<好了歌>三種英譯本之比較

全文

(1)國立師範大學翻譯研究所碩士論文 A Thesis Presented to Graduate Institute of Translation and Interpretation National Taiwan Normal University. A Comparison of Three English Translations of “Hao liao ge”. <好了歌>三種英譯本之比較. Ruby Xu 許家瑜. Advisor: Dr. Daniel Hu 指導教授：胡宗文博士. June 2016 2016 年 6 月.

(2) 謝辭. 寫論文就像打了無數場大大小小的戰役，關關難過關關過，如今敲下鍵盤的瞬間，才真正能細細回味其中酸甜苦辣。超級感謝指導教授胡宗文老師一直以來的鼓勵與幫忙，百忙之中仍不厭其煩的指導、修正與叮嚀！寫論文的路上何其彷徨與掙扎，如果沒有老師的耐心、包容與支持，我想我的論文寫作之路會更加驚險。感謝我最親愛的老爸老媽在心靈和經濟上的全力支持，讓我能無後顧之憂完成論文。謝謝你們總能包容我寫論文時的壞脾氣，每天都在電話上鼓勵我、聽我訴苦，回家時總有一鍋熱騰騰的雞湯、鮮奶茶和各種美食寬撫我疲憊不堪的心靈，讓我元氣滿滿重回戰場！感謝老公這段時間的陪伴與支持，在我寫完一天的論文眼酸酸腦脹脹後帶回各種美食撫慰我的心靈，下班後陪我聊天、說笑、玩寶可夢跟傻Ｑ。謝謝你在我彷徨時給我的支持和建議，並包容我壓力大時的臭臉！謝謝外公、外婆和阿姨們的支持和鼓勵，你們的關心總能讓我自失意中重新站起！感謝所辦的容嫣助教和秋慧助教的建議與提醒，讓我在埋首論文這條路上能走的更穩。感謝 Alexi 把去年踟躕不前、不想面對寫論文的我往前推，「逼迫」我快約定第一次 meeting 時間 XD 謝謝你和 Peter、Vivian 這段時間的陪伴和鼓勵，和你們聚在一起吃吃喝喝大聊天，總覺得非常舒壓。謝謝 Luke 即時在電話裡為我解答各種英文的疑難雜症！感謝湘凌、家漪、指考會和後援會在我忙論文和婚禮籌備忙到焦頭爛額時的鼓勵與幫忙、陪我聊天打屁，讓我在心靈疲憊時總能重新站起來。感謝所上碰到的學長姊，總是很有耐心地聽完我的問題，以過來.

(3) . 2 . 人的經驗給我寶貴的意見。要感謝的家人、朋友、同學太多了，篇幅有限，實在非常感謝大家的幫忙和陪伴！論文寫作過程一言難盡，就用一句話來總結吧：回首向來蕭瑟處，歸去，也無風雨也無晴。.

(4) . 3 . Abstract. Since its first publication in 1791, Hong Lou Meng (紅樓夢) has enjoyed a unique status with wide readership in China. Apart from its literary merits, Hong Lou Meng serves as a good starting point for further understanding of Chinese society and culture. It is, however, a somewhat surprising fact that such a popular and widely-read masterpiece hadn’t been fully translated in English until in 1971 David Hawkes (1923-2009) decided to start translating this Chinese novel. Later on, another full English translation A Dream of Red Mansions done by the legendary couple Yang Xianyi (1915-2009) and Gladys Yang (1919-1999) was first published in 1978. In fact, early in the late 19th century Henry Bencraft Joly (1857-1898) had attempted to fully translate Hong Lou Meng, but his premature death prevented him from doing so. Though they were done by native English speakers, the popularity and circulation of the three translations greatly differ from one another. Published by Penguins, Hawkes’ translation The Story of the Stone owns a wider readership than Bencraft Joly’s The Dream of the Red Chamber and the Yangs’ A Dream of Red Mansions. With long-spanning years of publication, the translators have presented two very different English versions of Hong Lou Meng in the way they approached the forms of certain passages and culture-bound terms. Therefore, this thesis aims to examine and compare how Joly, Hawkes and the Yangs dealt with the “Hao liao ge” and “Hao liao ge zhu” that are of particular importance to the development of the plot of the novel. This thesis is divided into five chapters. Chapter One and Chapter Two state the.

(5) . 4 . motivation, give a brief introduction of the original Chinese work, provide publication information regarding the two translations and translators, and conduct literature reviews. Chapter Three examines the translators’ translations of the “Hao liao ge” to see how they dealt with culturally loaded forms, terms and ideas. Chapter Four studies how they employed strategies to approach the forms of the original and to deal with the culture-bound hints embedded within the “Hao liao ge zhu.” Chapter Five summarizes the respective translation strategies with which these translators employed and suggests how future translators may endeavor to face the challenges in translation of Chinese classics.. Keywords: Hong Lou Meng, The Story of the Stone, The Dream of the Red Chamber, A Dream of Red Mansion, David Hawkes, Henry Bencraft Joly, Yang Xianyi and Gladys Yang, Culture-bound ideas.

(6) . 5 . 摘要. 《紅樓夢》由中國清代作家曹雪芹所著的著名長篇章回小說，自刊行問世以來便廣受讀者所愛。《紅樓夢》一書敘述金陵四大家族賈、史、王、薛之興衰，情節豐富、生動。小說中文白並陳，內含大量詩、詞、曲、賦等不同文體之創作與各種中國文化特色。翻閱喬利、霍克斯與楊氏夫婦所譯的《紅樓夢》英譯本，在好了歌與好了歌注中，各譯者所採之翻譯策略因不同的時代脈絡、目標讀者與翻譯目的而有所不同，呈現出來的風格也各有特色。本研究旨在比較與分析三種英譯本呈現出的翻譯特色，並探討其中的得與失。本論文共分為五章，第一章與第二章說明研究動機、介紹紅樓夢原文、英譯本之概況、四位譯者之生平與譯本，以及文獻回顧。第三章探討三本譯本在「好了歌」的形式體例與文化詞彙之翻譯。第四章則是研究「好了歌注」的形式體例與文化詞彙翻譯。第五章乃總結，歸納三種英譯本之翻譯策略，以期供未來研究者與《紅樓夢》譯者參考。. 關鍵詞：紅樓夢，喬利，霍克斯，楊憲益，戴乃迭，文化詞彙.

(7) . 6 . Contents. Chapter One. Introduction. 7. 1.1 Motivation 1.2 Theory and methodology 1.3 Literature review Chapter Two. Introduction to Hong Lou Meng and its English translations. 15. 2.1 Introduction to Hong Lou Meng 2.2 Introduction to English translations of Hong Lou Meng 2.3 Introduction to Henry Bencraft Joly and his translation 2.4 Introduction to David Hawkes and his translation 2.5 Introduction to Yang Xianyi and Gladys Yang and their translation Chapter Three. “Hao liao ge”. 23. 3.1 Introduction to “Hao liao ge” 3.2 The form and the syntax of the song 3.3 Culture-bound terms and ideas Chapter Four. “Hao liao ge zhu”. 41. 4.1 The form and the syntax of the “Hao liao ge zhu” 4.2 Culture-bound terms and ideas Chapter Five References. Conclusion. 55 58.

(8) . 7 . Chapter One. Introduction. 1.1 Motivation Hong Lou Meng (紅樓夢) was written by Cao Xueqin (曹雪芹，1715?-1763) during the reign of Emperor Yongzheng (雍正，1723-1736). First published in 1791, the novel recounts the glory and decline of four wealthy and powerful families in Nanjing (南京), which are the Jia (賈), the Shi (史), the Wang (王) and the Xue (薛) clans. Ever since the first publication of the work, Hong Lou Meng has enjoyed a unique status with wide readership in China. The work was so popular that during the middle Qing dynasty (清朝，1644-1912) there was a saying among scholars and literary gentlemen to show the popularity of the work. The saying suggests that if an educated person couldn’t engage himself in the discussions of Hong Lou Meng, all his study of literary poems and the Confucian canon would all be in vain.1 It is a somewhat surprising fact that such a popular and widely-read work had not been fully translated in English until recently. In 1971 David Hawkes (1923-2009), Professor of Chinese in Oxford, resigned from his position, to focus on his project of translating Hong Lou Meng. The first eighty chapters of The Story of the Stone was published in three volumes in 1973, 1977 and 1980 respectively while the last forty chapters were translated by his student John Minford (1946-). When I first read Hong Lou Meng at the age of 10, I was initially amazed by the beautiful love story depicted in the novel. Indeed, the novel excels in its depiction of love and romance. However, as I read the original over and over again over the years 1 . The original: “閒談不說紅樓夢，讀盡詩書也枉然。” （劉心武，2006，頁 13）.

