20230630 final exam 03

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202270081667 谢佳玉 Xie Jiayu 英语笔译(English translation)

Systematic Literature Review of the English Translation of The Analects

谢佳玉Xie Jiayu，202270081667

Abstract

The Analects of Confucius is a classic work of Chinese Confucianism and one of the most authoritative books in Chinese history. It plays an important role in the history of Sino-Western cultural exchange. The English translation of The Analects of Confucius has always been a hot topic for study. The author selects 32 articles, including all essays in the last five years and the most cited in the past, and divides them into five aspects: the analysis and comparison of translations, the translator's perspective, the translation of unique cultural or linguistic phenomena, the problems in the existing English translations of The Analects of Confucius and the dissemination of The Analects of Confucius in the West. This paper is a literature review of the achievements made by scholars in this field, which also points out the deficiencies, so as to promote the development of translation of Confucian classics and related studies.

Key Words

The Analects of Confucius; English translation; Literature review

摘要

《论语》是中国儒家的经典著作，也是中国历史上最具权威性的文献典籍之一，在中西文化交流史上起着重要的作用。《论语》的英译一直是学者关注的热点。笔者选用了32篇文章，包括近五年发表的文章和过去被引用最多的文章，并将其分为译本的分析与对比、译者视角、独特的文化和语言现象的翻译、翻译中的问题以及在英语世界的传播五个方面。本文对学者们在该领域取得的成果进行了文献综述，并指出存在的不足，以期促进儒家经典翻译及相关研究的发展。

关键词

《论语》；英译；文献综述

Introduction

The Analects of Confucius (Lun Yu) is one of the most important works of Confucianism, which records the remarks of Confucius and his disciples. It occupies a very important position in the history of Chinese literature and ideology. It not only has a profound influence in China, but also is one of the earliest works translated into English and spread in the West in ancient Chinese classics, and is also one of the most translated and interpreted Chinese classics.

The translation of traditional Chinese classics, especially the Confucian classics, was accomplished by the cultural exchanges between China and the West since the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties. The Analects of Confucius was first translated into the Western language at the end of the 16th century. A Latin translation of the Four Books by Western missionaries led by Matteo Ricci was published in 1594. The first English translation of The Analects of Confucius can be found in The Work of Confucius by Joshua Marshman, a missionary, but it is just an abridged translation and is not complete. It was not until 1861 that the first widely influential translation was published, which was Confucian Analects written by Lames Legge, a British missionary and Sinologist. Since then, English translations of The Analects of Confucius have been published, and Western countries have had a rudimentary understanding of Chinese culture. Gu Hongming's English version, which was published in 1898, also has a profound impact. In addition, Arthur Waley and D. C. Lau, a professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, and others also provide excellent translations. Up to now, there have been more than 40 English translations of The Analects of Confucius, each of which has its own characteristics with different translation methods and different styles. With so many English translations, the study of the English translation of The Analects of Confucius has naturally become a hot spot of research.

The earliest essay about the English translation of The Analects of Confucius was published in 1996 in CNKI. Until now, the study of English translation has gone for more than 20 years. In order to understand the achievements and current situation of the research on the English translation of The Analects of Confucius, the author collates and analyzes the articles about it in the past five years, providing references for further research on the English translation of The Analects of Confucius.

Literature Review of the English Translation of The Analects of Confucius

The author classifies and makes statistics on the studies of the English translation of The Analects of Confucius. The essays come from China National Knowledge Infrastructure and Google Scholar. The author used the keyword "English translation of The Analects" to search on CNKI, there are a total of 121 academic dissertations and 331 journal papers, of which, from 2018 to 2023, there are 27 academic dissertations and 81 journal papers, 19 of which are published in core journals. In the past five years, the study of the English translation of The Analects of Confucius in foreign countries is much less than that in China. The author searched on Google Scholar and only got a few essays, all written by Chinese scholars.

On the basis of the searched essays, the author selected the papers published in domestic core journals in the past five years, the 13 most cited essays in the past, and the 5 English essays searched on Google Scholar. After further screening of these essays, 32 eligible essays were finally selected for research. This paper analyzes the achievements of domestic scholars the existing problems and the future development direction in this field.

According to research, in general, the research of Chinese scholars on the English translation of The Analects of Confucius mainly focuses on the following aspects: the analysis and comparison of translations, the translator's perspective, the translation of unique cultural or linguistic phenomena, the problems in the existing English translations of The Analects of Confucius and the dissemination of The Analects of Confucius in the West.

The Analysis and Comparison of Translations

The analysis of translation is an important method to study translation practice. Therefore, there are many essays studying from this perspective. Scholars mainly study translations from three aspects: the study of one translation, the study of two or more translations, and the study of single or multiple translations based on theory. The study of one translation is mainly focused on the comparison and analysis between the translation and the original. Zhang Defu (2021) analyzed Ni Peimin's distinctive English translation of The Analects of Confucius. He explored the gongfu orientation and its application of it in Ni's translation and revealed that the gongfu orientation is an effective way to understand the core concepts of Confucianism and interpret the original text of The Analects of Confucius, which has reference significance for inheriting and carrying forward the essence of the thought of Confucian classics and even traditional Chinese cultural classics. The study of one translation can make people more thoroughly understand the characteristics of the translation, and more comprehensively and profoundly understand it.

The study of two or more translations is mainly a comparative study of different translations. The comparative analysis of different versions is a common topic in the study of the English translation of The Analects of Confucius. Huang Guowen (2012) made a comparative analysis of different English versions of The Analects of Confucius, and mainly discussed the process of translation of classic books, showing that the translation of classic books like The Analects of Confucius usually goes through two stages of "intralingual translation" and "interlingual translation" based on cases. When translating classic books into modern English, translators should first translate the source text written in classical Chinese into modern Chinese, and then translate it into modern English. This conclusion has enlightening significance for the translation of classical books and research of it.

