The quality of a piece of poetry translation is examined in retaining original meaning and artistic conception and the degree of translation’s form, rhythm and rhyme, just as Liu Zhongde’s idea(Liu Zhongde,1991:129). However, it is impossible and unnecessary to translate the source texts word for word because of the differences between Chinese and English local customs and practices and language characteristics. A good piece of poetry translation is a perfect combination of three aesthetic features embraced in the original work.
Classical Chinese poetry, playing an irreplaceable role in Chinese cultural history, is a treasure of China splendid cultural heritage humanistic education and language learning. In the vast body of literature, poetry is a bright pearl of Chinese people’s blood essence inheritance.
Classical Chinese poetry could be pided into several kinds according to different basis classification. First of all, based on sound and rhythm, classical Chinese poetry could be pided into four types:a form of pre-Tang poetry, usually having five or seven characters to each line, without strict tonal patterns or rhyme schemes;“modern style” poetry, referring to innovations in classical poetry during the Tang dynasty, marked by strict tonal patterns or rhyme schemes;Ci and Qu are another two kinds. Secondly, according to the contents of poetry, it can be pided into nostalgic poetry, object-chanting poetry, pastoral poetry, poetry of war, poetry of traveling, poetry of boudoir repinings and farewell poetry. Thirdly, in accordance with poetry’s ways of expressions, classical Chinese poetry is split into narrative poetry with complete plots and characters and lyrics with full release of poets’ emotions. Sometimes, they are inter woven. Fourthly, in line with rhyme and structure, classical Chinese poetry falls into three genres as follows, metrical poetry with strict requirements on form, rhythm, number of character and lines, sentence patterns, etc. Free verse with free form and popular language, and prose poetry, a mixture of characteristics of prose and poetry.
Different schools of poetry should translated in different ways with various translation principles.
Most translators pay much attention to text adaptability in literary translation, in order to reproduce the language characteristics of original texts despite the different language customs and cultural distinctions between Chinese and English. However, the role of readers is still secondary in their translation activities. Nowadays, the target readers in translation process plays an significant role. This is one of the core points of Reception Aesthetics which will be well introduce in next part.
2.2 A Brief Review on Reception Aesthetics
This part probes into the theoretical framework of this thesis. Phenomenology and hermeneutics are the important sources of Reception Aesthetics. Meanwhile, the sinicization of Reception Aesthetics makes more and more Chinese people accept and study this theory. The application of Reception Aesthetics is of great importance in translation, especially in translation of classical Chinese poetry.来!自~优尔论-文|网www.youerw.com
2.2.1 Theoretical Background and General Development Situation of Reception Aesthetics
Reception Theory is a contemporary literary theory, attaching great importance in readers’ reception and interpretation. It derived its origin from hermeneutics in the late 1960s in German, and swept world quickly. It is one of the outstanding representatives of the reader response criticism. Reader response mainly includes phenomenological consciousness criticism, hermeneutic criticism and Self psychology school of depth psychology, structuralism, deconstructivism and reception theory. Reception is defined “as a process creating meaning which realizes the instructions given in the linguistic appearance in the text” (Fokkema,Douwe Wessel,1986:137). 接受美学视角下中国古典诗词李煜诗歌英译的研究(3):http://www.youerw.com/yingyu/lunwen_78693.html