| Author: | Tien, Yuk Sunny |
| Title: | The bawdy bard in China : a study of the translation of Shakespeare's sexually and scatologically suggestive language |
| Degree: | M.Phil. |
| Year: | 2005 |
| Subject: | Hong Kong Polytechnic University -- Dissertations. Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616 -- Views on sex. Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616 -- Appreciation -- China. Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616 -- Translations into Chinese. Sex in literature. Erotic literature, Chinese. |
| Department: | Department of Chinese and Bilingual Studies |
| Pages: | 164, [42] leaves ; 30 cm. |
| Language: | English |
| Abstract: | This thesis focuses on the Chinese translation of Shakespeare's bawdy language, a subject which is seldom addressed in the field of Shakespearean studies within China. Among the many works by Shakespeare, ten plays and the sonnets are taken as the primary texts and are dissected in great detail. The selected bawdy innuendoes are then distinguished into two aspects, "sexual" and "non-sexual" bawdy. Once categorized, these suggestive terms are studied and compared with their translations to identify the various relationships between the source-text bawdy and their corresponding sections in the target texts. In this study, I have adopted a descriptive approach, with the ultimate aim of finding reasons and explanations for the changes that have been made to the source text after undergoing the translation process. The first two chapters are introductions to the definition of "bawdy", the characteristics of Shakespeare's suggestive language, previous studies on the topic and the overall theoretical framework of the present research. In chapters three and four, I will move on to present findings of a contrastive analysis of the bawdy innuendoes in Shakespeare's texts and their translations, from the macro- and micro angle respectively. The implications of the results are further discussed in chapter five, where I seek to evaluate and expound the occurrence of specific translational behaviour by uncovering a variety of the "norms" that govern the translators' preferences in dealing with the problem. An in-depth analysis shows that the transposition of Shakespeare's bawdy, in the Chinese context, involves a rich combination of underlying factors that exert influence on the decisions of different translators. Firstly, there is a cultural norm which prescribes the minimization of bawdy elements. The norm, however, was in conflict with other types of norms that prevailed at the time of the translations. In addition, linguistic constraints arose during the transference of ribaldry, fluctuating theatrical interpretations of bawdy overtones and the subtle changes in indelicate vocabulary over the centuries all contributed to the distortion and loss in translation. |
| Rights: | All rights reserved |
| Access: | open access |
Files in This Item:
| File | Description | Size | Format | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| b18355213.pdf | For All Users | 3.95 MB | Adobe PDF | View/Open |
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