Many scholars analyze one or multiple translations based on a certain theory. This kind of essay accounts for the highest proportion, which shows that it is a relatively popular form of study.

Meng Jian, Qu Tao, Xia Yang (2012) analyzed the translation characteristics of Gu Hongming's English version of The Analects of Confucius from the perspective of adaptation theory and studied how to achieve maximum equivalence in cross-cultural translation under the influence of different cultural contexts. They believed that in translation, the translator should make dynamic adaptations according to different contexts and overcome the influence of different cultural contexts, then conveying the cultural connotation of the original as much as possible.

Zhang Xiaoman, Liu Yuyang (2018) analyzed Liu Dianjue's English version of The Analects of Confucius based on the theory of translation norms. The theory of translation introduces cultural memes into translation, involving many disciplines such as philosophy, linguistics and sociology. Based on this theory, the author analyzed the translation norms behind the English translation of The Analects of Confucius, and believed that the translation is consistent with the expectancy norms and professional norms. They concluded that translation should satisfy the expectations of target language readers and the transplanting of cultural content needs to arouse the spiritual resonance of target language readers.

Zhou Qian (2023) studied Xu Yuanchong's English version of The Analects of Confucius from the perspective of Eco-translatology. She thought that combing this kind of text with the ecological translation can make the obscure text fully reveal the inner meaning. In the translation of The Analects of Confucius, Xu Yuanchong fully grasped the translational ecological environment, and achieved the ecological balance based on the adaptation and selection to the translation environment.

Some scholars made a comparative analysis of the two or more translations based on a certain theory. Chen Yang (2009) compared the three English versions of The Analects of Confucius with systematic functional linguistics and carried out functional discourse analysis, aiming to objectively evaluate the effect of the translation by comparing the functional parameters of the original text and the target text. The author believed that the theory of systemic functional linguistics can help to explain the choice of language in different versions of The Analects of Confucius, and also provide a certain basis for the evaluation of translations.

Li Gang, Li Jinshu (2013) chose the descriptive translation studies. Because every translation is a product of a specific historical and cultural context, this theory is helpful to better understand and explain the translation phenomenon. They selected many English versions, analyzed the English translation of The Analects of Confucius in the context of Western centralism and cultural centralism respectively, and believed that the English translation of The Analects of Confucius has realized a gradual process from seeking common to reserving differences.

Huang Guowen, Chen Ying (2014) used the concept of variation in the framework of Systematic Functional Linguistics, focused on the issues of variation in language use and variation in translation, and made a comparative analysis of multiple English translations of The Analects of Confucius. They believed that there are three types of variation in the translation of The Analects of Confucius variation in register, variation in textual structure, and variation in language choice.

All the above essays used Western theories as guidance, while Yao Cuiping (2022) chose Lin Yutang's translation standard as the guidance, and compared the English translations of The Analects of Confucius by James Legge, Waley, and Gu Hongming. The paper analyzed the serious and common mistakes in the translation of The Analects of Confucius and put forward some suggestions on how to modify them.

Studies from the Translator's Perspective

Since the 1970s, under the influence of the "cultural turn", the perspective and focus of the research of translation theory have shifted to the translator to varying degrees, and the translator's identity, status and role in translation activities have been rethought and repositioned, the translator's subjectivity has been gradually highlighting in the theoretical level. (Zhu Xianlong, Xie Baoxia 2006, 65) Therefore, when scholars study the English translation of The Analects of Confucius, the analysis from the translator's perspective cannot be ignored.

Throughout the history of Chinese and Western translation, translation activities have been dominated by specific translation theories in different periods, which have potentially restricted the translator's practice to varying degrees. Therefore, Zhu Xianlong, Xie Baoxia (2006) studied the transition process of the translator's identity in translation activities from the perspective of the historical evolution of translation theory, and analyzed the reasons for the change of the translator's identity from the philosophical level. Translation theory has realized the transformation from language to literature and then to culture, and the translator's identity has also changed from being lower than the author to being considered to play a decisive role in translation activities, and the importance of the translator has gradually manifested.

Many scholars emphasized that translators hold a principal status. Based on Lefevere's theory of rewriting and Verschueren's theory of adaptation, Xu Jun, Xiao Haiyan (2018) analyzed the influence of ideology and poetics on Legge and Waley's translations of The Analects of Confucius and how translators make adaptive decisions in the manipulation of ideology and poetics, and concluded that the process of translation is the process in which the translator exerts his subjectivity under specific conditions of constraints, and the process in which the mainstream ideology and poetics interact with the translator's subjectivity. Therefore, he believed that the study of the English translation of classical works should not ignore the study of the translator's subjectivity.

Yang Lin (2020) also emphasized the translator's subjectivity, but he focused on analyzing the different strategies adopted by Chinese and Western translators for different translation purposes. Gu Hongming tried to change the image of China in the minds of Westerners, so he adopted domestication in his translation, while Roger T. Ames and Henry Rosemont adopted foreignization.

Zhang Xiaoman, Sun Xiaolu (2022) believed that there exists a cyclic transformational dialogue relationship between the author, translator and reader in Gu Hongming's English translation of The Analects of Confucius, which makes the ideas of The Analects of Confucius give birth to the new quality of culture in the cyclic dialogue, thus driving the inheritance and transmission of culture.