(9) . 8 . and stepped into the field of translation at graduate school, I came to see that translating the love story of the Hong Lou Meng, while challenging enough, is not nearly as difficult as translating the poetry passages. I began to wonder how a translator would deal with the poetry of the Hong Lou Meng. In particular, I began to wonder how an English translator would deal with these especially puzzling, philosophical and inseparable pieces of poetry: the “Hao Liao Ge” (好了歌) and the “Hao Liao Ge Zhu” (好了歌注), both of which are found in Chapter One of the novel. The “Hao Liao Ge” and “Hao Liao Ge Zhu” are full of puns and literary allusions, and contain references to the fate of some of the novel’s protagonists. How could they possibly be rendered into English? The present thesis is motivated by a desire to answer this question. Out of curiosity, I read Hawkes’ translation The Story of the Stone. Though the rendition is acclaimed as a masterpiece that does justice to the profundity of the original (Frederic Wakeman Jr., 1980), it still reads a bit awkward and strange to me regarding the translations of certain passages embedded with cryptic implications of the future development of the characters. The second complete English translation of Hong Lou Meng was done by the legendary couple Yang Xianyi and his wife Gladys Yang. Later on, in Dr. Daniel Hu’s A Study of Chinese Literature in English Translation class, I found that early in the late 19th century Henry Bencraft Joly (1857-1898) had attempted to fully translate Hong Lou Meng. His translation The Dream of the Red Chamber, published in two volumes in 1892 and 1893 in Hong Kong, ended abruptly at chapter 56 due to his premature death. Though the three works were done by native English speakers (Gladys Yang was a British translator),.

(10) . 9 . their translations of certain poems that are served as implications for the development of the four families and the characters look extremely different. Therefore, I propose to consider how the three groups of translators treat the two poetry passages mentioned earlier differently, so as to bring out more clearly the unique characteristics of each translation.. 1.2 Theory and methodology This essay is based on Friedrich Schleiermacher’s well known idea of moving the reader closer to the text, or moving the text closer to the reader. In 1813, the theologian and translator Friedrich Schleiermacher (1768-1834) first distinguished two different types of translators working on two different types of texts. The two translators are those who translate commercial texts and who work on scholarly and artistic texts. Regarding the translation of scholarly and artistic texts, Schleiermacher discussed how to bring the ST writer and the TT reader together and proposed two ways for translators of the scholarly and artistic texts:. Either the translator leaves the writer in peace as much as possible and moves the reader toward him, or he leaves the reader in peace as much as possible and moves the writer toward him. (as cited in Munday, 2008, p. 29). To move the reader towards the writer, Schleiermacher suggested that the translator should adopt an “alienating” method of translation. In contrast, to move the writer towards the reader one must adopt a “naturalizing” method of translation (as cited in Munday, 2008, p. 29)..

(11) . 10 . 1.3 Literature review There are many essays discussing the plot and the various literary devices of Hong Lou Meng. Regarding the theme and the plot development of the novel, most scholars focus on the importance of the “Hao liao ge” and the “Hao liao ge zhu” to elaborate on their own interpretations to the work. In his essay “On ‘Hao liao ge’” (評好了歌), the prominent scholar Yu Pingbo (俞平伯，1991) suggests that regardless of time and space, the theme of the “Hao liao ge” shows that everything is transient and impermanent. In addition, he points out that the plot development of Hong Lou Meng is designed to follow the theme of the “Hao liao ge” (俞平伯，1991). Regarding the connection between the set of “Hao liao ge” and “Hao liao ge zhu” in Chapter One and the theme of the novel, Professor Kenneth Hsien-yung Pai (白先勇，1937-) named the “Hao liao ge” as a “theme song” of Hong Lou Meng in his Introduction to Dream of the Red Chamber lecture at National Taiwan University.2 In addition, on the themes of Hong Lou Meng Ou Lijuan (歐麗娟，2014) suggests three different layers of the themes, which are respectively named as “an elegy to youth” (青春生命之輓歌), “an elegy to noble families” (貴族生命之輓歌) and “an elegy to the reality world” (塵世人生之輓歌). She indicates that the Taoist monk’s “Hao liao ge” and Zhen’s commentary “Hao liao ge zhu” in Chapter One already show the theme of the novel, which emphasizes that the reality world is an illusion and that everything is no more than a dream from which one day we shall awake (歐麗娟，2014，頁 175). From the studies above we can see that “Hao liao ge” and “Hao 2 . In Pai’s Introduction to Dream of the Red Chamber lecture at National Taiwan University in 2014, he stated the importance of the “Hao liao ge.” The original: “好了歌這是很重要的一首，可以說是紅樓夢的主題曲。” (白先勇，2014).

(12) . 11 . liao ge zhu” are of particular importance to the novel. In the original, they help readers get hold of not only the possible fate of some important characters but also the spirit of the whole novel. Though Bencraft Joly’s The Dream of the Red Chamber was published early in the 19th century, few reviews and researches discuss this incomplete translation. More than thirty years later, however, there was a book review, done by the British Sinologist Edward Chalmers Werner (1864-1954), on Bencraft Joly’s translation in the China Journal. He stated that people of his time tend to perceive that though “it [Bencraft Joly’s translation] is such poor English,” the rendition shows “such perfect Chinese” in terms of Bencraft Joly’s English style (Werner, 1927, p. 185). Werner’s review shows that even in the eyes of Western readers Bencraft Joly’s translation is not very readable. Compared to the readership of Hawkes’ The Story of the Stone, Bencraft Joly’s translation seems to be scarcely known. Wu Shichang (吳世昌，1908-1986), a prominent Chinese Redologist, once commented on Bencraft Joly’s translation. According to Wu (1980), the writing of Bencraft Joly’s rendition of the novel is so awkward that even British readers could barely comprehend what the writing is about.3 In his research on the history of Redology in the West, Jiang Qihuang (姜其煌) discusses the circulation of Bencraft Joly’s translation. Jiang (2005) claimed that few know about Bencraft Joly’s rendition even for researchers of Hong Lou Meng.4 When it comes to essays on English translation of the verses of Hong Lou Meng, 3 . The original: “上一世紀有人試為全譯，但不幸因譯者去世而中止。而且譯文非常彆扭，連英國人都看來不大好懂。”（吳世昌，1980，頁 282） 4 The original: “很多人，即使是紅樓夢的研究者，恐怕也都不大知道喬利的英譯本紅樓夢。”（姜其煌，2005，頁 132）.

