Since 1881, the “Zhuangzi” was translated by Frederic Henry Baifovr, and so far there have been more than 30 kinds of English translation version or the full version of the “Zhuangzi”. Among them, British Sinologist Martin Palmer had translated “Chuang-tzu”, the book, published by Penguin Books in 1996, after two reprints, offered a wide range, and readers are very public.
In Palmer’s “Chuang-tzu”, in addition to the cover picture, each chapter is accompanied by the black and white illustrations in order to convey the text and the related text content to the integration of cultural information. The text consists of 34 illustrations, and the picture named “the Qingxi Fang Zhao” was used twice. The remaining 33 pictures are arranged into each chapter before the text. Among them, 22 ink landscape paintings come from the famous landscape painter Wang Nianci’s works in the late Qing Dynasty. Most of the characters are in the nature or crutching mountains, or riding post, or putting the boat in Qingxi River, or dialoguing under the pine forest, and quite leisurely relaxing, enjoying natural interest and painting. 6 illustrations come from the book named “Yuli Bochao”, and other five pieces are related to Buddhism, respectively, from the “Vajra Prajna paramita Sutra” and the great compassion mantra. Each illustration is a person image, and the left side of the book is a line of explanation.
On the whole, the illustrations palmer’s version can be divided into two categories, some express tranquility and spaciousness of the landscape paintings, a class, and others are related to religious beliefs. Corresponding with that, we can at least see two “Zhuangzi” in the translator’s eyes: the first theme enjoys freedom and unfettered, but another contains the Buddhism, Taoism and folk beliefs.
Martin Palmer translated “Xiao Yao You” into “wandering where you will, to you want to go”. It looks very beautiful, but it is actually not Zhuangzi’s “Xiaoyao” and contrary to the spirit of Zhuangzi. Zhuangzi’s meaning had been beyond the mundane world, and it is non-utilitarian and no-self, to swim in very vague, indistinct and vast domain, which is devoid of time and space, and it is the self consciousness of the transcendent experience.
“Xiao Yao” means freedom, and this interpretation is also not unique in the English speaking world. Ernest R. Hughes translated that into “Excursions into Freedom”, and it means excursions to the free territory. Burton Watson’s translation is “Free and easy wandering, leisurely wandering. Thomas Claire’s translation is “freedom”. According to the various kinds of translation methods, the illustrations convey this information: for more than one century, in Zhuangzi’s thought resources, the most prominent point, accepted by the English speaking world, is to advocate the human spirit and yearn for the free realm.
Other religious illustrations have a different value understanding. They are quite different ZhuangZi’s ideas from the surface, and even sometimes it is quite absurd. However the absurd contains observing and understanding of western scholars for Chinese cultural characteristics, and actually the observing and understanding sometimes has a surprisingly consistent with the characteristics of Chinese culture.
Martin Palmer, the translator of Penguin’s “Chuang-tzu”, was a Christian, and he has close relationship with China cultural circles. Although the illustrations in the version are not sure about “Chuang-tzu”, it is a reference for us to choose a variety of artistic styles to promote Chinese traditional culture for overseas.
TRANSLATED BY WENG JUN
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