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Pao Yue-kong Library, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong http://www.lib.polyu.edu.hk TRANSLATION AS CULTURE TRANSPLANT: A CASE STUDY OF MORRISON’S BIBLE TRANSLATION AND TAIPING HEAVENLY KINGDOM YUECHEN WANG Ph.D The Hong Kong Polytechnic University 2015 The Hong Kong Polytechnic University Department of Chinese and Bilingual Studies Translation as Culture Transplant: A Case Study of Morrison’s Bible Translation and Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Yuechen WANG A thesis Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy March 2014 CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY I hereby declare that this thesis is my own work and that, to the best of my knowledge and belief, it reproduces no material previously published or written, nor material that has been accepted for the award of any other degree or diploma, except where due acknowledgement has been made in the text. ___________________ (Signed) Yuechen WANG (Name of student) !I Abstract This research investigates the relationship between the translation of the Bible and the rise of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. Robert Morrison translated the Bible into Chinese in 1823. But it soon inspired Chinese readers to give rise to a severe insurrection called the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom movement (1851-1864). The peace- and-love-preaching religion from another culture turned out to be a bloody sword in the host culture. This study will argue that it is an illustration of cultural transplant, in which both the translated cultural elements and the host culture change themselves because of the foreign encounter. This research traces the history of biblical translation in China and the events that led Hong Xiuquan to interpret it as the prophecy of his Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. The research investigates five texts, namely Morrison’s translation, Liang Fa’s Good Words to Admonish the Age, Gützlaff’s translation, and the two versions of the Taiping Bible. Liang’s book includes part of Morrison’s translation, and it inspired Hong to create an unique faith. Hong later read Gützlaff’s translation of the whole Bible, and established the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. He altered and annotated Gützlaff’s translation, and published two Taiping versions of the Bible. This research first studies the relationship between Morrison’s translation and Liang Fa’s Good Words to Admonish the Age, and discovers that Liang excerpts Morrison’s translation and blends among his own essays explaining Christian doctrines. However, the excerpted translations are altered by Liang, and both the translation and Liang’s essays are misleading. The research then discusses the influence of Liang’s book on Hong’s faith. At last, Gützlaff’s translation and the two versions of the Taiping Bible are compared. It reveals that Hong altered and annotated the translation mainly for the purpose of conforming the Christian doctrines to his own interpretation. In other words, he reshaped the Bible to meet his political and religious needs. !II After analysis of the texts, the research discusses the case in terms of culture, society, and the concept of translation. By referring to relevance theory, the research tries to explain how Christian doctrines are misinterpreted in a series of translation. A few Christian terms are selected and analyzed how they are associated with other political and religious concepts inherent in Chinese culture. The new association brings forth new interpretation of Christian terms in the context of Chinese culture. In terms of translation and society, this research regards Chinese society and the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom respectively as two social systems, and studies the function of translation in their formation and evolution. Lastly, this study compares the case of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and the development of Christianity and the Bible, and argues that translation is the manifestation of the power of interpretation. An “original” text is often not so much a stable text as an ideological construct. A translation can become the original when it is widely accepted in a community. In fact, all texts are concealed forms of translation. It is hoped that this research sheds light on the study of the history of biblical translation in China and widens the scope of translation studies. !III Publications arising from the thesis “⼀场由翻译触发的社会运动: 从马礼逊的圣经翻译到太平天囯” (Robert Morrison’s Chinese Rendition of the Bible and the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom: How Translation Set off a Nineteenth-century Social Movement in China). 中国翻译 (Chinese Translators Journal), 2013 (3). !IV Acknowledgements I would like to give my sincere gratitude to my chief supervisor, Prof. Chu Chi Yu. He is brilliant, critical, meticulous, and humorous. His sharp point of view always guides me to new inspiration in my academic research. I am also grateful to my co-supervisor Dr. Li Dechao. His suggestion and encouragement have been very important to my study. I am particularly grateful to my PhD external examiners: Prof. Chang Nam-fung and Prof. Seán Golden. Their comments and advice have been greatly appreciated. I would like to extend my thanks to all the staff at PolyU library for providing me with such a cozy writing environment. I would also like to thank all my colleagues and friends at PolyU. We have shared a lot of precious memories. I have had a wonderful time here. I am full of gratitude to my family. Without them I would not have been able to complete my thesis so smoothly. Finally, special thanks should be given to my girlfriend Annlee Li for her support and encouragement throughout my study. !V Table of Contents CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY I Abstract II Publications arising from the thesis IV Acknowledgements V Chapter 1 Introduction 1 1.1 Preliminaries 1 1.2 From Morrison’s Translation to the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom 2 1.3 The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and the Bible 5 1.4 Research Questions and Methodology 8 Chapter 2 Literature Review 11 Chapter 3 Hong Xiuquan’s Early Interpretation of the Bible 17 3.1 Liang Fa’s Alteration of Morrison’s Translation 19 3.1.1 Alteration of Terms 20 3.1.2 Grammatical Alteration 23 3.1.3 Alteration due to Misunderstanding 27 3.1.4 Misleading Narrative 29 3.2 Liang Fa’s Interpretation of the Christian Doctrines 39 3.2.1. The Trinity 40 3.3.2 Kingdom of Heaven 45 3.3 Hong Xiuquan’s Interpretation of Liang Fa’s Book 49 3.4 Hong Xiuquan’s Interpretation of the Bible 60 Chapter 4 The Taiping Bible 65 4.1 Selection of Books 65 4.2 Alteration in the First Taiping Version 70 ! 4.2.1 The Old Testament 70 4.2.1.1 Wording and Grammar 70 4.2.1.2 Ethical Issues 73 4.2.1.3 Taboo Characters 75 4.2.2 The New Testament 76 4.3 Alteration and Annotation in the Authorized Taiping Version 77 4.3.1 Political Censorship 79 4.3.1.1 Taboo Characters 79 4.3.1.2 God 87 4.3.1.3 Kingdom of Heaven 97 4.3.1.4 The Trinity 109 4.3.1.5 Reinterpretation of the concept of “god” 135 4.3.1.6 Self Identification 148 4.3.2 Nonpolitical Censorship 163 4.3.2.1 Ethical Principles 163 4.3.2.2 Secular Customs 181 4.4 Result 184 Chapter 5 Discussion 186 5.1 Translation and Culture 187 5.2 Translation and Society 194 5.3 Deconstructing Translation 202 Chapter 6 Conclusion 213 References 219 Chapter 1 Introduction 1.1 Preliminaries This research investigates the relationship between translation of the Bible in China and the development of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom (太平天囯), which is also known as the Taiping Rebellion. The first translation of the entire Bible was accomplished by Robert Morrison in 1823. He was the first Protestant missionary to China. His translation was considered the cornerstone of biblical translation in China. However, it was closely related to a violent uprising. The doctrines in the Bible was interpreted as the remedy for the society by a few Chinese readers. In 1846, they established a religious society called the God-worshipping Society (拜上帝会). But soon it evolved into an insurrection. In 1851, the members of the society established a kingdom within China called the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. The kingdom lasted 11 years until it was eradicated by the Qing government in 1864, but not before it had severely damaged the dynasty. This research argues that the rise of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom is an illustration of translation impact on the target society. When a foreign text is translated into a new culture, it introduces foreign cultural elements into the target society. The foreign elements trigger changes in the new context.