本雅明《译者的任务》再解读

“Pure Language” and the Interpretation of Benjamin’s “The Task of the Translator”

本雅明的《译者的任务》已经受到几代学者的关注和阐释。但论文提出的部分观点始终没有得到合理阐释,论文的意义也没有得到穷尽。本文指出对本雅明《译者的任务》的理解无法脱离其早期语言哲学的核心观念"纯语言"观,因而首先考察了其"纯语言"观,指出本雅明式的"纯语言""有别于符号"、"是具体的而非抽象的"、"是即时可传达的"这三个根本特征,随后在这一"纯语言"观观照下对《译者的任务》进行了再解读,并尝试对该论文之于翻译研究与实践的当前意义作出了探讨。

Benjamin’s'The Task of the Translator'has been read and interpreted by generations of scholars. Nonetheless, some of his views expressed in this article have yet to be explained satisfactorily and part of its meaning remains obscure. This paper maintains that no adequate understanding of'The Task of the Translator'could be achieved unless we take into full consideration a core idea of Benjamin’s early philosophy of language, i.e., the concept of'the pure Language.'In the light which a brief analysis of this concept sheds, the author offers a reinterpretation of'The Task of the Translator'and goes on to explore the Benjaminian article’s contemporary relevance to translation studies and practices.