Document generated on 10/01/2021 1:50 a.m. Meta Journal des traducteurs Translators’ Journal Censorship in Translation: The Dynamics of Non-, Partial and Full Translations in the Chinese Context Zaixi Tan Volume 62, Number 1, April 2017 Article abstract This research focuses upon how the translation of certain types of literature in URI: https://id.erudit.org/iderudit/1040466ar China evolved historically: from ‘non-translations’ (i.e., ‘translations’ unmade DOI: https://doi.org/10.7202/1040466ar as well as made and yet strictly forbidden under given censorship conditions) to ‘partial’ or ‘full/near-full’ translations set against the backdrop of changing See table of contents practices required by the country’s censorship policies. My analysis begins with an overview of the multi-faceted interface between censorship and translation, followed by the conceptualization of a typology of translations Publisher(s) under censorship. This initial discussion, in turn, allows me to resituate specific translations, including the once absented translations of earlier times Les Presses de l’Université de Montréal (i.e., prior to the 1949 Revolution or prior to the Cultural Revolution), which were initially taken at face value as ‘non-translations’ and yet which, later on, ISSN became ‘partial’ or ‘full/near-full’ translations under the country’s subsequently more relaxed censorial operations. I attempt to illustrate such 0026-0452 (print) shifts by means of in-depth discussion of the dynamic nature of translational 1492-1421 (digital) commitment in connection with the change-resistant properties and evolving priorities of censorship. In illustrating my arguments, I will draw specific Explore this journal examples from case studies of three well-known censorship-affected translations – i.e., On China (Kissinger 2011), Lolita (Nabokov 1991) and The Good Earth (Buck 1960), which, I argue, epitomise the shifting degrees of Cite this article translational commitment (‘non-,’ ‘partial’ and ‘full/near-full’) as they occurred in the Chinese context. Tan, Z. (2017). Censorship in Translation: The Dynamics of Non-, Partial and Full Translations in the Chinese Context. Meta, 62(1), 45–68. https://doi.org/10.7202/1040466ar Tous droits réservés © Les Presses de l’Université de Montréal, 2017 This document is protected by copyright law. Use of the services of Érudit (including reproduction) is subject to its terms and conditions, which can be viewed online. https://apropos.erudit.org/en/users/policy-on-use/ This article is disseminated and preserved by Érudit. Érudit is a non-profit inter-university consortium of the Université de Montréal, Université Laval, and the Université du Québec à Montréal. Its mission is to promote and disseminate research. https://www.erudit.org/en/ Censorship in Translation: The Dynamics of Non-, Partial and Full Translations in the Chinese Context zaixi tan Hong Kong Baptist University [email protected] RÉSUMÉ Cette recherche explore comment la traduction de certains genres littéraires en Chine est passée, au cours de l’histoire, de « non-traduction » (c.-à-d. « traduction non faite aussi bien que faite mais pourtant strictement interdite compte tenu des conditions censoriales ») à traduction « partielle » ou « complète/presque complète », qui s’accorde avec le contexte de la pratique variable exigée par la politique de censure du pays. Notre analyse commence par une vue d’ensemble de la relation complexe entre censure et traduction, suivie par la conceptualisation d’une typologie de traduction sous la censure. Cette discussion initiale permet de redéfinir les traductions spécifiques, y compris les traductions autrefois absentes (par exemple avant la Révolution de 1949 ou avant la Révolution culturelle) qui étaient initialement considérées comme « non-traductions » et qui, pourtant, sont devenues plus tard des traductions « partielles » ou « complètes/ presque complètes » sous les opérations censoriales plus laxistes. Nous tentons d’illus- trer de tels changements par une discussion en profondeur sur la nature dynamique de la fidélité de traduction en fonction des propriétés résistantes au changement et des priorités évolutives de la censure. En illustrant nos arguments, nous offrirons des exemples qui sont tirés des études de cas de trois traductions bien connues, qui sont affectées par la politique de censure : On China (Kissinger 2011), Lolita (Nabokov 1991) et The Good Earth (Buck 1960) qui incarnent selon nous le degré d’évolution de la fidélité de traduction (« non- », « partielle » et « complète/presque complète ») dans le contexte chinois. ABSTRACT This research focuses upon how the translation of certain types of literature in China evolved historically: from ‘non-translations’ (i.e., ‘translations’ unmade as well