Chinese Discourse on Translation & International Translation Studies

Special issue of The Translator (Volume 15, Number 2, November 2009)

Discourse on translation, at once a term referring to any text (works of translation included) that expresses the author’s views, ideas and theorizations on translation – on its modes of operation, its dynamics, its principles and methods, and/or on the philosophy, epistemology, ontology and hermeneutics of translation – and a term emphasizing the inseparable relation between language and ideology, is an integral part of all translation traditions. Chinese discourse on translation (with the adjective “Chinese” denoting not so much ethnic origin as linguistic preoccupation, in the sense of discourse written in Chinese on topics pertaining to translating from foreign languages into Chinese), is certainly a key component of the Chinese translation tradition. In spite of its long history, in spite of the range and diversity of topics covered, Chinese discourse on translation has so far exerted little influence on non-Chinese traditions. Even amongst translators and those studying translations from foreign languages into Chinese or translations from Chinese into other languages, the influence of Chinese discourse on translation is restricted to the remarks of just a handful of translators. A further decline set in during the second half of the twentieth century, which saw an explosion of theories in Europe and America and the influx of many of these theories into China. Traditional Chinese discourse on translation was criticized for being impressionistic, unscientific, anecdotal, and unsystematic, and more or less consigned to oblivion, while contemporary Chinese discourse on translation became almost synonymous with Chinese translations and/or explications of imported translation theories. It was not until the last two decades that critical self-reflections were conducted on such a state of affairs and the situation was considered alarming – a manifestation of the impotence to which Chinese culture has been reduced, partly as a result of the total westernization China had embarked on in the first decades of the twentieth century, and partly because of the hegemony of western master narratives. Alarmed by such impotence, by the loss of ability to tap into the power of discourse and to exercise the right of discourse, and by the muting of the Chinese voice to mere echoes of the voice of the West, there has been, since the mid 1980s, in the field of translation studies as in other fields, a series of movements to rediscover the roots of Chinese culture, to reconstruct a Chinese tradition, to regain a Chinese voice, and to re-establish a Chinese system of learning and knowledge base. A similar process of critical self-reflection has also unfolded in the West. The impact of postcolonial thinking has produced some sharp critiques of Eurocentrism in discourses in different academic disciplines, translation studies included. Initiatives have been taken to introduce non-western translation traditions to the western readership, and calls were made to develop an international translation studies which is non-Eurocentric and which shows proper respect for the Other. How successful are these initiatives? While it is politically correct – almost an imperative – to talk about promoting an international translation studies, what exactly does this entail? How is it to be achieved in real terms? Is international translation studies going to be a hybrid product, a tokenization of the Other, or an appropriation of Chinese (or other non-western) discourse on translation by the western discourse? Is there any sense in developing the “Chinese-ness” of Chinese discourse on translation, and what does that mean? Can such a development be pursued without giving in to the sentiment of academic and/or cultural sinocentrism? Contributors to the special issue are invited to submit proposals on, but not necessarily restricted to, the following themes: s Usefulness or otherwise of the dichotomous categories “western” and “non-western”, “the Self” and “the Other”, and of the concepts, “international translation studies”; “Chinese discourse on translation”, or for that matter, any discourse on translation that is divided along national lines or distinct cultural traditions s The issue of attempts to look beyond the western tradition in tackling the problem of Eurocentrism in translation studies in the international arena – have they led to a cacophony of voices each singing its own tune, or to a dialogue involving exchange of views on more or less equal grounds? s The relevance or otherwise of Chinese discourse on translation to the development of international translation studies, and vice versa s The relation, if any – and whether ideal or real – between Chinese discourse on translation and international translation studies s The theoretical, ideological, political, and cultural implications, for Chinese scholars, of using, or refusing to use, English as the (sole/primary) working language in international translation studies – issues of power and discourse, language and cultural identity/cultural dignity/cultural sovereignty, voice and the loss of voice – and the larger question of whether the dominance of English ought to be reinforced or contested in order for international translation studies to develop s The role of translation in bringing Chinese discourse on translation to a wider readership and the strategies involved s Major themes in Chinese discourse on translation, topics that invite further research s Detailed comparative study, between Chinese discourse on translation and other discourses on translation, of translation concepts (such as “faithfulness’, “fluency”, “the original”, “equivalence”, to name just a few), definitions/notions of translation, and/or metaphors of translation s Detailed comparative study of the stylistic, generic, and/or rhetorical features of Chinese discourse on translation and other discourses on translation s Analysis of historical and/or contemporary Chinese discourse on translation as discourse on cross-cultural (mis)communication, and on the conflicts, interactions and engagement between and among cultures; the contributions of such analyses to international translation studies Articles should be between 6000 and 9000 words on average. Examples from languages other than English should be glossed where necessary. Copyright permission must be obtained by the contributor where necessary prior to publication. Schedule 30th July 2007 Deadline for submission of abstracts (500 words) 31st August 2007 Selected contributors notified of acceptance of abstracts 31st December 2007 Deadline for submission of papers 1st April 2008 Confirmation of acceptance of papers 20th September 2008 Deadline for submission of final versions of papers November 2009 Publication date Contact Details Martha P. Y. Cheung Centre for Translation David C. Lam Building Hong Kong Baptist University Renfrew Road, Kowloon Tong Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR marthach@hkbu.edu.hk