试论中西语境下的“翻译的政治”研究

Conceptualizing Politics of Translation in the Chinese and the Western Context

中西语境下"翻译的政治"研究既有相同点,也有不同点。在西方后殖民语境下,"翻译的政治"或者对历史上翻译活动如何塑造他者的文化身份,同时也重构自身的文化身份现象进行描写分析;或者对译者的暴力侵犯和漫不经心的改窜给原作的艺术性和意识形态造成的损害和扭曲进行严厉的批判;或者作为一种文化批评实践。国内的研究则多结合本国的翻译历史展开论述,主要把它作为一个描述性命题,着重分析历史上的翻译事实,而对它作为一种批判工具和批评实践则少有注意。

Politics of translation has been conceptualized differently in China and in the West. The Western approach to this topic tends to be set in a post-colonial context, serving either to throw light on how translation helps construct the cultural identities of the Self and the Other, or to expose how violence and distortion have been committed throughout the translating process. In addressing issues under this heading, theorists launch a critique of cultural practices. In the Chinese context, however, the same topic leads mainly to descriptive analysis of translational events in Chinese history, with little attention paid to exploring its potentials for critical and cultural practices.