The Politics of Translation in Intercultural Discourse Relationships: Translation of龍/lung and 夷/i into English as a Case in Point

Abstract

The translation equivalence between龍/lung and dragon as well as夷/i and barbarian embodies the way of discourse power competition between China and the United Kingdom of Great Britain with different discourse pedigrees and discourse systems. The translation equivalence between龍/lung and dragon was constructed by means of mutation and discourse rewriting, and the political implication and cultural value of龍/lung in Chinese context were ablated. The equivalence between 夷/i and barbarian in the English context was established through the translation manipulation of the British, and the meaning of夷/i was separated from the Chinese historical context forcibly. The British operated discourse mutation on core Chinese political discourses via translation manipulation to weaken the subjectivity of China and bring China into the modern international discourse system dominated by the West, providing support for the expansion and colonization of British imperial discourse. This research provides reference for dealing with the cultural characteristics and universality, and the relationship between subject and object of discourse in the translation of contemporary Chinese discourse.