A brief analysis of the English translation version of Changhen Ge (The Song of Everlasting Sorrow)
浅析《长恨歌》英译本

摘要

文学作品往往承载着一个民族的文化记忆与价值取向，是跨文化交际的重要媒介。在中国文化“走出去”的大背景下，文学作品的对外译介对提升国家文化软实力具有重要意义。小说《长恨歌》英译本出版后在西方引发热烈反响，成为海外传播的成功案例。本文以该英译本为研究对象，旨在探讨译者如何在保留原作审美特质的同时提升西方读者的接受度。研究发现，译者一方面采取异化策略，尽可能还原并重现王安忆笔下的上海形象，以最小的损失呈现作品风貌，将原作的文学风格及内容较为完整地传递给读者；另一方面又适度运用归化，在文化保留与传播效果之间实现动态平衡，增强文本的可读性与可接受性。该译本实现了中国文学作品外译的意义，也为今后相关作品的翻译与海外传播提供宝贵的经验。

Abstract

Literary works often embody a nation ' s cultural memory and values, serving as an important medium for intercultural communication. Against the broader backdrop of Chinese culture going global, the translation and international dissemination of literary works plays a significant role in enhancing China’s cultural soft power, as they are windows into the charming Chinese culture. With high literary value, The Song of Everlasting Sorrow has gained in popularity, capturing the imagination of readers since its publication. It has become a successful case of overseas dissemination. Through an analysis of The Song of Everlasting Sorrow, this research aims to explore how the translator improves Western readers’ acceptability while preserving the aesthetic qualities of the original. The research finds that, on the one hand, the translator adopts the foreignizing strategy to reproduce, as faithfully as possible, the Shanghai image depicted by Wang Anyi, presenting the work’s overall style with minimal loss and conveying its literary features and content to readers in a relatively integral manner. On the other hand, the translator also employs domestication to an appropriate extent, achieving a dynamic balance between cultural retention and communicative effectiveness and thereby enhancing readability and acceptability. This translation not only realizes the value and significance of translating Chinese literary works for global readerships, but also offers valuable experience for the future translation and overseas dissemination of related works.