(13) . 12 . a number of researchers choose the two complete translations of Hong Lou Meng, which are Hawkes’ The Story of the Stone and Yang’s A Dream of Red Mansions, to analyze their translation strategies and to explore the influences of cultural perspectives on the two renditions. In Translators’ Style as a Product of of the Native Language Culture: A Survey of the English Version of Hong lou meng by David Hawkes and John Minford (母語文化下的譯者風格：《紅樓夢》霍克斯與閔福德譯本研究), Feng Qinghua (馮慶華，2008) statistically compares Hawkes’ The Story of the Stone and Yang’s A Dream of Red Mansions in terms of their translation strategies for homophones, symbols, religious terms, allusions, idioms, metaphors and curses. Feng (2008) concludes that compared with Yang’s, Hawkes’ rendition is closer to the perception and tastes of the Western readers for his use of vividly descriptive words and of clear categorization of written and verbal Chinese languages. In addition, Zuo Biao (左飈，2009) compares Hawkes’ and Yang’s translations and found that their translation strategies greatly differ with each other due to different value orientations of the translators, aims of translation and target readers. For instance, through his translation Hawkes made every possible way to avoid using “red” because the color of red often strikes violence and danger into English readers’ hearts. Therefore, Hawkes translated yi hong yuan (怡紅院) as “The House of Green Delight” while Yang as “The Happy Red Court.” Li Min (李明) and Lu Hongmei (盧紅梅) compare Hawkes’ and Yang’s translations, and they also conclude that the differences between two translations mainly result from their different aims of translation and the target readers (李明、盧紅梅，2014). In “The Ethics of Translating Cultures: On David Hawkes’s Translation of ‘The.

(14) . 13 . Story of the Stone’” (論霍克斯的《紅樓夢》文化翻譯倫理), Liu Su-hsen (劉素勳， 2010) examined the strategies of Hawkes’s rendition on the basis of Andrew Chesterman’s four translation norms. Chesterman focuses on the expectations of readers of a translation, which indicates that a translator should “maximize the communication” to reach the readers of a translation. According to Liu (2012), Hawkes’s translation strategies conform to Chesterman’s norms. An obvious feature is that Hawkes tends to replace Buddhist and Taoist vocabulary with Protestant and Catholic vocabulary during translation. For instance, Hawkes translated e mi tuo fo (阿彌陀佛) as “Bless you” or “God bless my soul” (劉素勳，2010，頁 71). Another example is that he translated shi ren duo xiao shen xian hao (世人都曉神仙好) as “Men all know that salvation should be won” (劉素勳，2010，頁 71). Words like bless, God and salvation may maximize the communication with most English readers, but the images Cao tried to convey are oddly destroyed. The aforementioned essays focus on either Hawkes’ and Yang’s translations or only Hawkes’ translation. Bencraft Joly’s translation, however, seem to be neglected. In addition, most of the essays examine the whole translations to discuss their translation strategies in terms of some culture-bound terms and ideas. In the Chinese original, however, different passages and verses have different functions. From the researches done by the previous prominent scholars, we can see that “Hao liao ge” and “Hao liao ge zhu” are not randomly placed in Chapter One by the author. They serve as theme songs and implicit indications for the whole plot development of Hong Lou Meng..

(15) . 14 . Therefore, this essay attempts to examine and compare Joly’s, Hawkes’ and the Yangs’ translations of the “Hao liao ge” and the “Hao liao ge zhu” in terms of their forms and culture-bound ideas to see how they approach the passages that are of particular importance..

(16) . 15 . Chapter Two. Introduction to Hong Lou Meng and its English translations. 2.1 Introduction to Hong Lou Meng Hong Lou Meng was written by Cao Xueqin in the 18th century during the reign of Emperor Yongzheng. The novel recounts the ups and downs of the four wealthy and powerful families in Nanjing, which are the Jia, the Shi, the Wang and the Xue clans. Along with the description of the decline of the four families, the author illustrates the entangled stories between Jia Baoyu (賈寶玉), the male leading character, and other female characters. The novel had circulated in different versions of manuscript copies until its first print publication in 1791. The 1791 version (程甲本), with a preface by Cheng Weiyuan (程偉元), was edited by Gao E (高鶚，1738-1815). A year later, Cheng and Gao offered a second print publication to the public. The latter version, known as Chengyi version (程乙本), is the most widely circulated edition of all the different versions. Hand-copied manuscripts circulating before 1791 only contain 80 chapters, which indicates that the novel seems to be left unfinished before Cao died in 1763 or to be partially destroyed for some unknown reasons. Two Cheng-Gao versions, however, are consisted of 120 chapters. It’s widely believed that the last 40 chapters were written by Gao since the ending of the Cheng-Gao versions greatly differ from the prediction in Chapter Five of Hong Lou Meng. Nowadays the most widely circulated edition is Chengyi version. The many different manuscripts and versions cause a great challenge to any translator..

(17) . 16 . In Chinese culture, Hong Lou Meng enjoys a unique status, which can be compared with the plays of Shakespeare.5 According to Minford (2012), “apart from its literary merits, Chinese readers recommend it as the best starting point for any understanding of Chinese psychology, culture and ideology” (China’s Story of the Stone section, para. 2). Many aspects of Chinese culture, such as religion, rituals, ceremonies, poetry, mythology, naming systems, Chinese history, are included in this great work. Therefore, prominent scholar Zhou Ruchang (周汝昌，1918-2012) once claimed that tons of cultural difficulties have made Hong Lou Meng untranslatable.6. 2.2 Introduction to English Translations of Hong Lou Meng The existing English translations of Hong Lou Meng can be divided into three categories: translations of selected passages, abridged translations and full translations. Translations of selected passages were done by missionaries, diplomats and those who served for the government in China in the 19th century. In 1830, John Francis Davis (1795-1890) published two poems of chapter 3, which describe Jia Baoyu’s personality. In 1846, Robert Thom (1807-1846), a British Consul in Ningbo (寧波), translated some passages in chapter 6 of the novel. The translation is titled as “Extracts from the Hung-Low-Mung.” Published in The Chinese Speaker (<官話滙編 >) by the Presbyterian Mission Press of Ningbo, the translation was mainly an aid for foreigners trying to learn Chinese. Another longer translation of selected passages was done by Edward Charles Bowra (1841-1874), who worked for the Chinese 5 . On the role of Hong Lou Meng in the field of literature in China, Minford (2012) states that “[the original of] The Story of the Stone, as the book is also known-Stone for short-enjoys a unique status, comparable to the plays of Shakespeare (China’s Story of the Stone section, para. 2). 6 The original: “一部<紅樓>有上千上萬的這種「文化難題」（人名、地名、物名、詩詞、酒令、謎語、雙關、歇後、笑話、戲謔），都沒辦法「譯」。” （周汝昌，2015，頁 261）.

(18) . 17 . Imperial Maritime Customs Service. He translated the first eight chapters of the novel, and the translation appeared in China Magazine. Bowra’s translation was entitled The Dream of the Red Chamber: A Chinese novel literally translated. It was published by Noronha & Sons in Hong Kong from 1868 to 1870. The aforementioned translations of the 19th century were mainly aids for foreigners studying Mandarin for the purpose of undertaking religious missions and doing business in China. Therefore, instead of pondering how to convey the artistry of Hong Lou Meng to their foreign readers, translators then merely focused on the usefulness of Hong Lou Meng for foreigners to learn Chinese. The first longer abridged translation of the novel was done by Henry Bencraft Joly (1857-1898). Bencraft Joly’ translation of Hong Lou Meng, titled as The Dream of the Red Chamber, was published in two volumes in 1892 and 1893 in Hong Kong. Though he attempted to fully translate the novel, his translation abruptly ended at chapter 56 due to his untimely death. After World War I, due to frequent contacts between China and the West during the war, readers in the English world were more and more interested in Chinese culture and its literature. Dream of the Red Chamber, done by Wang Liang-chih (王良志), was published in New York in 1927. The translation, with a preface by Arthur Henderson Smith (1845-1932), mainly focuses on the romantic love story of Jia Baoyu and Lin Daiyu (林黛玉). Wang Chi-chen (王際真，1899-1990), a professor at Columbia University, has done two abridged translations respectively in 1929 and 1958. Wang’s two translations, also featuring the romance of Jia and Lin, had been main resources for English readers to approach Hong Lou Meng before David Hawkes’s The Story of the Stone appeared..

