Abstract:Traditional opera is always an important window for foreigners to understand Chinese traditional culture. Kun Opera is known as “The Father of Acrobatics". It‘s also our Chinese traditional culture and art, especially the treasures of drama art. In order to inherit, carry forward and protect our cultural heritage, in order to better promote the cultural exchange between East and West, it’s really necessary and important to translate Kunqu libretto into English.
This paper, on the basis of the translation of one highlight from The Peony Pavilion translated by Zhang Guangqian, namely, A Surprising Dream, will try to probe into the techniques of the translation of Kun Opera (namely the translation of Chinese classical poems and the processing of allusion in Kun Opera)so as to immerge further into the principles and strategies of Kun Opera translation, which can make the translated Kun Opera more easily understood and appreciated by the westerners, thus promoting the spread of Chinese Kunqu art, as well as giving general lessons for the translation of other Chinese traditional operas.
Key words: Kun Opera, translation, classical poems, allusion
摘要:传统戏曲历来是外国人了解中国传统文化的重要窗口。而昆曲被誉为“百戏之祖”,也是我国传统文化艺术,特别是戏曲艺术中的珍品。为了更好地继承、发扬和保护我们的文化遗产,也为了更好地促进东西方之间的文化交流,对作为“百戏之祖”的昆曲唱词进行翻译就显得尤为必要和重要。
本篇论文将以张光前先生的《牡丹亭·惊梦》英译本为研究对象,探讨译本中所体现的关于传统戏曲文化翻译的方法与标准,即昆曲翻译中古典诗词的翻译和昆曲中典故的处理,从而更深入地探讨昆曲翻译的理论和策略,使英译版本的昆曲能更容易的被西方人理解欣赏,以便弘扬传播中国昆曲艺术;同时也能为其他传统戏剧的翻译带来普遍的借鉴意义。
关键词: 昆曲,翻译,古诗词,典故
Kun Opera, also called 'Kunqu', is one of the oldest Chinese traditional operas, which is originated in the Kunshan region of Jiangsu Province in the last years of the Yuan Dynasty. By the late Ming and early Qing Dynasty, Kun Opera had thrived for 200 years, formed the unprecedented social fascination and created the peak of classical Chinese drama. It acts and sings in a graceful and delicate way, noted for lingering, soft and melodious rhythm. Kun Opera has a rich, rigorous, complete and profound drama system, which makes it become the resources of the developments of various Chinese operas and is known as “The Father of Acrobatics". It‘s also our Chinese traditional culture and art, especially the treasures of drama art, called "The Arethusa", one flower in spring garden. In 2001, Kun Opera was announced by the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as the first batch of “Masterpieces of Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity”.