Enlightenment of “Multi―dimensionalAdaptations and Adaptive Selections” to

【Abstract】Base on analysis of the translation of Li Shangyin’s Untitled by Xu Yuanchong， this paper discusses the application of translation principle “multi-dimensional adaptations and adaptive selections” in translating classical Chinese poetry. It is proved that “three dimensional transformations” are effective translation methods in C-E translation of classical Chinese poetry.

【Key words】multi-dimensional adaptations and adaptive selections； three dimensional transformations； C-E translation of classical Chinese poetry

1. Introduction

Li Shangyin， a famous Chinese poet in the late Tang Dynasty， composed many well-known poems characterized by sensuous， dense and allusive. He is particularly famous for his untitled poems， which of various genres such as verse， quatrain and so on. Among them the most influential and popular is the seven-character octave To One Unnamed. It is a love poem comprised of eight lines； each consisting of seven characters strict in tonal pattern and rhyme scheme. It has been highly appreciated by Chinese readers as well as translators such as Chinese translator Xu Yuanchong and English Sinologist Innes Herdan. Additionally， its English version translated by Prof. Xu is recognized and accepted by westerner readers.

Its Chinese and English versions （translated by Prof. Xu） are presented as follows：

无题 To One Unnamed

相见时难别亦难，It’s difficult for us to meet and hard to part；

东风无力百花残。The east wind is too weak to revive flowers dead.

春蚕到死丝方尽，Spring silkworm till its death spins silk from love-sick heart；

蜡炬成灰泪始干。A candle but when burned out has no tears to shed.

晓镜但愁云鬓改，At dawn I’m grieved to think your mirrored hair turns grey；

夜吟应觉月光寒。At night you would feel cold while I croon by moonlight.

蓬山此去无多路，To the three fairy hills it is not a long way.

青鸟殷勤为探看。Would the blue birds oft fly to see you on the height？

2. Multi-dimensional Adaptations and Adaptive Selections

In the Approach to Translation as Adaptation and selection， Prof. Hu Gengshen gave translation such a definition as “a selection activity of the translator’s adaptation to the translational eco-environment” （Hu Gengshen， 2004）. Referring to the worlds of the source text and the SL/TL， the translational eco-environment embodies the linguistic， communicative， cultural and social aspects of translating in addition to such elements as the author， the reader， and the client. The translation principle is briefly summarized by him as “multi-dimensional adaptations and adaptive selections”， while the translation methods as “three dimensional transformations” （i.e. linguistic，cultural and communicative dimension） （Hu Gengshen， 2006）.

3. Application of Translation Principle “Multi-dimensional Adaptations and Adaptive Selections” in Translation of Li Shangyin’s Untitled by Xu Yuanchong

The Approach to Translation as Adaptation and selection， raised by Prof. Hu in 2004， provides a new perspective for translation research as well as translation practice. It is of great significance for the C-E translation of classical Chinese poetry. Taking the translation of Li Shangyin’s Untitled by Xu Yuanchong as a case study， this paper focuses on discussing the application of translation principle “multi-dimensional adaptations and adaptive selections” in translating classical Chinese poetry， giving an illustration on how to make adaptive transformations from linguistic， cultural and communicative dimensions in the process of translation so as to achieve quality translation with the highest degree of holistic adaptation and selection.

3.1 Adaptive Transformation from the Linguistic Dimension

Adaptive transformation from the linguistic dimension refers to translator’s adaptation and selection of linguistic forms in the process of translating. It is conducted on different aspects and levels of linguistics. Poem， integration of content and form， is a kind of language arts， using special forms to conveying specific senses. In translation of poems， it is essential to emphasizing transfer of linguistic forms. It is required that the translated verse should retain as much as its original beauty in sense， in sound and in form. Therefore， the translator should keep in mind the huge differences existed between the SL and TL， based on his comprehensive understanding of the linguistic eco-environment； select the most appropriate linguistic forms to convey the original information.

In the original poem Untitled， there are 8 vertically and evenly arranged lines among which even lines are written in end rhyme /an/， making it sound smooth and catchy. The utilization of repetition of vowel sounds “殷勤” and that of consonances “夜吟” bring musical effect on the poem. And the employment of parallelism such as “春蚕到死丝方尽，蜡炬成灰泪始干” makes great contributions towards achieving the phonetic and syntactic beauty in form of the original poem. In Xu’s translated verse， the use of rhyme scheme ababcdcd， combined with the use of rhetorical devices alliteration （“wind” and “weak”） ， assonance （“hard” and “part”） and consonance （“meet” and “part”） makes it sound accented and cadenced. Besides， parallelism is also employed in the third couplets in the target poem. It can be seen that the translated verse retain the same beauty in sound and in form as the original.