(19) . 18 . To conform to the tastes of most readers who have little understanding to Chinese literature, translators of this time tend to emphasize the universality between China and the West. For instance, in the preface of Wang Chi-chen’s Dream of the Red Chamber, Mark Van Doren (1894-1972) repeatedly stressed that the novel transcends place and time. In addition, he compared the couples Jia and Lin to famous couples of the English world such as Romeo and Juliet, Benedick and Beatrice, and Mirabell and Millamant. Though market demands for Chinese classics were gradually in decline in the 1960s, translation of Hong Lou Meng was relatively booming in the field of sinology since then. Up until now there are two full English translations of Hong Lou Meng, respectively made by David Hawkes (and co-author John Minford) and Yang Xianyi (楊憲益，1915-2009) and his co-author Gladys Yang (戴乃迭，1919-1999). Yang Xianyi and Gladys Yang’s full translation A Dream of Red Mansions was published during 1978 to 1980 in three volumes. During the Cultural Revolution, the Chinese government forced them to translate the complete Hong Lou Meng, demanding the two translators translate whatever passages they got.. 2.3 Introduction to Henry Bencraft Joly and his The Dream of the Red Chamber Henry Bencraft Joly, the translator of the 56-chapter extract of Hong Lou Meng, was born in 1857 in Symrna (present-day Izmir) in the Ottoman Empire (present-day Turkey), where his father Stephen Bencraft Joly (1832-1886) was British Vice-Consul. After getting married in 1886, Joly promptly entered the China Consular Service and studied Chinese in Beijing. At the time of his translation of Hong Lou Meng around.

(20) . 19 . 1891, he was the British Vice-Consul in Macao. Later on, he was posted as Vice-Consul to the Chemulpo (仁川) Consulate in Korea, and passed away in 1898 at the age of 41. The Dream of the Red Chamber was originally published in two volumes by Kelly & Walsh Ltd. (香港別發洋行) and Typographia Commercial (澳門商務排印局) in 1892 and 1893 in Hong Kong (謝天振，2013). According to Edwin H. Lowe (2010), Joly began the work on the first two volumes of The Dream of the Red Chamber in 1891. Unlike the early translations done by other translators in the 19th century, Joly’s incomplete translation was the first to attempt to complete the task of translating Hong Lou Meng. Joly, however, failed to do so due to his premature death in 1898. A previous owner of Minford’s first volume of Joly’s translation copied in by hand an extract from the China Journal:. Joly’s chief object, I think, was to finish as much of this long novel speedily, knowing as he did that, with the advanced phthisis from which he suffered, his days could not be greatly prolonged. (as cited in Minford, 2010). The task of completing the translation of Hong Lou Meng seems to be even more challenging for Joly with such a limited and short time from translating to publishing. Joly once wrote a preface for his The Dream of the Red Chamber in 1891:. This translation was suggested not by any pretensions to range myself among the ranks of the body of sinologues, but by the perplexities and difficulties experienced by me as a student in Peking [modern day Beijing], when, at the completion of the Zi Er Ji, I had to plunge in the maze of the Hong Lou Meng. Shortcomings are, I feel sure, to be discovered, both in the prose, as well as.

(21) . 20 . among the doggerel and uncouth rhymes, in which the text has been more adhered to than rhyme; but I shall feel satisfied with the result, if I succeed, even the least degree, in affording a helping hand to present and future students of the Chinese language (Joly, 2010).. From the preface we can see that one of Joly’s purposes of translating Hong Lou Meng is to help foreign students learn Chinese. Hong Lou Meng was primarily written in the vernacular form of Beijing dialect, which has been the standard form of modern spoken and literary Chinese. Learning the standard form of modern spoken Chinese was useful for those who undertook religious missions, did business and dealt with diplomatic affairs in China. In addition, Joly (2010) himself criticized his own translation for the poetry contained within the work for “the doggerel and uncouth rhymes” and stated that “the text [of his translation] has been more adhered to than rhythm.” Regarding the feature of the text, one of the most distinguishing features in Joly’s work is its extremely literal translation. His translation, with the extreme faithfulness and literalness, is particularly useful and helpful to students who learn Chinese when the students read in comparison with the original Chinese text.. 2.4 Introduction to David Hawkes and his The Story of the Stone David Hawkes (1923-2009), a renowned British Sinologist, translated the first three volumes of The Story of the Stone. He studied Chinese at University of Oxford during 1945 to 1947, and at that time he spent much time studying an extensive collection of Chinese classical works including the Poetry Classic (Shijing 詩經) and the Four Books (Sishu 四書). In 1948, he began studying as a postgraduate student at the then National Peking University (北京大學) where he attended classes by some.

(22) . 21 . legendary scholars such as Yu Pingbo (俞平伯，1899-1990). In 1951 Hawkes left China and returned to Oxford where he completed his doctoral dissertation on The Songs of the South (Chuci 楚辭). According to Minford (2012), Hawkes’ distinguished translation attracted the attention of Arthur Waley (1889-1966), the British Sinologist and pioneer of translators translating Chinese poetry into English. Hawkes’ admiration for Waley, his friend and mentor, was heightened by the poems that Waley translated into beautiful rhymed English poetry (Minford, 2012). Hawkes was professor of Chinese at Oxford University from 1959 to 1971, when he resigned from his post to devote himself fulltime to the translation of the Hong Lou Meng. In the introduction chapter of The Story of the Stone: The Golden Days, Hawkes (1973/1988) explained to readers the variations of the versions of Hong Lou Meng, his choice of the versions and his translating principles:. In translating this novel I have felt unable to stick faithfully to any single text. I have mainly followed Gao E’s version of the first chapter as being more consistent, though less interesting, than the others; but I have frequently followed a manuscript reading in subsequent chapters, and in a few, rare instances I have made small emendations of my own. My one abiding principle has been to translate everything—even puns. (p. 46). On his translating principles, Hawkes aimed to translate everything including puns. Furthermore, he claimed that he translated the novel for sharing with readers the happiness he felt when reading Hong Lou Meng: “if I can convey to the reader even a fraction of the pleasure this Chinese novel has given me, I shall not have lived in vain” (Hawkes, 1973/1988, p. 46). Apart from the two principles, Hawkes detested the.

(23) . 22 . abuse of footnotes. In the preface to the second volume of The Story of the Stone, Hawkes (1973/1988) stated that “though are all very well in their place, reading a heavily annotated novel would seem to me rather like trying to play tennis in chains” (p. 18). Therefore, instead of adding footnotes Hawkes tends to do explanations and amplification during translating the novel.. 2.5. Introduction to Yang Xianyi and Gladys Yang and their translation Yang Xianyi, the co-author of A Dream of Red Mansions, was born in 1915 in. Tianjin (天津). In 1936 he studied Classics at College of Scholars of Merton in the University of Oxford, where he met his wife Glady Tayler. Tayler, a daughter of a missionary to China, was born in 1919 in Benjing. The couple returned to China in 1940, and began translating many Chinese classics. During the Cultural Revolution, they were imprisoned. Working for the Foreign Language Express, the Yangs lacked control over what they wanted to translate. Therefore, it remains unknown what manuscript they used for translating Hong Lou Meng. Regarding the style of A Dream of Red Mansions, most essays suggest that the Yangs’ translation is closer to the perception and tastes of readers who are familiar with Chinese language and culture for frequent use of alienating strategy during translation..

(24) . 23 . Chapter Three “Hao liao ge”. Though the author of Hong Lou Meng repeatedly claimed that the novel has nothing to do with any social message or politics and that it is “entirely free from any tendency to deprave and corrupt” (Hawkes, 1973/1988, p. 51), there is constantly a doom-laden atmosphere forcing itself upon the work. From the beginning chapter of the novel, two verses, which are “Hao liao ge” and “Hao liao ge zhu,” explicitly remind the readers of the irreversible doom of the vanished splendor. According to the in-text commentaries in red ink, both of the two verses foreshadow the future of the four families and of the characters in the novel. This chapter aims to examine Joly’s, Hawkes’ and the Yangs’ translations of the “Hao liao ge” to see how they approach the form, the syntax and the culture-bound ideas of the verse.. 3.1 Introduction to the “Hao liao ge” “Hao liao ge” is a song sung by a Taoist monk with a limp in Chapter One of Hong Lou Meng. Suffering from poverty and ill-health after an accidental burn-down of his grand house, one day the character Zhen Shiyin (甄士隱) decides to take a stroll to take his mind off his troubles and pains for a bit. On his way to the main road, he suddenly sees an erratic and crazy Taoist monk with a limp chanting a song, of which Zhen can clearly make out is the words hao (好) and liao (了). Below is the Chinese original of the “Hao liao ge”:.