In terms of the application of the translator's subjectivity, there is one translator in the history of Chinese translation who has taken it to the extreme. With the aim of promoting Chinese culture, his translation plays an important role in the history of Chinese and foreign translation. He is Gu Hongming, a master of studies of Chinese ancient civilization. Gu Hongming was the first Chinese in the history of translating Confucian classics into English. On the basis of following the idea of the original work, Gu Hongming's translation reflects the translator's subjectivity in many places. Therefore, most scholars chose Gu Hongming's translation as the research object when studying the translator's subjectivity.

Studies on the Translation of Unique Cultural or Linguistic Phenomena

Because Chinese culture has a long historical background and unique cultural connotation, some unique cultural phenomena cannot be translated, which brings difficulties to the English translation of Chinese classics such as The Analects of Confucius.

The core concept words in the book bear the most representative thoughts of Confucianism and have distinct cultural characteristics. Therefore, the translator often has difficulties in finding corresponding words in the target language, or these words have different meanings in the two cultures. The core concept words account for a large proportion of The Analects of Confucius, and whether the translation of these words is appropriate also determines the quality of the whole translation of the book to a large extent. So some scholars choose the translation of a certain core concept for research.

"Junzi" is commonly used in The Analects of Confucius. Since Western missionaries translated Confucian classics, this word has had many translated versions. Han Xing, Han Qiuyu (2016) analyzed and compared the similarities and differences of the concept of "Junzi" in the popular English translations of James Legge and Arthur Waley in combination with the moral and political implications of the concept itself in Confucian culture. The author believed that Legge's translation "the superior man" is more reasonable, because not only this translation has spread widely, but also Legge's grasp of the concept of "Junzi" is more accurate.

"Ren" is the core of Confucius' thought, the highest morality in Confucius' ethical thought and the sum of all morals, and The Analects of Confucius has also endowed "Ren" with rich connotation. Different translators have different understandings and translations of "Ren", and the translation of it plays a very important role in the English translation of The Analects of Confucius, which should be paid attention to. Yang Ping (2008) summarized and analyzed various translations of "Ren", and argued that "Ren" is best translated by transliteration to preserve its spiritual essence and convey Confucius' ideas objectively.

"Tian" is also a core idea in The Analects of Confucius. Zhang Zheng, Hu Wenxiao (2015) analyzed "Tian" in The Analects of Confucius, and summarized and compared different translations of it. The author believed that "heaven" and "god" not only cannot fully convey the connotation of "Tian", but also easily make readers associate with Western religions. Therefore, using transliteration to translate "Tian" is more concise and appropriate, and annotations and explanations can be added according to specific contexts.

Guo Yuqing (2022) selected the translation of "Xiao" in The Analects of Confucius as the research object. The author used LancsBox, a new corpus analysis tool, compared the similarities and differences of the core concept "Xiao" between the two English translations by Gu Hongming and James Legge and analyzed the reasons for the differences.

Deng Jie (2022) studied the two core concepts of "Li" and "Junzi" that frequently appear in The Analects of Confucius, comparing and analyzing the translation methods of James Legge and Gu Hongming in accordance with their social and cultural background and translation motivation, and exploring the similarities and differences between the two translators in their understanding of Confucian thoughts. It can be seen that scholars advocate transliteration for the translation of core concepts. In this kind of study, the author often evaluated the advantages and disadvantages of each translation on the core concept in combination with his personal interpretation of traditional Confucian thought and put forward his own views, so this kind of study will evitably have the tendency of subjectivity.

The indigenous concept refers to the unique concept or information that a language community has developed in the course of its history, culture, society and way of thinking. For translators, it is difficult to convey the indigenous concepts to the target language culture. Therefore, Li Guangwei, Ge Lingling (2018) studied the indigenous concepts in The Analects of Confucius. According to Qi Yucun’s criteria of cultural classification, the paper divided the indigenous concepts into three categories: material culture, system and custom culture, and spiritual culture, and based on a parallel corpus, studied the English version of Gu Hongming. The author believed that translators should actively adapt to the different contexts of the target culture at the surface level, middle level and deep level and adopt corresponding translation strategies for different categories of indigenous concepts.

Culture-loaded words are also a big difficulty in the translation. They are as closely related to culture as the indigenous concepts. Relying on the Chinese ideological and cultural terminology Library under the project of “Chinese ideological and cultural terminology communication project”, Yang Dan (2022) combed and summarized the culture-loaded words in The Analects of Confucius translated by Legge, Gu Hongming and Arthur Waley, and made a comparative study of different translations from three aspects: language, culture, and communication from the eco perspective. The author believed that when dealing with culture-loaded words, the translator should preserve the style and characteristics of the source language as much as possible, and take into account both the source language culture and the target language culture.

Some scholars studied the translation of sentences. There are various types of topic sentences in The Analects of Confucius, which are widely distributed. Wang Yong, Qin Si (2022) analyzed the distribution and characteristics of topic sentences in The Analects of Confucius and studied the translation strategies of topic sentences in the English translation by James Legge. Legge mainly adopted the translation strategy of domestication at the syntactic level, which conforms to the linguistic features of English.

In addition to the above studies, Xue Bing, Xiang Mingyou (2020) also used DocuScope and relevant statistical tools to make inductive statistics and comparison of rhetorical features in the English translations of The Analects of Confucius by Legge and Waley, to analyze the difference in rhetorical effects of different translations. Digital research tools can enrich the existing English translation studies of The Analects of Confucius in research methods and research perspectives and provide new ideas for translation research.

Studies on the Problems in the Existing English Translations of The Analects of Confucius

Some scholars studied the problems in the English translation of The Analects of Confucius. Misinterpretation of the original text is one of the most common problems in English translation.

