When many people in the West think of China, the animal that they think of is the dragon. For them, the dragon is an aggressive monster that breathes fire. Many popular legends tell of how dragons killed brave knights and ate beautiful maidens. For Chinese people however, the dragon is not an evil monster at all. It's a cultural and spiritual symbol for prosperity and good luck. The dragon’s main task is to create harmony and bring rain. Dragons are celebrated in art and architecture, and of course the dragon dance is a very popular ritual. Millions of Chinese have the word ‘long’, meaning dragon, as part of their name.
Recently, some experts claimed that using the dragon as a national symbol could make Western countries have a negative view of China. But an internet survey indicates that 90% of Chinese people want to keep the dragon, and as more and more people are all familiar with that Chinese symbol, people in the West would no doubt want China to keep the dragon as well.
This essay is aimed to prove that there is no need at all for our translators to give up dragon, the totem of Chinese, only for the sake of catering to the taste of the West, and as translators, we should promote some regulatory translation strategy about dragon in order to realize the mutual cultural balance between the West and China as well as to preserve the Chinese civilization, extensive and profound, with a time-honored history, in the long-run.
The main content of this paper is divided into four parts. First of all, based on some examples in terms of Chinese and Western culture, it is essential to realize the mutual cultural balance between the West and China. Secondly, take the various translation versions of “The Four Asian dragon” for example, when dealing with some issues concerning dragon, there is no need for our translators to avoid the usage of dragon in order to cater for the Western taste. Thirdly, discovering the recognition and acceptance of the West toward Chinese dragon and the unified English expression from some Western countries and regions, like Wales for instance, we can utilize the word dragon in front of Westerners without causing misunderstandings as well as cultural shocks and conflicts. Last but not least, the final part plays a crucial role in this essay, promoting some regulatory translation strategies about dragon as well as introducing the feasibility and significance of this kind of strategy.
Key words: Chinese dragon Western dragon difference cultural exchange balance translation strategy
CONTENTS
Abstract I
摘要 III
1. Introduction 1
1.1. The Significance of Realizing the Mutual Cultural Balance between the West and China .............................................................................1
1.2. The Meaning and Motivation of the Paper...........................................4
2. No Need to Avoid the Usage of Dragon for the Sake of Catering for the Western Taste.........................................................................6
2.1. Different Dragon Images in the West and China .................................6
2.2. Various Translation Versions of “The Four Asian dragons”...............10
3. Knocking at the Door of the Western ...........................................13
3.1. The Recognition and Acceptance of the West toward Chinese Dragon 13
3.2. The Unified English Expression from Some Western Countries and Regions 14
3.3. The Regulatory Translation Strategies about Dragon When Introduced to the West 15
4. Conclusions 17
Bibliography 19
Aknowledgements 20