(25) . 24 . The Chinese original: 世人都曉神仙好，唯有功名忘不了！古今將相在何方，荒塚一堆草沒了。世人都曉神仙好，唯有金銀忘不了！終朝只恨聚無多，及到多時眼閉了。世人都曉神仙好，只有姣妻忘不了！君生日日說恩情，君死又隨人去了。世人都曉神仙好，只有兒孫忘不了！癡心父母古來多，孝順子孫誰見了。（曹雪芹，2003，頁 10） . Table 1 presents Joly’s, Hawkes’ and the Yang’s translations of the song.. Table 1 Comparison of the three translations of “Hao liao ge ” Joly’s translation. Hawkes’ translation. The Yang’s translation. All men spiritual life. Men all know that. All men long to be. know to be good,. salvation should be won,. immortals,. But fame to disregard they But with ambition won’t. Yet to riches and rank. ne’er succeed!. have done, have done.. each aspires;. From old till now the. Where are the famous. The great ones of old,. statesmen where are they?. ones of days gone by?. where are they now?. Waste lie their graves, a. In grassy graves they lie. Their graves are a mass of. heap of grass, extinct.. now, every one.. briars.. .

(26) . 25 . All men spiritual life. Men all know that. All men long to be. know to be good,. salvation should be won,. immortals,. But to forget gold, silver,. But with their riches. Yet silver and gold they. ill succeed!. won’t have done, have. prize. Through life they grudge. done.. And grub for money all. their hoardings to be. Each day they grumble. their lives. scant,. they’ve not made enough.. Till death seals up their. And when plenty has. When they’ve had. eyes.. come, their eyelids close.. enough, it’s goodnight. . everyone!. All men spiritual life hold. Men all know that. All men long to be. to be good,. salvation should be won,. immortals,. Yet to forget wives,. But with their loving. Yet dote on the wives. maids, they ne’er succeed! wives they won’t have. they’ve wed,. Who speak of grateful. done.. Who swear to love their. love while lives their lord,. The darlings every day. husband evermore. And dead their lord,. protest their love:. But remarry as soon as. another they pursue.. But once you’re dead,. he’s dead.. . they’re off with another. . one.. All men spiritual life. Men all know that. All men long to be. know to be good,. salvation should be won,. immortals,. But sons and grandsons to. But with their children. Yet with getting sons. forget never succeed!. won’t have done, have. won’t have done.. From old till now of. done.. Although fond parents are. parents soft many,. Yet though of parents. legion,. But filial sons and. fond there is no lack,. Who ever saw a really. grandsons who have seen? Of grateful children saw I. filial son? (X. Yang & G..

(27) . 26 . (Bencraft Joly, 2010, p.. ne’er a one. (Hawkes,. 18). 1973, pp. 63-64). . Yang, 1978/1999, p. 29) . . Note. Compiled by the author.. 3.2 The Form and the syntax of the song The Chinese original of the “Won-Done Song” was written in rhyme, which makes the song catchy and easy to memorize. The Chinese original of the song is in a rhyme scheme of aaba, and the end rhyme of the song is the sound “ao” (similar to the English pronunciation of “how” without the [h] sound). According to Laurence Kwok Pun Wong (2014), however, the rhyme in the original is rather imperfect, which creates a doggerel effect. In addition, he states that due to its vernacular origin the song of the original “reads like a doggerel with a touch of grim humour” (Wong, 2014, p. 470). One of the greatest challenges when translating Chinese poetry is whether a translator is obliged to reproduce the prosody of the original. In Joly’s rendition, without the use of rhymes there seems to be no attempt at reproducing the prosody. Unlike Joly, Hawkes translated the Chinese song with the use of rhyming, which are “won,” “done” and “one.” His reproduction of the prosody of the “Won-Done Song” is highly praised by Yenna Wu (2000), who stated that ““the marvelous ‘Won-Done.

(28) . 27 . Song’ in Chapter One is but one example of the many beautifully rendered poems” (p. 234). In addition, in Hawkes’ English translation, with the repetition of “have done, have done,” the translation reads like a song, which closely matches to the effect of the original. As for the Yang’s translation, the translators occasionally translated the song with the use of rhyme, which are “aspires,” “briars,” “prize,” “eyes,” “wed,” and “dead.” Compared with Hawkes’ translation, the Yangs’ version is less consistent at reproducing the prosody. Apart from the difference in dealing with the prosody of the song, Hawkes’ translation is more consistent and concise in dealing with the title of the song and the concept of hao and liao. Regarding the title of the song, in the novel the Taoist who sang the song was described to explain the origin of the title of the song to Zhen:. The Chinese original: 你若果聽見了「好了」二字，還算你明白！可知世上萬般「好」便是「了」，「了」便是「好」，若是不「了」便不「好」，若要「好」須是「了」。我這歌兒便叫好了歌。（曹雪芹，2001，頁 10）. Joly’s translation: “You may well have heard the two words ‘hao liao’,” answered the Taoist with a smile, “but can you be said to have fathomed their meaning? You should know that all things in this world are excellent, when they have attained finality; when they have attained finality, they are excellent; but when they have not attained finality, they are not excellent; of they would be excellent, they should attain finality. My song is entitled Excellent-finality (hao liao).” (Joly, 2010, p. 18).

(29) . 28 . Hawkes’ translation: “If you can make out ‘won’ and ‘done,’ replied the Taoist with a smile, “you may be said to have understood; for in all the affairs of this world what is won is done, and what is done is won; for whoever has not yet done has not yet won, and in order to have won, one must first have done. I shall call my song the ‘Won-Done Song’.” (Hawkes, 1973/1988, p. 64) The Yangs’ translation: “If you gathered that, you have some understanding,” the Taoist remarked. “You should know that all good things in this world must end, and to make an end is good, for there is nothing good which does not end. My song is called All Good Things Must End.” (X. Yang & G. Yang, 1978/1999, p. 29). The Chinese original of the explanation is very much like a tongue twister. In the text of the song Joly rendered the concept of hao and liao as “good” and “succeed,” but in dealing with the title of the song he rendered it as “Excellent-finality (hao liao)” (Joly, 2010, p. 18), which seems to have nothing to do with “good” and “succeed.” Compared with Joly’s translation, Hawkes’ translation of the title of the song, “Won-Done Song,” is more consistent to the song itself with the repetition of “won,” “done” and “one” in stanza 1, stanza 2, stanza 3 and stanza 4. The Yangs’ translation is more similar to Joly’s translation without producing the effect of tongue twister. Though the Yangs’ use of the repetition of the two words “good” and “end” appears in their translation of the title of the song “All Good Things Must End,” their approach to the title of the song and the concept of hao and liao is less concise than Hawkes’ translation. With respect to the form of the translation of the “Hao liao ge,”.

(30) . 29 . Hawkes’ is closer to the original text in the way he reproduced the song-like quality of the original through the use of rhyme. In terms of the syntax of the song, among the three translations Hawkes’ translation of the song is freer. Originally served as a book for foreigners to learn the Chinese language, Joly’s translation of the novel is widely known as “an extremely literal translation” (Minford, 2010). For instance, Joly’s translation of the last line of the first stanza of the song is very literal with few changes to the syntax and part of speech of the original. Joly (2010) wrote: Waste lie their graves, a heap of grass, extinct. (p. 18) Below is the Chinese original of the line: 荒塚一堆草歿了。（曹雪芹，2001，頁 10） Unlike Joly, who translated zhong (塚), cao (草) and mo (歿) in order of the Chinese original, Hawkes (1973/1988) was not confined by syntax and part of speech of the original and wrote: In grassy graves they lie now, every one. (p. 63) The Yangs were also not confined by syntax and part of speech of the original song and wrote: Their graves are a mass of briars. (p. 29) The meaning of the Chinese original of the line is that all the jiangxiang of days gone by are dead in abandoned graves which are covered with piles and piles of grass. Huang (荒) means desolate, waste or abandoned in Chinese. Cao (草) means grass in Chinese. Instead of directly translating the meaning of huang and cao in English as Joly did, Hawkes used “grassy graves” to imply the desolate state of the graves. As for.