Under the guidance of the theory of the manipulation of ideology, Xu Jun (2010) took the English translation of The Analects of Confucius by Arthur Waley as a case study, analyzed the misinterpretation and mistranslation in the translation of cultural classics, and pointed out that the misinterpretation and mistranslation are closely related to ideology.

Liu Zhengguang, Chen Yi, Xu Haoqi (2016) also studied Authur Waley's English translation of The Analects of Confucius, but their focus was on deviations in his translation. Based on the relevant principles of cognitive linguistics, the author analyzed various deviations in the translation process of Arthur Waley from the translator's individual cognitive style, discussed the influence of the translator's subjectivity on understanding the source language and translating from different dimensions and explained the deep cognitive causes of various deviations. Applying the relevant principles of cognitive linguistics to the analysis of "deviation" can, to some extent, trigger scholars to think deeply about "domestication" and "foreignization".

The view of "Wen" and "Zhi" is an important part of Confucius' ethical thought, and The Analects of Confucius is the main carrier of it. When translating The Analects of Confucius, the translator inevitably misinterprets it, which will have a negative impact on cross-cultural communication.

Fang Xing, Yang Yanyan (2019) believed that James Legge's, and Roger T. Ames and Henry Rosemont's translations of The Analects of Confucius misinterpreted the view of "Wen" and "Zhi". Their paper analyzed the true essence of Confucius' view of "Wen" and "Zhi", explored the reasons for their misinterpretations of it and put forward some solutions. Their study is of great significance for revealing the true meaning of Confucius' ethical thought, correcting misinterpretation in translations, and promoting the dissemination of Confucius' classics.

Liu Yuyu (2019) paid attention to the problem of Counter-west Centerlism, who believed that it is always a problem that cannot be wiped out. The author analyzed the translation of the keywords "Tian" and "Ren" in Roger T. Ames and Henry Rosemont's translation of The Analects of Confucius. Although the two translators adopt the translation strategy of foreignization, the "otherization" of Chinese culture is hidden behind it. The author believed that overemphasis on cultural differences can not effectively achieve the purpose of Counter-west Centerlism, and it is necessary to eliminate the bias of cultural relativism.

Studies on the dissemination of The Analects of Confucius in the West

The above essays are to study the English translation of The Analects of Confucius from different perspectives based on different theories. In addition to studying the English translation of The Analects of Confucius from the linguistic level, there are also studies on its translation and dissemination in the West from the macro level of culture. The translation, dissemination and research of The Analects of Confucius in the West can be traced back to the 16th century.

The translation of Chinese classics is an important part of promoting the dissemination of Chinese culture in the world. The process of translation, dissemination, acceptance and study of The Analects of Confucius in the West is a microcosm of translation, dissemination, and acceptance of Chinese culture. Li Weirong, Liang Huina, Wu Suxin (2015) introduced three stages of translation of The Analects of Confucius in the West, including the beginning, the maturity and prosperity and expansion of the translation and research in the West, presenting the whole picture of The Analects of Confucius in the West.

Wang Yan (2010) focused on the development of contemporary Western Sinology. The author believed that the contemporary English translation of The Analects of Confucius mainly appeared after the 1990s, which was influenced by the trend of contemporary Western Sinology research. This paper analyzed the development tendency of Sinology in the United States and the characteristics of the contemporary English translation of The Analects of Confucius. The contemporary English translation of The Analects of Confucius not only enriches Sinology itself, but also promotes the dialogue and exchange between Western Sinology and Chinese academic circles.

Western Sinology appeared in the late Ming and Qing dynasties while the missionaries went missionary works in China. Jiang Zhe (2019) believed that there is a two-way communication between Western Sinology and Chinese Confucianism. The author discussed the English translations and interpretations of “Xin Jin Yu Yi, Yan Ke Fu YE” in Liu Dianjue's English version of The Analects of Confucius and argued that they fully embody the two-way communication between Western Sinology and Chinese Confucianism. Gu Huijuan (2019) studied the international communication of The Analects of Confucius from the perspective of the publication of English translation. The paper introduced the translation and publication history of The Analects of Confucius, compared several representative versions, summed up the historical experience from the international communication of Chinese traditional culture, and explored the means of Chinese culture "going out". The author believed that the publication of translation should truly "enter" or integrate into the cultural system of the target language in order to better disseminate Chinese culture around the world.

Zhang Xiaoxue (2019) collected statistics on the number of citations of English versions of The Analects of Confucius in Google Scholar to understand the influence of these translations, and discussed the influence of the factors of the translator, environment, translation, reader and feedback on the effect of reception of the translation in the process of the English translation of The Analects of Confucius. This paper revealed the means to achieve success in the translation of classical works and provided a reference for promoting the dissemination of traditional Chinese culture to the world.

Qin Hongwu, Kong Lei, Xu Xin (2020) also studied from the perspective of the reception of the readers. The paper compared and analyzed the translation of The Analects of Confucius and the non-translational Confucian texts for communication, and observed the possible factor influencing the effect of communication of the translations of The Analects of Confucius.

Liu Hongwei, Wang Xiangling (2020) combined the advantages of other classical communication models, established a new equal intercommunication model of translation and dissemination of traditional Chinese cultural classics, and propose some application principles to promote the dissemination of traditional Chinese culture, which has a certain use for reference in translations and research of Chinese literature.

Han Fule, Liu Yan (2020) expounded on the dissemination and translation of The Analects of Confucius in the UK from four periods, and considered ways to effectively disseminate Chinese ideology and culture, which provides reference and guidance for the effective dissemination of Chinese ideology and culture.

