重述的中国神话:三个《西游记》删节译本的副文本对比分析

The Re-narrated Chinese Myth: Comparison of Three Abridgments of Journey to the West on Paratextual Analysis

十九世纪,中国经典百回名著《西游记》多次经删节译成英语。其中,三个节译本最具影响力,译者分别是李提摩太(1913)、亚瑟·威利(1942)和余国藩(2006)。基于副文本分析与叙事理论,本文探讨了三个英译本的历时性重构。研究发现,三个译本都保留了原文的基本结构,将孙悟空作为小说主人公,但译本体裁有所不同:李提摩太将这部经典作品改成了史诗和寓言,亚瑟·威利的译本为民间故事,余国藩的译本则是宗教和寓言的融合。因此,各译本的叙事在不同的副文本元素中得以重构:李提摩太的译本是与基督教对应的天国使命,亚瑟·威利的译本是包含了宗教、历史和讽刺元素的民间故事,余国藩的译本则体现了孙悟空与唐僧的因果报应和救赎。此外,三个译本也推动了该书在西方的累积叙事,使这个展现了东方宗教色彩的猴子故事在西方社会广受欢迎。这些删节版译本为读者带来了立体的阅读感受,表明叙事重构有助于向西方读者普及中国神话和文化。因此,在西方构建这部宗教寓言的累积叙事,有利于提升中国小说的地位。

Over the past century,the hundred-chaptered Chinese classic Xiyou ji(Journey to the West)has been abridged into English many a time,with the three most influential versions translated by Timothy Richard(Wu,1913),Arthur Waley(Wu,1942),and Anthony Yu(Wu,2006),respectively.On the basis of paratextual analysis and the narrative theory,this article explores the diachronic reframing of the three English abridgments of the Chinese classic.It is found that the three versions keep the basic structure of the ST,presenting the monkey as the dominant hero of the book.However,the translators reposition the genre:Richard takes the classic as an epic and allegory,Waley as a folk tale,and Yu as an allegory and religious syncretism.Accordingly,the narrative is reframed under different paratextual elements.Richard reframes the novel as a Christian counterpart of the mission to heaven,Waley a folk tale compounded with religious,historical,and sarcastic elements,and Yu the karma and redemption of the monkey and the monk.Furthermore,the three versions also help construct the book’s narrative accrual in the West,popularizing the Chinese religious fantasy with a monkey’s story.The stereoscopic reading of the abridgments illustrates that the renarration helps popularize Chinese mythology,religion and culture to the Western readers.Thus,the narrative accrual of a religious allegory is constructed in the West,which is conducive to enhance the status of Chinese novel.