Translating Chinese Poetry into English Focusing on Ideational Meaning

【Abstract】This paper is an attempt to use the theory of Hallidays systemic functional grammar to study Wang Weis poem， “Jiuyue Jiuri Yi Shandong Xiongdi”， and two different translated versions from the perspective of transitivity， the major system in ideational meaning. This study will provide a good insight into the translation studies and the applicability of systemic functional grammar to discourse analysis.

【Key words】Ideational meaning; Transitivity; English version; “Jiuyue Jiuri Yi Shandong Xiongdi”

【作者簡(jiǎn)介】于慧敏（1997.12-），女，漢族，西南大學(xué)外國(guó)語(yǔ)學(xué)院，英語(yǔ)（師范）專業(yè)。

I. Introduction

Poets express deep feelings in limited space and casts a glamour over poetry. However， due to differences in the aesthetic appreciation and ways of thinking， understanding and restoring poets feelings and meaning with beauty are so difficult that translating Chinese poetry into English is called pitiful art.

Halliday has claimed that linguistics theory， by which discourse is analyzed， can be used in translation （“Linguistics in theory and practice” 26）. In order to understand and restore poets feelings and meaning， to translate Chinese poetry into English faithfully and expressively， using the theory of Hallidays systemic functional grammar and focusing on transitivity to study poem and analyze translated versions are significant.

II. Theoretical Basis

Hallidays systemic functional grammar insists that everything in grammar can be explained by reference to how language is used （qtd. in Yuan and Dai 171）. According to this theory， all languages are organized around three modes of meaning： the interpersonal， textual and ideational meaning， the major system of which is transitivity.

Halliday and Matthiessen identify six processes （material， relational， behavioral ， verbal process， existential and meteorological process） in transitivity， each consisting of a process， participants and circumstances（qtd. in Wen 65-66）.

III. Analysis of the Present Study

Halliday has claimed that brief exercises in comparative discourse analysis， whereby it is possible to be reasonably precise in locating the patterns of equivalence and shift between the two related versions （“Gloosy Ganoderm” 23）. Such a linguistic analysis has， he thinks， a value in translation.

In this study， the source text and two translated versions are analyzed and compared from transitivity to identify the faithfulness and differences between them. Accuracy of wording and expression of feelings are also taken into consideration.

A. The Source Text

The poem， “Jiuyue Jiuri Yi Shandong Xiongdi” is randomly chosen. From the perspective of transitivity， there are 3 processes in this poem.

The first sentence is the relational process. The second one is the mental process. The third one is the mental process. In the last sentence， “Biancha Zhuyu”， is the material process. The next part of it， “Shao Yiren”， is the mental process. The writer expressed his loneliness and homesickness when wandering so far from home in this poem.

B. Translation

Two translated versions of “Jiuyue Jiuri Yi Shandong Xiongdi” are chosen randomly. One is from Chen Junpu， and another is from Xu Yuanchong. Each sentence of the two different translated versions is analyzed from the perspective of transitivity as follows.

1. “Duzai Yixiang Wei Yike”

Chen Junpu translated it as “A stranger in a strange land on each holiday.” Xu Yuanchong translated it as “Alone， a lonely stranger in a foreign land.” Both two translated sentences， which are about relational process， accord with the source text according to transitivity. Chen Junpu translated “Yike” as “a stranger” while Xu Yuanchong translated it as “a lonely stranger”， which is better to convey a sense of loneliness.

2. “Meifeng Jiajie Bei Siqin”

Chen Junpu translated it as “I think of my kinsmen with a double care.” Xu Yuanchong translated it as “I doubly pine for kinsfolk on a holiday.” Both two translated sentences， which are about mental process， accord with the source text according to transitivity. Chen Junpu translated “Meifeng Jiajie” as “on each holiday” is more faithful to the source text than Xu Yuanchongs translation， “on a holiday”. However， it is put in the first， which is against the original line of the poem. As for “Si”， Chen Junpu translated it as “think of” while Xu Yuanchong translated it as “pine for”， which is better to convey a sense of homesickness.

3. “Yaozhi Xiongdi Deng Gaochu” and “Biancha Zhuyu Shao Yiren”

Chen Junpu translated them as “I know when my brothers wear medicine bags. At the heights， they would find one to spare.” Xu Yuanchong translated them as “I know my brothers would， with dogwood spray in hand. Climb up the mountain and miss me so far away.” It is against the original line of the poem. First， the translation does not follow the process of the source text. For instance， the “phenomenon” of mental process， “Xiongdi Deng Gaochu” is translated as “at the heights”， which functions as adverbial of place， by Chen Junpu. It is translated as “climb up the mountain”， which is changed into the material process by Xu Yuanchong. Second， Readers need to find information of the third line in the source text from the fourth line in the translation and vice versa.

IV. Conclusion

This study provides a good insight into the translation studies and the applicability of systemic functional grammar to discourse analysis. It can help you to understand contextual meaning of poems and translate them more faithfully.

To sum up， the steps of translating or assessing poetrys translation quality are： first， from macroscopic scale， the whole text and its social background should be studied. Second， analyze each sentence of the source text from meta-functions of Hallidays systemic functional grammar theory. Third， identify the faithfulness and differences between the source text and the translation. Fourth， from microcosmic scale， pay attention to each vocabulary and check whether it is accurate and appropriate. Finally， read the whole translation again and check whether it express writers feeling adequately.

While translating or assessing poetrys translation quality， take three principles into consideration： faithfulness to the poem by analyzing its transitivity， accuracy of wording and expression of feelings.

In the future， study about it should go further and deeper to refine the structure the model for poetrys translation quality assessment from systemic functional grammar.

References：

[1]Halliday， Michael Alexander Kirkwood. The Gloosy Ganoderm： Systemic Functional Linguistics and Translation[J]. Chinese Translators Journal 1，2009：17-26.CNKI. Web.4 Jan，2019.

[2]Linguistics in Theory and Practice[J]. Foreign Language Teaching and Research 4，1983：24-32. CNKI. Web. 3 Jan，2019.

[3]Wen， Xu. An Introduction to Linguistics. Beijing： n.p.， 2012. Print.

[4]Yuan， Xiaohong and Dai Weiping. Halliday Yuyan Gongneng Tanlue （“Functions of Language by Halliday”）[J]. Guangxi Shehui Kexue 4，2008：170-73. CNKI. Web. 4 Jan，2019.