Deficiencies and Reflections on the Study of the English Translation of The Analects of Confucius

Through the overview of the research results of the English translation of The Analects of Confucius in the past five years, it can be seen that with the continuous deepening of the study of the English translation of The Analects of Confucius, the perspective of the study is no longer single, not only from the aspects of language, but also from different perspectives such as philosophy, history and culture. With the development of science and technology, more and more scholars use technical tools to study the English translation of The Analects of Confucius, such as corpus. Corpus-based translation studies can provide guidance for English translation in terms of vocabulary, translation standards and principles. In addition, the selection of English translations is no longer limited to the most classic translations, and the objects of study are more diverse. Although the study of the English translation of The Analects of Confucius is becoming more and more mature with continuous study, there are still some areas to be improved.

Firstly, although the perspective of the study is more abundant, the study on the cultural level is still relatively absent. Even though some scholars pay attention to the cultural level and conduct research on it, they pay more attention to the differences in ideology, and few scholars conduct systematic research on the English translation of The Analects of Confucius in the aspects of philosophy and politics. As a Chinese classic, it was formed with a certain historical and cultural background, so the study of the English translation of it can also be explored from the aspects of history and philosophy.

Secondly, up to now, there have been more than 40 full English translations of The Analects of Confucius, providing a large number of objects for studies. However, most researchers chose the translations of James Legge, Gu Hongming, and Waley, and ignored other translations. Therefore, to study the English translation of The Analects of Confucius in the future, the first thing to do is to have a detailed and overall grasp of the previous studies, so as to avoid repeated studies, which will reduce the research value. At the same time, for different translations, most researchers only analyzed their differences, and did not summarize the general characteristics and influencing factors of translations in a certain period.

Thirdly, in terms of combining theories, scholars have chosen many different translation theories to study, but many studies are limited to superficial phenomena without further exploration.

Conclusion

As one of the classics of Confucianism, The Analects of Confucius has exerted a profound influence on the thought and culture of the Chinese nation and has many English translations. Therefore, the study of the English translation of The Analects of Confucius should become the focus of attention. The study of the English translation of The Analects of Confucius is different from the general translation studies. It also undertakes the task of the communication of Chinese traditional culture to the outside world. The purpose of it is to improve the level of the English translation of Chinese classics and better promote the spread of Chinese traditional culture in the world. As one of the research hotspots, great achievements have been made in the study of the English translation of The Analects of Confucius. The research contents are increasingly enriched and refined, and the research perspectives are increasingly diversified. However, there is still room for improvement, and it is hoped that this paper can provide a reference for the English translation and research of The Analects of Confucius and even all classical works.

This paper summarizes the essays on the English translation of The Analects of Confucius in the past five years, but does not study the foreign studies on the English translation of The Analects of Confucius. There are many foreign essays on The Analects of Confucius, but there are few essays specifically on it, so this paper does not involve the current situation of foreign research, and the review is not very comprehensive. In the future, the author hopes to make a more comprehensive analysis of this field in combination with foreign research on the English translation of The Analects of Confucius.

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202270081681 张玉燕 Zhang Yuyan 英语笔译(English translation)

On the Dissemination and Translation of Compendium of Materia Medica in Europe

Zhang Yuyan 202270081681

Abstract

This paper is on the dissemination and translation of the Compendium of Materia Medica( Ben Cao Gang Mu) in Europe. In the wave of globalization, the earth is increasingly becoming a small village. Pandemics such as cholera, the black death, SARS and COVID-19 has made us realize that the promotion of human health depends on the combination of multiple medical systems. In this context, it is necessary to trace back the history of the translation and dissemination of traditional Chinese medicine books, which will undoubtedly further enhance their influence abroad and show the world the splendid traditional culture of China in a more comprehensive way.

The Compendium of Materia Medica was written by Li Shizhen,an outstanding medical scientist in the Ming Dynasty. He himself not only attached great importance to the achievements of previous medical works, inherited and carried forward former experience, but also had original research achievements. As one of the most comprehensive, abundant, and systematic books on traditional Chinese medicine in ancient China, the Compendium of Materia Medica has already had a history of over 400 years. It was at the end of the 17th century that it spread to Europe. In the 18th century, there were abridged and complete translations of French, English, German, Russian, and other languages. Later, it attracted in-depth research and received high praise from overseas scholars, and it has been a hot topic to this today.

Taking the dissemination and translation of the Compendium of Materia Medica in Europe as the starting point, the paper will review, analyze, and summarize its major French and English versions from the 18th century to the 20th century. Besides, it briefly divides its dissemination history into three stages-from 17th to the 18th century, the 19th century, and the 20th to the 21st century(Fu Lu 2020), aiming to sort out the context and provide some historical references for medical exchanges in this era of globalization(Gao Xi 2015).

Key Words

the Compendium of Materia Medica; translation;cultural dissemination; historical references

《本草纲目》在欧洲的译介和传播

张玉燕 202270081681

摘要

在全球化的浪潮下，地球日益成为一个小小的村落。霍乱、黑死病、SARS、新冠等大流行的出现，使我们意识到人类健康需要依靠多种医学体系的相互交融和发展。在此背景下，回溯中医书籍翻译和传播的历史，无疑将进一步增强其在国外的影响力，更全面地向世界展示中华民族灿烂悠久的传统文化。

《本草纲目》为明代杰出医药学家李时珍所著，他既高度重视历史医药著作的成果、继承发扬前人的医药经验，又有李时珍本人原创性的研究成就，《本草纲目》是我国古代著作中论述中药最全面、最丰富、最系统的典籍，成书已有400多年的历史，早在17世纪末就流传到欧洲，18世纪陆续出现了法、英、德、俄等语言的节选或完整译本。随后引起了海外学者的深入研究和高度评价，至今仍是热点。

