Abstract Tao Te Ching is not only a classical philosopical works, but a literary works, which has great influence at home and abroad, so many translated versions appeared. Focusing on Tao Te Ching translated by Arthur Waley, this thesis attempts to analyze the mistranslations in it. Besides, the thesis will illustrate the mistranslations and improper translation phenomenon from the three aspects of spiritual cultural words, metaphor words and numerals. Furthermore, the thesis makes a further research on the causes of the mistranslation from the translator’s subjectivity.69723

Key words: Arthur Waley; Tao Te Ching; mistranslations; translator’s subjectivity; causes

摘要《道德经》不仅是一部哲学经典，同时也是一部文学经典。它在国内外有着深远的影响力，因此也有多种译本。该文旨在以阿瑟·威利翻译的《道德经》版本为个案,从精神文化词、形象比喻词和数词这三个方面来说明该译本所存在的诸多误译及翻译不当现象,并从译者主体性角度探究其原因。

毕业论文关键词：阿瑟·威利；《道德经》；误译；译者主体性；原因

Contents

1. Introduction 1

2. Literature Review 1

2.1 Study on the translation of Tao Te Ching at home 2

2.2 Study on the translation of Tao Te Ching abroad 2

3. Arthur Waley’s Mistranslations of Tao Te Ching 3

3.1 Spiritual cultural words 4

3.2 Metaphor words 5

3.3 Numerals 6

4 . Analysis of Mistranslation and Improper Translation in Tao Te Ching from Translator’s Subjectivity 7

4.1 Definition of the translator’s subjectivity 7

4.2 General manifestation of the translator’s subjectivity 7

4.3 Causes in the limitations of the times 9

4.4 Causes in the translator himself 10

5. Conclusion 10

Works Cited 12

1. Introduction 

Tao Te Ching is a classic book about the ancient Chinese philosophy and only has five thousand words, but contains unique and profund thought, which classifies the life experience in poetic language. The whole book with incisive language describes Lao Tzu’s World view, outlook on life and world politics. Tao Te Ching classifies the origin of universe, the rules of development, the existence mode of the world, the controdictions and solutions of human society, which is full of dialectical logic power and deep beauty of poety. “Tao” is the centre and philosophical comerstone of Tao Te Ching. Lao Tzu has a great contribution to Chinese philosophy, which makes the Lao tze’s thought have deep and charmful metaphysics and expands the pre-qin philosophy from ancient to the modern, and thinking of life ontology.论文网

As is known to all, “translaion is a very complex activity, it involves linguistics, rhetoric and communication semiotics theory, as well as ethnic, social, cultural and other fields.”(Nida 64)The translation contains the objective elements and subjective elements such as envision and preference. Throughout the research about Tao Te Ching at home and abroad, the author finds that Arthur Waley’s translation is still worthy of in-depth study, in which exists many mistranslations. Language difference, cultural difference and the translator himself do influence the translation of Tao Te Ching. The thesis will explore the role of translator and the limitations of the times via Arthur Waley’s Tao Te Ching. In the recent 20 years, new translation productions still appeared by almost one version a year, which makes the author of this thesis be interested in this phenomenon and decide to make a research on it.