(31) . 30 . the Yangs’ rendition, the translators interpreted the graves as nothing but “a mass of briars.” The state of the graves described in the Yangs’ translation is similar to the meaning of the original, but the Yangs’ translation seems to be more like a prose than a poem. Compared with Joly’s “a heap of grass,” Hawkes’ use of the adjective “grassy” can more vividly describe the image Cao tried to convey. Another example to show the translators’ differences in terms of the word order of the song is their translations of the expression jinyin (金銀). The literal meaning of jinyin is riches or money. The expression can be divided into two words, which are jin (金) and yin (銀). Jin means gold while yin means silver in Chinese, the combination of the two words used as a symbol of money. Joly chose to adhere to the syntax and word order of the expression, literally rendering jinyin as “gold” and “silver.” The Yangs’ translation of jinyin is very similar to Joly’s, but they changed the word order to “silver and gold.” Both of Joly’s and the Yangs’ translations are faithful to preserve the original meaning of gold and silver, which might help foreigners to learn the Chinese meanings of the two words. Unlike the aforementioned translators, however, Hawkes went beyond the literal meanings of the two words and translated the expression as “riches.” His translation may be less faithful in terms of the word order of the expression, but it is relatively close to the conception of most Western readers. Apart from not conforming to the part of speech of the Chinese original, Hawkes had his own way to translate and intensify the image of death in his translation. Though Hawkes’ “lie” is not as strong as Joly’s “extinct,” his repetition of “every one” in the last line of stanza 1 and stanza 2 not only results in an effect of the song-cycle but also further indicates to readers that regardless of the rich or the poor, somebody or nobody,.

(32) . 31 . no one can escape from the doom of death. Below are the last line of stanza 2 respectively in Chinese original, Joly’s translation, Hawkes’ translation and the Yangs’ translation:. The Chinese original: 及到多時眼閉了。（曹雪芹，2001，頁 10） Joly’s translation: And when plenty has come, their eyelids close. (Joly, 2010, p. 18) Hawkes’ translation: When they’ve had enough, it’s goodnight everyone! (Hawkes, 1973/1988, p. 63) The Yangs’ translation: Till death seals up their eyes. (X. Yang & G. Yang, 1978/1999, p. 29) From the comparison above we can see that Hawkes’ translation is not as literal as Joly’s and the Yangs’. The literal meaning of yan bi liao (眼閉了) is “to close your eyes,” which is often used as an euphemism to imply that someone is dead. Hawkes’ “goodnight” reminds readers of Dylan Thomas’ “Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night,” where Thomas used night as a metaphor for death. Hawkes’ replacement of the concept of death with the euphemism “goodnight” shows that he is well aware of the language and cultural differences between two cultures. The way he approached yan bi liao preserves not only the effect of euphemism Cao tried to create but also the artistic value of the original phrase. Joly’s translation adheres to the literal meaning of the sentence, while the Yangs.

(33) . 32 . amplified the sentence with the word “death.” The Yangs’ translation is semantically correct, but it somehow reduces the effect of euphemism the author tried to have. The three translations of the last line of stanza 4 also show the translators’ different strategies in terms of the syntax of the song. The last line of stanza 4, xiao shun zi sun shei jian liao (孝順子孫誰見了), serves as a rhetorical question indicating that few children and grandchildren are grateful to their parents. Xiao shun (孝順), which literally means filial or grateful in Chinese, is an adjective used to describe the expression zi sun (子孫). The literal meaning of zi sun is sons and grandsons. Shei (誰) means who in Chinese while jian (見) means see. Both of Joly’s and the Yangs’ translations preserve the effect of rhetorical question by the use of “who” and question mark. In addition, Joly closely adhered to the word order of the sentence of the Chinese original in his translation. He literally rendered every Chinese word into English and strictly followed the structure of the original. Unlike Joly, the Yangs chose to reverse the original order of xiao shun zi sun and shei jian liao in their translation and rendered the sentences as “who ever saw a really filial son.” From the comparison above we can see that the Yangs’ translation is not as literal as Joly’s. Hawkes’ translation of the line is more poetic and freer. Not confined by the style of the rhetorical question, Hawkes turned the sentence into an affirmative one and preserved the song style in his rendition. The way Hawkes approached the line may be less faithful to the original with regard to the syntax of the song, but his translation is able to maintain the poetic style and artistic beauty Cao tried to create. 3.3 Culture-bound terms and ideas.

(34) . 33 . 3.3.1 The idea of shenxian Before the discussion on Joly’s, Hawkes’ and the Yangs’ translations of the idea of shenxian (神仙), it is worth investigating and elaborating on various definitions of this complicated idea of shenxian. The Chinese word shenxian is highly related to Taoism and is initially referred to as an enlightened and unusual person. In fact, sometimes scholars separate shenxian as two words shen (神) and xian (仙) to define and describe what they are. The meaning of the word shen is less complicated, which is often understood as gods or deity. The concept of xian, however, is much more complex and intricate. Xian can be humans or immortals. Xian can be used to describe the immortals dwelling apart from the world or as exceptional figures. In addition, Victor H. Mair (1994) described the archetype of xian as “[those who] dwell apart from the chaotic world of man, subsist on air and dew, and are not anxious like ordinary people” (p. 376). Furthermore, he interpreted the word xian as “the transcendents” (Mair, 1994, p. 376). With these different interpretations of the word xian, it is definitely a challenging work for any translator who attempts to deal with the problem. In fact, before working on translating Hong Lou Meng, Hawkes had translated the concept of xian in three poems, which are translated as the “Far-off Journey” (yuan you 遠遊), the “Sorrow for Troth Betrayed” (xi shi 惜誓), and the “Alas That My Lot Was Not Cast” (ai shi ming 哀時命), in his translation of the Chuci. The “Far-off Journey” poem, written by Qu Yuan (屈原), describes the poet’s indignation for the hostility and ill-treatment he got from the court and the poet’s imagination of a spiritual journey into the realms of “immortals” to get away from the.

(35) . 34 . chaotic world. In the poem, the poet accounts his hope to get away from the turmoil he had gone through:. The Chinese original: 貴真人之休德兮，美往世之登仙。（屈原，2005，頁 130） . Hawkes’ translation: I honoured the wondrous powers of the Pure Ones, And those of past ages who had become Immortals. (Hawkes, 1985, p. 194). In addition, the theme of the “Sorrow for Troth Betrayed” poem resembles that of the “Far-off Journey” poem. However, the poet of the “Sorrow for Troth Betrayed” poem, which remains unknown, expresses his hope to go home instead of becoming a xian:. The Chinese original: 念我長生而久仙兮，不如反于之故鄉。（”惜誓”，2005，頁 254）. Hawkes’ translation: But then I thought that this immortal life of the blessed, Was not worth the sacrifice of my home-returning. (Hawkes, 1985, 240). With numerous possible definitions and interpretations of xian, Hawkes had an alternative. In the “Alas That My Lot Was Not Cast” poem, instead of using.