本文以《本草纲目》在欧洲的译介和传播为切入点，对其18世纪-20世纪的法文、英文译本进行回顾、分析和总结(付璐 2020），并将《本草纲目》在欧洲的传播史按时间跨度大致分为三个阶段：17-18世纪、19世纪、20世纪-21世纪，旨在梳理脉络，为当今全球化时代的医学交流提供某些历史借鉴(高晞 2015)。

关键词

《本草纲目》;译介;文化传播;历史借鉴

Introduction

Li Shizhen was a famous medical scientist of the Ming Dynasty. After several years of medicine practice, he found that there were many mistakes in ancient Chinese herbal books and decided to recompile one. In the 31st year of Jiajing (1552), Li Shizhen began to compile the Compendium of Materia Medica, which was based on Classified Materia Medica . To ensure the accuracy of the information, he referred to more than 800 books, and investigated many places on the spot. Since the 44th year Jiajing(1565), Li Shizhen had been to Wudang Mountain, Lushan Mountain, Maoshan Mountain, Niushoushan Mountain, Hunan province, Hubei province, Jiangxi province and other places to collect drug samples and prescriptions, figuring out many difficult issues. After 27 years of unswerving efforts and three revisions,the Compendium of Materia Medica， the giant work of 1.92 million words, was completed.

What is the Compendium of Materia Medica( Ben Cao Gang Mu)? Chinese people seem to be familiar with "Ben Cao Gang Mu". However, once they are asked, few can explain them clearly. Since ancient times, there have been many drugs used to treat diseases, including plants, animals, and minerals,among which there is a big difference in quantity. Herb(cao), a plant, accounts for the largest proportion. Therefore, the ancients had been using the phrase "materia medica"(ben cao) to represent medicine. As for "compendium"(gang mu), the rope used by fishermen to pull up the fishing net is "gang", and the mesh on the fishing net is "mu".When the fishing net is opened, it is called "gang ju mu zhang", which is the original of the word "gang mu"(Wang Qiuling&Si Qintu 2022). When the concept of "compendium"(gang mu) is applied to book writing, it becomes a traditional form of Chinese chronicle compilation.

The Compendium of Materia Medica consists of 52 volumes, which is essentially a dictionary of ancient medicines（Huang Zhijie 2000）. Based on the theoretical content in the Shennong’s Herbal Classic(Yang Shujia 2021),the first and second volumes are preface examples, in which the viewpoints of scholars from different eras and of Li Shizhen himself are added. It aims to understand the performance, usage principles, and methods of drugs in traditional Chinese medicine. In the third and fourth volumes, the drugs are classified according to their performance and indications, reflecting the spirit of syndrome differentiation and treatment. The remaining 48 volumes are all about drugs, totaling 1892 types.

The Translation of Compendium of Materia Medica in Europe

English translation of traditional Chinese medicine plays an crucial role in the process of internationalization. Accurate translation can express the connotation of basic terminology, convey the medical principles and cultural characteristics, promote the concept of health preservation and prevention, and promote characteristic therapy of traditional Chinese medicine.

In this chapter, it will analyze the French and English versions of the Compendium of Materia Medica in the 18th-21st century. In terms of this, the scholar Pan Jixing pointed out in the article Compendium of Materia Medica: The East and West(1983) , ＂Jacques François Vandermonde's Eaux, Feu(et Cauteres),Terres, etc., Métaux, Minéraux et Sels, du Pén Tshao Kang Mu , Jean Baptiste Du Halde's Description géographique, historique, chronologique, politique et physique de l'Empire de la Chine et de la Tartarie chinoise and the works of Bernard Emms Read have partially translated the content of Li Shizhen's Compendium of Materia Medica. ＂As for the complete translation, we can miss the English version translated by Luo Xiwen in 2004.

Abridged Translations

Jacques François Vandermonde's Eaux, Feu(et Cauteres),Terres, etc., Métaux, Minéraux et Sels, du Pén Tshao Kang Mu

Dr. Joseph Needham, a British biochemist and historian of science, recorded in the Science and Civilization in China (1954)," Jacques Francois Vandermonde, a French doctor, had been practicing medicine in Macao, China for over 10 years. In 1732, he accidentally got a book of Compendium of Materia Medica. According to its recorded drugs, he collected over 80 kinds of mineral samples. Later, with the help of Chinese people, he explained the samples one by one according to the original description of the Compendium of Materia Medica, and attached them with corresponding labels. He also wrote a manuscript titled Eaux, Feu(et Cauteres),Terres, etc., Métaux, Minéraux et Sels, du Pén Tshao Kang Mu ,which can be seen as an abridged French translation of the Compendium of Materia Medica."

Written in French, this manuscript consists of one volume, with a total of 90 pages in the main text. Each paragraph is preceded by a serial number, and the corresponding Chinese name of the drug is written in the margin,such as "zao xin tu"(oven earth) ,"xiong huang"( red orpiment),"gan cao"( licorice). In this manuscript, he extracted and translated the names, origins, properties, five flavors,manufacturing methods, and efficacy of some mineral drugs from the Compendium of Materia Medica.For example, when describing the origin,we have the expression "金牙生蜀郡 ， 如金色者良"(Li Shizhen 1593) in the Compendium of Materia Medica and " jinya stone is a golden stone produced in Sichuan "in Eaux, Feu(et Cauteres),Terres, etc., Métaux, Minéraux et Sels, du Pén Tshao Kang Mu. For another example, when talking about property, we have "出煅灶中，如尘紫色，轻者为佳，亦以磨莹铜器用之" (Li Shizhen 1593)in the Compendium of Materia Medica and " Iron powder is considered to be the red powder found in casting furnaces. The lightest is the best, and it is used for polishing copper ware "in Jacques Francois Vandermonde 's manuscript. As for manufacturing methods, we have "其法用白锡和银薄及水银合成之，凝硬如银，合炼有法"(Li Shizhen 1593) in Li Shizhen's book, and "This is a mixture made by melting an equal amount of silver and mercury" in the book of Jacques François Vandermonde...

