Eva Hung

Translation and English in twentieth–century China

Twentieth century China saw unprecedented attempts at cultural change and rejuvenation through the transfer of foreign knowledge, and translation played a role in almost all aspects of this development. Except for a short period under the PRC, English was the dominant source language for this transfer. This paper gives a brief historical background to the causes for the emergence of translation as a key to national survival and cultural change. It then focuses on three of the most significant translation–related phenomena in twentieth–century China: (1) the role of fiction translation (and later literary translation) as a vehicle for cultural change and construction; (2) the phenomenon of translating out of the mother tongue, i.e. Chinese, into English; and (3) the relationship between translation and learning English.

A fake translation that never existed

Abstract This is a case study of one of the best‐known fake translations in Chinese history. The common belief is, that a female ruler ordered its production as a means to justify her reign. This article traces the accounts of this event given in Chinas dynastic histories and Buddhist histories, as well as developments and new information revealed in the 20th century. Through an analysis of the reasons for the condemnation of this text, the norms which control the evaluation of translated texts are revealed.

The introduction of Dickens into China (1906–1960): A case study in target culture reception

Abstract Using Charles Dickens as an example, the author of this article examines the social‐cultural factors which govern the introduction of foreign writers into a translations receiving culture. This article demonstrates the way in which the image of the writer concerned, as welt as the categorization of his works, are subject to the prevailing target languages ideological and cultural trends.

All in the Family?--Translating Names and Honorifics in Chinese Fiction.

Abstract In Chinese society there is an established practice of borrowing kinship terms to address people outside the extended family. This practice is heavily reflected in modem Chinese fiction, and has caused much difficulty for the English translator. The problem is compounded by the use of age and status prefixes and suffixes which carry a distinct cultural flavour. Through an examination of various examples of different terms of addresses, the author of this article reviews the common translation approaches to such culture‐related problems and the possible distortions resulting from such approaches.