made good use of free translation in a romantic way, free translation could also be used by the Yangs. There were some euphemistic ways to mention going to the toilet in HLM; “解手” was one of them. In Chapter 28, Yang abstracted the meaning of the original and transformed it into an English euphemism which can be understood by English readers. They translated “宝玉出席解手” as “Baoyu left the room to relieve himself”. The strategy of free translation helped the translators avoid breaking down “解手” and translating them word for word.
Translators can barely depend on one translation strategy in their translation. Take another example, in Chapter 69 of HLM, Xi Feng(熙凤) told You Er-Jie(尤二姐) that “妹妹在家做女孩儿就不干净”(you were not clean when you were a girl). Hawkes fully conveyed the implication of the source text under the context: “you weren’t all you should have been before you were married.” It was an implicit way to say that You Er-Jie was not chaste without a word such as “unclean” or “slut”. Interestingly, the Yangs did not adopt literal translation either, but their method and effectiveness of translation were different from Hawkes’s. Their translation was “while still a girl you were unchaste’. In this case, if the euphemism “干净”were translated as “you weren’t clean before you were married”, what Xi Feng referred to would produce different imaginations of the target-language readers. According to the above research, the circulated comments about David Hawkes and couple Yang’s translations may need some complements.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Cao, X. Q. (1973). The Story of the Stone (David Hawkes Trans.). Harmondsworth: Penguin Books.
Feng, Q. H. (2006). Artistic World of Hong Lou Meng—Study in HLM’s Translation Arts (《红译艺探》——《红楼梦》翻译艺术研究). Shanghai: Foreign Language Education Press
Hsia, C.T. (1979). The Classic Chinese Novel-A Critical Introduction. New York: Columbia University Press.
Thomas, P & John, A. (1970). English: An Introduction to Language. New York: Harcourt, Brace & World
Zhu, C,L. (1992). The Research on HLM during 200 Years (《二百年来论红楼梦》). New Wenfeng Publishing Company.
作者简介：谷远洁，现供职于南京铁道职业技术学院大外教学部。毕业院校：澳洲昆士兰大学中英翻译及口译高级硕士。
Key words: Hong Lou Meng, free translation, literal translation, euphemisms
As the most remarkable Chinese classic fiction, Hong Lou Meng has been studied from various angles, among which description of sexuality is one of the most controversial topics. This research paper will analyse sexual euphemism and the two translated versions of them by David Hawkes and Xianyi and Gladys Yang respectively.
There are two main strategies that are taken advantage of in translating euphemism of source texts. The first one is finding exact equivalence between source languages and target languages, namely, literal translation. Secondly, explaining euphemisms, instead of translating them word for word, enables translators to convey implications from source languages to target languages by means of free translation.
It is well known that Xianyi and Gladys Yang usually utilized literal translation methods according to the analysis of their translations. For instance, the Yang’s translated “云雨之情” (having sex) as “the sports of cloud and rain”. This was a typical word-for-word translation that exactly kept the original text. In terms of Hawkes’s translation, in fact, literal translation was also applied. In Chapter 67 of HLM, “抹了脖子了” (suicide) which was translated as “she cut her throat” by Hawkes.
Although David Hawkes has been considered a remarkable translator who made good use of free translation in a romantic way, free translation could also be used by the Yangs. There were some euphemistic ways to mention going to the toilet in HLM; “解手” was one of them. In Chapter 28, Yang abstracted the meaning of the original and transformed it into an English euphemism which can be understood by English readers. They translated “宝玉出席解手” as “Baoyu left the room to relieve himself”. The strategy of free translation helped the translators avoid breaking down “解手” and translating them word for word.
Translators can barely depend on one translation strategy in their translation. Take another example, in Chapter 69 of HLM, Xi Feng(熙凤) told You Er-Jie(尤二姐) that “妹妹在家做女孩儿就不干净”(you were not clean when you were a girl). Hawkes fully conveyed the implication of the source text under the context: “you weren’t all you should have been before you were married.” It was an implicit way to say that You Er-Jie was not chaste without a word such as “unclean” or “slut”. Interestingly, the Yangs did not adopt literal translation either, but their method and effectiveness of translation were different from Hawkes’s. Their translation was “while still a girl you were unchaste’. In this case, if the euphemism “干净”were translated as “you weren’t clean before you were married”, what Xi Feng referred to would produce different imaginations of the target-language readers. According to the above research, the circulated comments about David Hawkes and couple Yang’s translations may need some complements.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Cao, X. Q. (1973). The Story of the Stone (David Hawkes Trans.). Harmondsworth: Penguin Books.
Feng, Q. H. (2006). Artistic World of Hong Lou Meng—Study in HLM’s Translation Arts (《红译艺探》——《红楼梦》翻译艺术研究). Shanghai: Foreign Language Education Press
Hsia, C.T. (1979). The Classic Chinese Novel-A Critical Introduction. New York: Columbia University Press.
Thomas, P & John, A. (1970). English: An Introduction to Language. New York: Harcourt, Brace & World
Zhu, C,L. (1992). The Research on HLM during 200 Years (《二百年来论红楼梦》). New Wenfeng Publishing Company.
作者简介：谷远洁，现供职于南京铁道职业技术学院大外教学部。毕业院校：澳洲昆士兰大学中英翻译及口译高级硕士。