Unfortunately, the specimens collected by Jacques Francois Vandermonde and his translations did not receive much attention at the time. It was until the year of 1839 that Edouard Constant Biot, a French sinologist, collaborated with friends to analyze those mineral specimens and made the results public. In 1896, with the help of Chinese people(Zhang Xiuping&Wang Xiaoming 1993), F.de Mely and M.H.Courel published the entire excerpt, bringing it back to light.Now, the manuscript has been preserved Museum national d'Histoire naturelle(Needham 1954).

Generally speaking, when selectively translating, Jacques Francois Vandermonde translated the properties first,and then the origins, production methods, and efficacy. In terms of the translation of mineral drugs, he mainly adopted free translation and translated corresponding elements.

Jean Baptiste Du Halde's Description géographique, historique, chronologique, politique et physique de l'Empire de la Chine et de la Tartarie chinoise

During the same period, when Jacques Francois Vandermonde's manuscript was neglected, another abridged French translation of the Compendium of Materia Medica- Description géographique, historique, chronologique, politique et physique de l'Empire de la Chine et de la Tartarie chinoise, gained great fame.

Published in Paris and edited by Jean Baptiste Du Halde(Du Halde 1738), this book was co-authored by 27 missionaries in China(Fu Lu&Xiao Yongzhi 2019). It has four volumes, and is a comprehensive work which introduces China from various aspects, covering ancient Chinese politics, religion, etiquette, customs, geography, medicine,customs,flora and fauna,etc. In this book, it also contains some selected translations from the first part of the Compendium of Materia Medica. In page 437, Volume 3 of Description géographique, historique, chronologique, politique et physique de l'Empire de la Chine et de la Tartarie chinoise, there is a volume named Excerpts from the Compendium of Materia Medica- Chinese Herbology or Chinese natural history of Medicine (Du Halde 1738). It introduces that the Compendium of Materia Medica was compiled by Li Shizhen, a Chinese medical scientist in the Ming Dynasty, and explains the details of its publication. In addition, it also selectively translated some 16 kinds of drugs in the book.

Basically speaking, in terms of the translation of medicine names and prescriptions, Jean Baptiste Du Halde often adopted transliteration or literal translation. For example, he translated "人参 into "JIN-SENG", "三七 into"SAN-TSI, "海马" into"Sea-Horse"（Du Halde 1738），复命汤"into"the medicine which restores lost life. At the same time, there are some mistakes in his translation because of cultural differences and conflicts.In terms of the translation of disease names and symptoms, free translation is often used. For example,"伤寒坏症"is translated into "For malignant fevers","怔忡自汗" into "For the palpitation of the heart, attended with sweating（Du Halde 1738）.

As the first French version of the Compendium of Materia Medica published in Europe, Description géographique, historique, chronologique, politique et physique de l'Empire de la Chine et de la Tartarie chinoise, enables European readers to have a more comprehensive and systematic understanding of Compendium of Materia Medica, which promotes European scholars' cognition of the theoretical system of traditional Chinese medicine, and was a landmark event for the spread of Compendium of Materia Medica.

Bernard Emms Read's translations of the Compendium of Materia Medica

Though Jean Baptiste Du Halde's Description géographique, historique, chronologique, politique et physique de l'Empire de la Chine et de la Tartarie chinoise has spread widely and gained a lot of fame, it only contains a small part of drug translation in the Compendium of Materia Medica. Therefore, Bernard Emms Read along with many Chinese and foreign scholars from the Beijing Society of Museums compiled a series of works on the study and abridged translation of the Compendium of Materia Medica at the beginning of the 20th century((Wang Jiming 2011). In this series, there are 8 works, including one botanical medicine work, one mineral medicine work, and six animal medicine works. It also refers to 12 departments of the Compendium of Materia Medica,such as "Jinshi department","grass department","grain department","vegetable department","fruit department","wood department","insect department","poultry department","animal department","human department"...

As for the botanical medicine works, the book Chinese Medicinal Plants from the Pen Ts'ao Kang Mu ,which is co-authored by Bernard Emms Read and Liu Ruqiang, elaborates on more than 800 botanical medicines listed in the Compendium of Materia Medica. It also covers the "grass department","grain department","vegetable department","fruit department" and "wood department"(from volume 12 to volume 37 of the original). A Compendium of Minerals and Stones Used in Chinese Medicine from the Pen T'sao Kang Mu is the mineral medicine work that is co-authored by Bernard Emms Read and C.Pek. It narrates the "Jinshi department (volume 8 to volume 11) in the Compendium of Materia Medica,carrying over a hundred types of mineral drugs. In terms of the animal drugs, there are 6 departments in the Compendium of Materia Medica,such as "insect department", "squamous department","poultry department"and "human department" .Bernard Emms Read translated it into 6 works for publication.

In fact,several research works and translations of the Compendium of Materia Medica written by Bernard Emms Read differ greatly in style. As for his translation, only the "name" can be translated from the research works of plant medicine, while the "bone" can be translated from the research works of mineral medicine. It was not until the translation of nimal medicine section that the "flesh" and "form" were truly translated.

