翻译野蛮——科学小说《铁世界》中的东亚文明观

Translating Barbarism:East Asian Cultural Critiques Formulated in Translation of Science Fiction Iron World

对凡尔纳(Jules Verne)的科学小说《印度贵妇的五亿法郎》(Les Cinq Cents Millions de la Bégum)的翻译,是近代东亚三国知识人科学技术观形成的来源。自1887年日人森田思轩以《铁世界》为题译述凡尔纳的小说之后,包天笑和李海朝相继从事了中文(1903)和韩文(1908)的翻译。从序文的重点来看,森田的日译倾向于展示科学材料的崭新性;包氏的中译则展现了科学救国的责任。李氏的韩译则缺少了序文,只留了正文内容。尽管序文的主旨不同,正文的细节亦有差异,但3个译本都表现出了近代知识人对科学技术的恐惧。通过翻译科学小说,东亚知识人预警了一种以人种主义为中心的近代野蛮,指明科学技术的应用和发展必须要伴随道德和精神上的反思。

This essay explores the first translations of Jules Verne’s The 500 Millions of the Begum(Les Cinq Cents Millions de la Bégum,1879),in which the East Asian intellectuals formulated their visions of modern technology.Verne’s novel produced a chain of translations,when Morita Shiken translated W.H.G.Kingston’s English translation into Japanese as Iron World in 1887,which was translated by Bao Tianxiao into Chinese in 1903,which,inturn,was translated by Yi Haejo into Korean in 1908.In light of their introductions,Morita focused on the novelty of the material;Bao emphasized his responsibilities in the context of the"Saving China"mission.Yi left only the main texts without including any introductions.Unlike their points made in the introductions,they all expressed anxiety towards science and technology.In their translations of Verne’s science fiction,Bao and Yi warned readers of the advent of modern barbarism,and,more precisely,of racism.Ultimately,their translations called for moral and spiritual considerations when developing and applying science and technology as the turn of the century neared.