作为政治策略的文化翻译:以华裔美国文学为例

Using Cultural Translation as a Political Strategy in Chinese American Literature

华裔美国作家挪用中国文化进行书写的行为,可以理解为一种跨越地理、语言、文化等疆界的文化翻译,带有明显的政治诉求。与其争论其中蕴含的中国文化的本真性,不如把这些关于中国文化的书写视为一种政治策略的文化翻译,以便更深刻地理解作家的文化和政治诉求。同时,中国学者在阅读和翻译这些包含异质文化和混杂语言的文本时,不应简单地将其中的文化元素归化为中国文化,而应以一种异化的翻译手法准确反映文本中混合、杂糅的政治策略。

The general practice that Chinese American writers appropriate Chinese culture in their writings can be interpreted as cultural translation transcending geographical, linguistic and cultural boundaries, a strategy that embodies noticeable political appeals. Therefore, to gain an in-depth understanding of these writers＇ cultural and political appeals, we, as literary critics, should focus our critical attention on the political strategy of cultural translation in these writings about Chinese culture rather than devote our energy to debating the authenticity of representation of Chinese culture. Accordingly, Chinese scholars, in reading and translating these texts that contain heterogeneous cultures and hybrid languages, should adopt foreignizing translation instead of domesticating translation of the cultural elements in order to adequately register the political strategy of heterogeneity and hybridity.