Chronology Entry
Year
1977
Text
[Wilde, Oscar]. Du Liankui. Wang Dahong yi xie. [ID D27684].
Leo Tak-Hung Chan : The most significant change in the translation involves the nature of Sibyl's job. As critics of The picture of Dorian Gray have pointed out, the key to understanding Dorian's sudden change of attitude toward Sibyl is that he was, in the first place, infatuated with her only because she played the role of Juliet so well, and not because of who she was ; this makes possible a homosexual interpretation of the whole novel, in line with what is known of Oscar Wilde's sexual orientation. That is rendered out of the question in Wang's version, where the repeated references to theatre and acting are removed, and Sibyl becomes a singe rat a dance-hall.
Wang Dahong himself regards Du Liankui as a translation is beyond all doubt : on its front cover the book announces itself unambiguously as a translation. On the level of language too, the linkage between the two novels is everywhere apparent.
Alterations in Du Liankui have not been made so extensively that the translator has lost sight of the texture of the source-text. But it is the shifts - the additions, deletions and substitutions – that throw into sharp relief the special features of the adaptive translation. Changes in plot constitute the most dramatic shifts, and are the most thematically relevant for any attempt at interpretation.
Wang Dahong and a friend of his, proposed his own reading of Du Liankui :
"[The novel] came a bit too early in 1977. Ordinary folk could not easily recognize the materialistic world that it depicted for what it was. Nor could they comprehend fully the orientation toward material possessions that characterizes a hedonistic lifestyle, the mental disarray created by an abandonment to the senses. Of course, they could not be induced to rethink the corruption and decline of civilizations or the evil distortions of human nature, which occurred in a materialistic society in Taiwan that was becoming more and more sophisticated."
Some of the key themes in The picture of Dorian Gray are still preserved in Du Liankui – the aesthetic ideal of turning one's life into a work of art, the pitfalls of narcissism, the dangers of personal influence, and so on – but they are combined with new ones. Religious and homosexual themes, on the other hand, are greatly weakened, if not altogether eliminated.
Leo Tak-Hung Chan : The most significant change in the translation involves the nature of Sibyl's job. As critics of The picture of Dorian Gray have pointed out, the key to understanding Dorian's sudden change of attitude toward Sibyl is that he was, in the first place, infatuated with her only because she played the role of Juliet so well, and not because of who she was ; this makes possible a homosexual interpretation of the whole novel, in line with what is known of Oscar Wilde's sexual orientation. That is rendered out of the question in Wang's version, where the repeated references to theatre and acting are removed, and Sibyl becomes a singe rat a dance-hall.
Wang Dahong himself regards Du Liankui as a translation is beyond all doubt : on its front cover the book announces itself unambiguously as a translation. On the level of language too, the linkage between the two novels is everywhere apparent.
Alterations in Du Liankui have not been made so extensively that the translator has lost sight of the texture of the source-text. But it is the shifts - the additions, deletions and substitutions – that throw into sharp relief the special features of the adaptive translation. Changes in plot constitute the most dramatic shifts, and are the most thematically relevant for any attempt at interpretation.
Wang Dahong and a friend of his, proposed his own reading of Du Liankui :
"[The novel] came a bit too early in 1977. Ordinary folk could not easily recognize the materialistic world that it depicted for what it was. Nor could they comprehend fully the orientation toward material possessions that characterizes a hedonistic lifestyle, the mental disarray created by an abandonment to the senses. Of course, they could not be induced to rethink the corruption and decline of civilizations or the evil distortions of human nature, which occurred in a materialistic society in Taiwan that was becoming more and more sophisticated."
Some of the key themes in The picture of Dorian Gray are still preserved in Du Liankui – the aesthetic ideal of turning one's life into a work of art, the pitfalls of narcissism, the dangers of personal influence, and so on – but they are combined with new ones. Religious and homosexual themes, on the other hand, are greatly weakened, if not altogether eliminated.
Mentioned People (2)
Wang, Dahong
(1918-)
Wilde, Oscar
(Dublin 1854-1900 Paris) : Irischer Schriftsteller, Dramatiker, Dichter
Subjects
Literature : Occident : Ireland
Documents (1)
| # | Year | Bibliographical Data | Type / Abbreviation | Linked Data |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2004 |
Chan, Leo Tak-hung. The poetics of recontextualization : intertextuality in a Chinese adaptive translation of The picture of Dorian Gray. In : Comparative literature studies ; vol. 41, no 4 (2004). http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/comparative_literature_studies/v041/41.4chan.html. |
Publication / WilO3 |
|