The Boom of abridged translations of the Compendium of Materia Medica

In the 18th century, the wave of "sinomania" rose in Europe. Once the French version Description géographique, historique, chronologique, politique et physique de l'Empire de la Chine et de la Tartarie chinoise was published,it attracted the attention of all walks of life and was translated into many languages successively. In 1735, the French edition was sold out.In 1736, its English version The General History of China was issued in London, which is called Ed. John Watts. From 1737 to 1741, there was Ed. E. Cave(Pan Jixin 1980)... With the translation and dissemination of the Description géographique, historique, chronologique, politique et physique de l'Empire de la Chine et de la Tartarie chinoise, the Compendium of Materia Medica has been partially translated into French, English, German，Russian(Zhang Shengxin 2003)...

The Complete Translations of Luo Xiwen's Compendium of Materia Medica

At the beginning of the 21st century, the complete English translation Compendium of Materia Medica(Luo Xiwen 2004),which is translated by Luo Xiwen and published in Foreign Language Press, became the first and only complete English translation at present.

The book totals more than 6 million words(Li Shizhne 1593).As for arrangement, the original work of the Compendium of Materia Medica contains 52 volumes The transaltion is faithful to it, and ends up with 6 books. In the first book,it translated volume 1 to volume 4 of the original, involving prefaces of Wang Shizhen, Xia Xin, Zhang Dingsi, Li Jianyuan, "preface examples" and "prescriptions for various diseases".The second book translated volume 5 to volume 14, which includes water department","fire department","earth department","Jinshi department",and section 1 to section 3 of "grass department". The third book translated volume 15 to volume 22, including section 4 to section 11 of the "grass department" and the first part of "grain department". While the fourth book recounts volume 23 to volume 34, and involves section 2 to section 4 of "grain department". The fifth book translated volume 35 to volume 46, and contains the second part to sixth part of "wood department" The last book narrates volume 47 to volume 52, including "poultry department","animal department"and "human department".

When it comes to the translation of each drug, it also follow the style of the original. Under specific drugs,their serial numbers are first listed,followed by their "Chinese Pinyin/Latin/English names, explanation of names, previous explanations, preparations, quality and taste, indications, explication and prescriptions. He uses Chinese Pinyin instead of Western Pinyin to promote Chinese culture.For some drugs, drug diagrams are attached in the text. Different from other translators, Luo Xiwen completely follows the style and content of the original from the beginning to the end. In terms of the attached table, Luo Wenxi's version contains a comparison table between the Chinese dynasties and AD era and is accompanied by various Chinese, English, and Latin indexes for readers to search for drugs.

In short, several French and English translations of the Compendium of Materia Medica from the 18th century to the present have been introduced. Regardless of their quality, they have played a certain role in promoting the dissemination of the Compendium of Materia Medica in Europe. As for its dissemination, we will discuss it in detail in the next chapter.

The Dissemination of Compendium of Materia Medica in Europe

Since the 17th century, the dissemination of the Compendium of Materia Medica has never stopped. In this chapter, it roughly divides it into three stages: from the 17th to 18th century, the 19th century, and from the 20th to 21st century.

Introduction and translation period (17th-18thcentury)

The Compendium of Materia Medica was written at the end of the 16th century. Now, it is uncertain when and by whom it was first transmitted to Europe.However, according to scholar Chen Hengxin's A Study on the Collection of Chinese Books in the French National Library,when Jiachim Bouvet returned to France, he presented Louis XIV 49 Chinese books of 22 kinds, among which there was a set of Compendium of Materia Medica hardbound in yellow silk. That is to say, just a century after the completion of the Compendium of Materia Medica, it had already set foot on the land of Europe and entered the Royal Library of France. In the 18th century, several abridged translations of the Compendium of Materia Medica emerged in Europe,such as Jacques François Vandermonde's Eaux, Feu(et Cauteres),Terres, etc., Métaux, Minéraux et Sels, du Pén Tshao Kang Mu, Jean Baptiste Du Halde's Description géographique, historique, chronologique, politique et physique de l'Empire de la Chine et de la Tartarie chinoise,etc.

Research and evaluation period (19th century)

From the 17th to 18th centuries, European readers' acceptance of the Compendium of Materia Medica remained at the level of collection, introduction, and translation. In the 19th century, as botanist, chemists, naturalists, zoologists, pharmacologists and other scholars joined the reader group of Compendium of Materia Medica, the research on this book and Chinese medicine was also gradually carried out, including the drawing of drug maps, the collection and analysis of drug specimens, and the interpretation and evaluation of the drugs contained in the book from the perspective of chemistry and pharmacology in Europe at that time. The Compendium of Materia Medica has gained a wider audience in Europe.

Cultural impression construction period (20-21st century)

In the 20th to 21st century, the dissemination and reception methods became increasingly widespread, and this book was also exhibited through museums and international academic conferences.Through various channels such as discussions and documentaries, the Compendium of Materia Medica was disseminated to various countries. During this period, there are versions of Bernard Emms Read, Luo Xiwen...And the research on the Compendium of Materia Medica by European scholars in modern times has shown a diversified trend.

Conclusion

The Compendium of Materia Medica has been published for over 4 centuries. Over the long years, this great work has not been submerged. On the contrary, it has become even more brilliant under the polishing of time. It is a classic and precious work in traditional Chinese medicine culture, and also a pioneering work for traditional Chinese medicine culture to go abroad and spread overseas（Zhang Yan&Yin Na 2022）. Since the late 17th century, it has been introduced to various countries in Europe and America, and related translations and research have emerged accordingly. The translation and dissemination of the Compendium of Materia Medica not only demonstrate the strong vitality of traditional Chinese medicine, but also provide some inspiration and reference for modern medicine, promoting mutual exchange and cooperation between Eastern and Western medical cultures(Liu Runlan 2014). On the other hand, it greatly demonstrates the charm of traditional Chinese medicine culture as an important component of Chinese traditional culture, and also provides inspiration and reference for the translation and dissemination of Chinese cultural classics.

References

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