(36) . 35 . “Immortals” and “immortal” to translate the idea of xian, Hawkes (1985) translated xian zhe (仙者) as “holy hermits” (p. 266). Thee three examples of Hawkes’ translations of xian or xian zhe suggest that Hawkes was well aware of the various definitions of xian. In Joly’s translation, shenxian is rendered as “spiritual life,” which bears no particular religious touch. As for the Yangs, they translated the concept of shenxian as “immortals.” Compared with Joly’s and the Yangs’ translations, Hawkes’ translation of shenxian as “salvation” is more noticeable. In the study of theology, the term salvation is referred to as “deliverance from sin and its consequences, believed by Christians to be brought about by faith in Christ” (“Salvation,” n.d.). Therefore, the use of the concept of salvation makes the song filled with a touch of Christianity in Hawkes’ translation of the song. In fact, apart from his translation of the idea of shenxian, Hawkes tends to replace Buddhist and Taoist ideas with Christian phrases during translation. For instance, according to Feng Qinghua (馮慶華，2008), in terms of Hawkes’ translation of the Buddhist phrase e mi tuo fo (阿彌陀佛), Hawkes tends to use the strategy of domestication to translate the phrase. Of all the forty places mentioning e mi tuo fo, there are thirty four translations rendered in domestication such as “Holy Name” or “Blessed name of the Lord” (馮慶華，2008，頁 136). In terms of the three translations of shenxian in the first line of the song, Hawkes is the only translator choosing to use the idea of salvation to interpret the idea of shenxian. Considering his three translations in the Chuci, it is impossible to say that Hawkes did not quite understand the concept of shenxian. However, if we look.

(37) . 36 . further on the background of his translation of the Chuci, The Songs of the South, and of The Story of the Stone, there might be some explanations for his choice. In the 1950s, Hawkes studied the complex problems of authorship of the Chuci for his Oxford D. Phil. dissertation. In 1956, he completed his doctoral dissertation, which contains a complete translation of the Chuci. His translation of the Chuci, titled as The Songs of the South, was published by Oxford University Press in 1959. Later on, the translator himself made few changes to the translation and the work was re-published by the Penguin Classics in 1985. The history of the publication of The Songs of the South seems to suggest that Hawkes’ role in translating the Chuci is more like a scholar for the purpose of academic considerations. Unlike the translation of the Chuci, however, when translating Hong Lou Meng Hawkes had more freedom to decide how to present the original to the English readers. In the 1998 interview Hawkes explained his own considerations on translating Hong Lou Meng and the differences between translating Chuci and Hong Lou Meng:. I’d thought that what I’d like to do is a translation where I don’t have to think about academic considerations. Scholarly considerations. I’ll just think about how to present – this is Penguins, after all – how to present this book in such a way that I do the whole of it but at the same time it’s enjoyable for the English reader, if possible, and they can get some of the pleasure out of it that I got myself. So it’s in a different sort of – the way that I went about that, my attitude to it, was very very different from when I was doing Chuci. (as cited in Fan, 2012, p. 148). From the interview above we can see that Hawkes’ target readers are the common English readers, which might be the reason for using the idea of salvation to.

(38) . 37 . maximize the communication with most English readers. 3.3.2 The idea of gongming Another example of reducing the Chineseness of the text is Hawkes’ translation of the concept of gongming (功名) and jiangxiang (將相). The term gongming has two different layers of meanings in old Chinese culture. It is broadly referred to as fame or reputation. The second layer, however, is strictly related to the system of the imperial examination ke ju (科舉) in old China, the phrase being the imperial examination or the official posts through success in the examination. Though different dynasties may have different categorization of the system, the imperial system generally contains the civil examinations wen shi (文試) and the military examinations wu shi (武試). Those who passed the civil examinations would be designated as civil officials xiang (相), while the successful candidates of the military examinations would be appointed to military posts jiang (將) (“Imperial examination,” n.d.). In addition, one can also attain gongming with his outstanding military service during wars. In chapter 7 of Hong Lou Meng, the old servant Jiao Da (焦大) shouted at the young master Jia Rong (賈蓉), claiming his late old master’s and his great contribution to the ranks and titles the Jia family enjoy and talking about the hardships the old master had gone through during wars. In addition, in Chapter Five of the Chinese original the ancestors of the Jia family account the doomed fate of the Jia family:. The Chinese original:.

(39) . 38 . 吾家自國朝定鼎以來，功名奕世，富貴流傳，已歷百年，奈運終數盡，不可挽回。（曹雪芹，2003，頁 54） . Hawkes’ translation: [‘]In the hundred years since the foundation of the present dynasty,[’] they said, [‘]several generations of our house have distinguished themselves by their services to the Throne and have covered themselves with riches and honours; but now its stock of good fortune has run out, and nothing can be done to replenish it[.] (Hawkes, 1973/1988, p. 137). From the translation above we can see that the word gongming is also closely related to one’s performance in battlefields. Regarding the song in Chinese original, the text indicates that all men are in pursuit of fame, reputation or rank to become great civil officials, politicians or the generals and are unaware of the doom of the vanished splendor. In Joly’s translation of the concept of gongming and jiangxiang, he rendered gongming as “fame” and jiangxiang as “the statesmen.” Joly’s use of “the statesmen” clearly indicate readers that idea of gongming is related to one’s success in the field of politics. In addition, though the Yangs’ “the great ones of old” barely reflects the connection between the idea of jiangxiang and politics, their use of “riches and rank” somehow reminds readers of the images of the rich and politicians with military honours. Compared with Joly’s and the Yangs’ renditions, Hawkes’ “ambition” and “the famous ones of days gone by” seem to suggest that the famous ones of days gone by are those with ambition and fame in history. 3.3.3 The idea of xiao shun In addition, xiao shun (孝順) is also a cultural-specific word. According to.

(40) . 39 . Alan K. L. Chan and Sor-hoon Tan (2004), “孝” or “孝順” is commonly rendered as “filial piety.” The following is the definition of the concept of “孝” by Encyclopaedia Britannica:. “filial piety,” in Confucianism, the attitude of obedience, devotion, and care toward one’s parents and elder family members that is the basis of individual moral conduct and social harmony. Xiao [孝] consists in putting the needs of parents and family elders over self, spouse, and children, deferring to parents’ judgement, and observing toward them the prescribed behavioral proprieties. (“Xiao,” n.d.). Xiao shun, as the core of Confucianism, has a long history and deep foundation in Chinese culture. There is, however, no corresponding concept of xiao shun with that of ancient China in the West. In fact, according to Xinrui Yuan and Qing Wang (2011), there is filial idea in Western history, but Chinese filial piety culture is quite different from Western filial piety culture. They stated that “filial piety [of Chinese culture] is limited to consanguinity. In contrast, Western filial piety has not yet well developed with the passage of time; consequently, the content is limited. The Western culture leans to surpass the nature, and is affected by Christianity, so its idea of filial piety is not limited to consanguinity but God-based” (Yuan & Wang, 2011, p. 105). While the idea of Western filial piety is so different from that of Chinese filial piety, the use of “filial” in translations might be unfamiliar and a bit Christian for most English readers. Therefore, it is not surprising that in both Joly’s The Dream of the Red Chamber and the Yangs’ A Dream of Red Mansions these translators all use the word “filial” to.

(41) . 40 . interpret the phrase xiao shun in the last of the song. Hawkes, however, did not choose to use the more commonly rendered “filial” or “filial piety” to denote the idea of xiao shun. Hawkes’ translation, as “grateful children,” may seem to weaken the Chineseness of the song, but the idea of xiao is more comprehensible for readers who don’t have a background in Chinese culture..

(42) . 41 . Chapter Four “Hao liao ge zhu”. Realizing that the “Hao liao ge” is served as a mockery of the laity’s weaknesses regardless of place or time, Zhen smiles at the Taoist and provides the song with a commentary. The commentary, often referred to as “Hao liao ge zhu” by scholars of the novel, not only corresponds to the ideas of “Hao liao ge” but also further elaborates on the future developments of the characters and of the four wealthy families in the work. The literal meaning of the word zhu is “annotation” or “commentary.” According to the commentaries in red ink in the 1754 version of the Chinese manuscript, the novel begins the opening chapter with these two verses to explicitly remind the readers of the impermanence of the wild world and of the irreversible doom of the vanished splendor. Below is the Chinese original of the commentary done by Zhen: The Chinese original: 陋室空空，當年笏滿床。衰草枯楊，昔為歌舞場。蛛絲兒結滿雕梁，綠紗今又糊在蓬窗上。說什麼脂正濃、粉正香，如何兩鬢又成霜？昨日黃土隴頭送白骨，今宵紅绡帳底臥鴛鴦。.

