Translation and Power

Ⅰ. Introduction

Translation is more than just word for word rendering； rather， it deals with the task of disseminating culture and facilitating communication among different nations. The functions of translation mean that it shall be influenced by power from politics， economy， religion， social value and so on. At the same time， translation exerts its influence on society， serving as a catalyst of political and social reform as well as a driving force for economic development.

Ⅱ. Power exerted on translation from various aspects

1. Translation and politics

According to the British translation theorist Theo Herman， translation work is constrained by three factors： ideology， poetics and sponsor. Among these three factors， ideology and sponsor have a close connection with politics. Translation， as an important part of a nations culture， is constantly influenced by the nations political status as well as the worlds political situation.

Taking China as an example， the huge influence of politics on translation can be seen throughout its history， including the boom of Buddhism translation in Tang Dynasty， the large-scale Soviet-Union literature translation in the 1950s and Chair Maos works translation of the same period.

It is recorded that the first major wave of translation in China dated back to 148 A.D， which was marked by the translation of Buddhist scripts on an unprecedented scale （Tymoczko and Gentzler， 2002：172）. It lasted for thousands of years， making it the longest translation boom by far. The reasons that had constituted this boom is various， and many may attribute it to religious influence； but one instrumental factor that can not be neglected is politics. The translation of Buddhist scriptures was made possible because of the opening of the Silk Road， which provided the prerequisite of cultural exchange （Tymoczko and Gentzler， 2002：172）. One should not forget that during that period of history， China enjoyed a relatively open cultural atmosphere and the ruling emperor like Emperor Tai Zong of the Tang Dynasty advocated the introduction of Buddhism， thus greatly propelling the process of massive Buddhist scripture translation.

China witnessed its fourth translation boom during the 1950s， which was characterized by the exclusive translation of “political correct” texts， such as the literature from Soviet Union and other socialist countries as well as few western literature that depicts the dark side of capitalism （Tymoczko and Gentzler， 2002：178）.

This manipulation of translation by the government came in a particular period when the world was divided into two camps： the socialist camp led by the Soviet Union and the capitalist camp headed by the United States （Tymoczko and Gentzler， 2002：166）. As a member of the socialist camp， China imposed an extremely strict scrutiny on the literary works that were translated， and only works advocating the socialist ideology could be brought to Chinese people. According to the statistics from A Catalogue of Foreign Classical Literary Works in Translation， 1949-1979 （1949-79 Fanyi chuban waiguo gudian wenxue zhuzuo mulu） published in 1986， works from Russian writers take up 77 pages of the book， more than the combined space for English and American writers （Tymoczko and Gentzler， 2002：167）. Meanwhile， the content of translation works were dominated by class struggle， and for those few western literature that were translated into China， their contents were invariably centered on capitalist exploitation and racial discrimination， like Uncle Toms Cabin and Oliver Twist.

Another feature of this periods translation was the rigid English translation of Chainman Maos work. Maos words were deemed sacred back then， therefore the translation of his works needed to strictly comply with the original texts. It is said that translators of his work were not allowed to break his long sentences into shorter ones， even that they would hinder readers understanding of the contexts （Tymoczko and Gentzler， 2002：179）.

The influence of politics on translation is widespread across the world and not confined in China. Its worth noting that although political influence is natural and can not be avoided， extreme institutional manipulation will only do harm to a nations development as shown in the second example of China. In contrast， appropriate guidance and encouragement from the government can facilitate a nations cultural and social development （Tymoczko and Gentzler， 2002：180）.

2. Translation and religion

Religion is another aspect that has a huge impact on translation. It influences translators interpretation of certain concepts and their rendering methods. It also serves as the motivation for translation from time to time.

As one of the most influential classics in Chinas history， Lao Zi has been the interest of many translators， among whom the most important ones are British missionary John Chalmers， American philosopher Paul Carus and the well-known sinologist James Legge. The former two translators were deeply influenced by Christianity， which left distinctive marks on their translations （劉固盛 吳雪萌2011：62）.

Though John Chalmerss extensive knowledge in Chinese enabled him to translate precisely some basic philosophical concepts of Lao Zi while retaining its rhythmic beauty， his entrenched Christian ideas inevitably found its expression in his translation as he interpreted Lao Zis thinking on the level of religion rather than philosophy （劉固盛 吳雪萌2011：62）. The same thing was found in Paul Caruss translation. He borrowed directly some terms in the Bible to translate the equivalent words in Lao Zi and related the books concepts to those in the Bible（劉固盛，吳雪萌2011：64）.

3. Translation and social value

Social value also plays an important part in translation. Readers tastes are to a large extent influenced by the social value of the society where they live， which has a direct impact on the spread of translation works.

Taking America for instance. More than 100 poems of the Tang Dynasty poet Han Shan were translated and published during the 1950s and the 1960s： the year 1954 saw 27 poems translation by Arthur Waley； 24 poems translated by Gary Snyder were published in 1958； a collection of 100 Han Shans poems came out in 1962 （謝天振， 2003：4）. The reason why Han Shans poems enjoyed such a popularity in America lied not only in the skills of their translators， but in the chord they stroke in Americans of that historical period. According to some scholars， Han Shans poems reflect the value that was pursued by the generation of the 1950s and the 1960s in America： the wish to return to nature and the rebellious spirit against social convention （謝天振， 2003：4）. In other words， it was the prevailing social value that laid the foundation for the large-scale translation and publication of Han Shans poems in America.

4. Translation and economy

With the acceleration of globalization， economic activities that involve more than one country become commonplace around the world and the needs to make inter-cultural communication， to solve legal conflicts arising from business activities and to keep up with the latest technology development have created an enormous demand for business， legal and technology translation.

One of the examples of this influence is that China is experiencing its fifth translation wave （Tymoczko and Gentzler， 2002：168） and have seen an upsurge of business， legal and technology translation in recent years. This wave comes largely as a result of Chinas fast growing economy， in which export transactions and absorption of advanced management and technological skills play a pivotal role. Translations of books like Steve Jobs autobiography became one of the best sellers in China， while more and more translators are engaging in legal， commercial and technological translation， which in turn greatly drives Chinas economic development. Its impossible that China can become what it is today without the latest translation wave.

III. Conclusion

Translation activity is constantly influenced by power from politics， economy， religion， social value and so on， and such power can make a great impact on translators status， their translating methods and translation choices. When doing translation study， its essential to take the above mentioned influence into consideration so as to achieve an objective evaluation of translation works.

References：

[1]Tymoczko，Gentzler，2002，Translation and Power，Massachusetts of the United of States，University of Massachusetts Press.

[2]謝天振.多元系統(tǒng)理論：翻譯研究領(lǐng)域的拓展[J].外國語，2003（4）.

[3]劉固盛，吳雪萌.西方基督教背景下的《老子》詮釋[J].江漢論壇，2011（04）.

【作者簡介】馬鳳蓮（1969.10-），女，漢族，山西省忻州市人，本科學(xué)歷，山西省忻州市岢嵐縣職業(yè)中學(xué)校，講師，研究方向：翻譯、英語教學(xué)。