as made and yet strictly forbidden under given censorship conditions) to ‘partial’ or ‘full/near-full’ translations set against the backdrop of changing practices required by the country’s censorship policies. My analysis begins with an overview of the multi-faceted interface between censorship and translation, followed by the conceptualization of a typology of translations under censorship. This initial discussion, in turn, allows me to resituate specific translations, including the once absented translations of earlier times (i.e., prior to the 1949 Revolution or prior to the Cultural Revolution), which were initially taken at face value as ‘non-translations’ and yet which, later on, became ‘partial’ or ‘full/near-full’ translations under the country’s subsequently more relaxed censorial operations. I attempt to illustrate such shifts by means of in-depth discussion of the dynamic nature of translational commitment in connection with the change-resistant properties and evolving priorities of censorship. In illustrating my arguments, I will draw specific examples from case studies of three well-known censorship-affected translations – i.e., On China (Kissinger 2011), Lolita (Nabokov 1991) and The Good Earth (Buck 1960), which, I argue, epitomise the shifting degrees of translational commitment (‘non-,’ ‘partial’ and ‘full/near-full’) as they occurred in the Chinese context. Meta LXII, 1, 2017 01.Meta 62.1.final.indd 45 2017-06-06 8:50 PM 46 Meta, LXII, 1, 2017 RESUMEN El presente estudio se enfoca en la evolución histórica en China de las traducciones de ciertas obras literarias extranjeras: de “no traducciones” (traducciones no hechas o prohibidas por la censura) a “traducciones parciales” o “traducciones completas o casi completas” bajo las cambiantes políticas de censura del país. El análisis comienza con una presentación sobre las interfaces multifacéticas entre la censura y la traducción, y una distinción entre diferentes tipos de traducción bajo la censura. Esta discusión, a su vez, permite resituar algunas traducciones específicas, incluyendo las obras traducidas pero ausentes de las épocas anteriores (antes de la Revolución de 1949 o de la Revolución Cultural de 1966), que inicialmente se toman como parte de “no traducciones”, y que debido a la relajación de las políticas de censura se convierten en obras “parcialmente” o incluso “completamente o casi completamente” traducidas. Este estudio apunta a ilustrar tales cambios a través de una profunda discusión sobre la dinámica del compro- miso de traductores combinándola con la naturaleza cambiante y permanente de las políticas de censura. A fin de argumentar las opiniones del autor sobre el “compromiso de traductores” (incluyendo “no compromiso”, “compromiso parcial” y “compromiso completo”), en el presente artículo se toman como ejemplos tres obras traducidas muy conocidas y afectadas por la censura: On China (Kissinger 2011), Lolita (Nabokov 1991) y The Good Earth (Buck 1960). MOTS-CLÉS/KEYWORDS/PALABRAS CLAVE censure, autocensure, non-traduction, traduction partielle, traduction complète, dyna- mique, contexte chinois censorship, self-censorship, non-translation, partial translation, full translation, dynamics, Chinese context censura, auto-censura, no traducción, traducción parcial, traducción completa, dinámica, contexto chino 1. Introduction As pointed out in Tan (2015: 313-314), governmental censorship in China can be traced back to the times of Qin the First Emperor of China (259 BCE-210 BCE) who ordered books he did not like to be burned and scholars buried alive for owning forbidden books. In much the same way in the Western world, ‘suspicious books’ were burned by the Council of Ephesus in the fifth century; and William Tyndale was burned to death by church authorities in 1536 in England, as was Étienne Dolet in 1546 in France. In the Chinese context, ever since Qin’s times, there has virtually been an unbroken line of censorship running through history, differing from dynasty to dynasty only in the kind of literature which was allowed or forbidden, and in the scale on which censorship was exercised. This unbroken line of history has apparently run to modern and contemporary times, through the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Since 1949 when the socialist state was founded, the PRC has endured various modes of censorship, all bearing either directly or indirectly on the activity of trans- lation. As part of the author’s on-going research project on Chinese censorship and translation, the present paper aims to offer a further discussion of some of the impor- tant issues concerning this topical area. 01.Meta 62.1.final.indd 46 2017-06-06 8:50 PM censorship in translation 47 2. The multi-faceted interface between censorship and translation