(43) . 42 . 金滿箱、銀滿箱，展眼乞丐人皆謗！正嘆他人命不長，哪知自己歸來喪？訓有方，保不定日後作強梁。擇膏粱，誰承望流落在煙花巷！因嫌紗帽小，致使鎖枷扛。昨嫌破襖寒，今嫌紫蟒長。亂哄哄，你方唱罷我登場，反認他鄉是故鄉，甚荒唐！到頭來，都是為他人作嫁衣裳。（曹雪芹，2003，頁 11） . Table 2 presents Joly’s, Hawkes’ and the Yangs’ translations of “Hao liao ge zhu.” Table 2. Comparison of the “Hao liao ge zhu”. Joly’s translation. Hawkes’ translation. The Yangs’ translation. Sordid rooms and. Mean hovels and abandoned. Mean huts and empty halls. vacant courts,. halls. Where emblems of nobility once. Replete in years gone. Where courtiers once paid. hung;. by with beds where. daily calls:. statesmen lay; .

(44) . 43 . Parched grass and. Bleak haunts where weeds and. Dead weeds and withered trees,. withered banian trees,. willows scarcely thrive. Where men have once danced. Where once were halls. Were once with mirth and. and sung.. for song and dance!. revelry alive.. Spiders’ webs the. Whilst cobwebs shroud the. Carved beams are swathed in. carved pillars. mansion’s gilded beams,. cobwebs. intertwine,. The cottage casement with. But briar-choked casements. The green gauze now is. choice muslin gleams.. screened again with gauze;. What about the. Would you of perfumed. While yet the rouge is fresh, the. cosmetic fresh. elegance recite?. powder fragrant,. concocted or the. Even as you speak, the raven. The hair at the temples turn. powder just scented;. locks turn white.. hoary—for what cause?. Yesterday the tumulus. Who yesterday her lord’s. Yesterday, yellow clay received. of yellow earth buried. bones laid in clay,. white bones;. the bleached bones,. On silken bridal-bed shall lie. Today, red lanterns light the. Tonight under the red. today.. love-birds’ nest;. Gold fills the coffers,. Coffers with gold and silver. While men with gold and silver. silver fills the boxes,. filled:. by the chest. But in a twinkle, the. Now, in a trice, a tramp by all. Turn beggars, scorned by all the. beggars will all abuse. reviled.. dispossessed.. also pasted on the straw windows!. Why has the hair too on each temple become white like hoarfrost!. silk curtain reclines the couple!. you!.

(45) . 44 . While you deplore that. One at some other’s short life. A life cut short one moment. the life of others is not. gives a sigh,. makes one sight,. long,. Not knowing that he, too, goes. Who would have known it’s her. You forget that you. home – to die!. turn next to die?. You educate your sons. The sheltered and. No matter with what pains he. with all propriety,. well-educated lad,. schools his sons.. But they may some. In spite of all your care, may. Who knows if they will turn to. day, ‘tis hard to say. turn out bad;. brigandry?. Though you choose. And the delicate, fastidious. A pampered girl brought up in. (your fare and home). maid. luxury. the fatted beam,. End in a foul stews, plying a. May slip into a quarter of ill. You may, who can say,. shameful trade.. fame;. yourself are approaching death!. become thieves;. fall into some place of easy virtue! Through your dislike of The judge whose hat is too. Resentment at a low official. the gauze hat as mean,. small for his head. rank. You have come to be. Wears, in the end, a convict’s. May lead to fetters and a felon’s. locked in cangue;. cangue instead.. shame.. Yesterday, poor fellow,. Who shivering once in rags. In ragged coat one shivered. you felt cold in a. bemoaned his fate,. yesterday,. tattered coat,. Today finds fault with scarlet. Today a purple robe he frowns. Today, you despise the. robes of state.. upon;. purple embroidered dress as long!.

(46) . 45 . Confusion reigns far. In such commotion does the. All’s strife and tumult on the. and wide! you have just world’s theatre rage:. stage,. sung your part, I come. As each one leaves, another. As one man ends his song the. on the boards,. takes the stage.. next comes on.. Instead of yours, you. In vain we roam:. To take strange parts as home. recognise another as. Each in the end must call a. your native land;. strange land home.. What utter perversion!. In one word, it comes. Each of us with that poor girl. Is folly past compare;. to this we make. may compare. And all our labour in the end. wedding clothes for. Who sews a wedding-gown for. Is making clothes for someone. others!. another bride to wear.. else to wear.. (We sow for others to reap.) . Note. Compiled by the author.. 4.1 The form and the syntax of the “Hao liao ge zhu” Zhen’s commentary to the song is a verse with the rhyme “ang” sound in the Chinese original, and Hawkes eloquently rendered the commentary into sonnet of the form of heroic couplets. As for the Yangs, they translated the song line by line and made the song into a rhymed one. The commentary, however, becomes in Joly’s hands a piece of somewhat stilted and long prose. Joly’s rendition of Hong Lou Meng is known as “an extremely literal translation” (Minford, 2010), and the extreme literalness is reflected in the word orders, number of words and parts of speech in his translation.

(47) . 46 . of Zhen’s commentary. An extreme literal translation makes a text stilted and lack of artistic beauty. Joly’s translation is very literal in terms of the syntax of his English text. I will pick four lines from the three translators’ translations to see the syntax of their translations. Table 3 presents the four lines of the three translations.. Table 3 Comparison of the Syntax of Joly’s, Hawkes’ and the Yangs’ Translations Joly’s translation. Hawkes’ translation. The Yangs’ translation. 衰草枯楊. 衰草枯楊. 衰草枯楊. Parched grass and. Bleak haunts where weeds. Dead weeds and. withered banian trees. and willows scarcely. withered trees. thrive 今宵紅綃帳底臥鴛鴦. 今宵紅綃帳底臥鴛鴦. 今宵紅綃帳底臥鴛鴦. Tonight under the red silk. On silken bridal-bed. Today, red lanterns light. curtain reclines the couple. shall lie today. the love-birds’ nest. 金滿箱，銀滿箱. 金滿箱，銀滿箱. 金滿箱，銀滿箱. Gold fills the coffers,. Coffers with gold. While men with gold and. silver fills the boxes. and silver filled. silver by the chest. 擇膏粱（誰承望流落在. 擇膏粱（誰承望流落在. 擇膏粱（誰承望流落在. 煙花巷）. 煙花巷）. 煙花巷）. Though you choose (your. And the delicate,. A pampered girl brought. fare and home) the fatted. fastidious maid,. up in luxury.

(48) . 47 . beam,. End in a foul stews,. May slip into a quarter of. You may, who can say,. plying a shameful trade.. ill fame.. fall into some place of easy virtue!. Note. The parenthesis after the last sentence ze gao liang (擇膏粱) is attached to help examine the translators’ strategies for translating the sentence ze gao liang.. From the table above we can see that most of the word orders of Joly’s translation conform to those of the Chinese original. In the sentence shuai cao ku yang (衰草枯楊), both of shuai (衰) and ku (枯) are used as adjectives to describe the dry and shriveled condition of a plant. The Chinese word cao (草) is broadly referred to as grass, while what plant the word yang indicates is very clear. Pan Fujun (潘富俊， 2004) suggests that ku yang (枯楊) should be bai yang (白楊), which is often planted in graveyards in Chinese culture. In Chinese literature, the image of yang or bai yang arouses is often related to sorrow, grief and death7. Joly rendered cao as “grass” and yang as “banian trees,” and his translation “parched grass and withered banian trees” conforms to the Chinese sentence shuai cao ku yang in terms of the arrangement of parts of speech. As for Hawkes’ translation “bleak haunts where weeds and willows scarcely thrive,” he was not confined to the syntax of the original. He was capable of creating poetic beauty with additional words like “haunt” and with the repetition of the consonant “w.” Like 7 . The original: “枯楊或白楊常栽植在墳地，有時還作為墳墓的代稱。” (潘富俊，2004，頁 22) .