“Translation Field” in Polyphonic Harmony： Multiple Subjects and Their Practices in the Hindi Translation of Chinese Literature （1978—1995）

JIA Yan

doi:10.19857/j.cnki.ICL.20258108

Volume 8 Issue 1

Mar. 2025

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JIA Yan. “Translation Field” in Polyphonic Harmony： Multiple Subjects and Their Practices in the Hindi Translation of Chinese Literature （1978—1995）[J]. International Comparative Literature, 2025, 8(1): 121-141. doi: 10.19857/j.cnki.ICL.20258108

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JIA Yan. “Translation Field” in Polyphonic Harmony： Multiple Subjects and Their Practices in the Hindi Translation of Chinese Literature （1978—1995）[J]. International Comparative Literature, 2025, 8(1): 121-141. doi: 10.19857/j.cnki.ICL.20258108

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“Translation Field” in Polyphonic Harmony： Multiple Subjects and Their Practices in the Hindi Translation of Chinese Literature （1978—1995）

doi: 10.19857/j.cnki.ICL.20258108

JIA Yan

Tsinghua University

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Author Bio:
JIA Yan is a tenured associate professor at the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures， Tsinghua University. His main research areas include modern and contemporary Indian literature， China-India literary relations， and the religious culture of India.
Received Date: 2024-11-09
Accepted Date: 2024-12-03

Abstract

Abstract

In the scholarly field of Sino-Indian literary relations， the translation of Chinese literature into Indian languages during the late twentieth century proves to be a significant lacuna， which can be ascribed to the predominance of the idea of “direct translation” and the lack of original materials in the indigenous languages of India. Should this issue be calibrated， the notion of “India” in “Indian translation of Chinese literature” needs to be resituated from a nationality-based framework （i.e. a translation performed by Indians and in India） to a language-based framework （i.e. a translation into Indian languages）. This helps bring in view various non-Indian subjects engaged in the translation of Chinese works as well as Indian subjects who translated on foreign soil. At the same time， it is imperative to make systematic collection， sorting， and study of local-language materials a necessary premise for conducting research on this topic. This paper examines the multiple subjects and their practices in the translation and introduction of Chinese literature in Hindi from 1978 to 1995， seeking to unveil the trends and characteristics of bilateral literary exchanges after the normalization of Sino-Indian relations. Particular efforts are made to demonstrate the mechanisms and effectiveness of the translation of Chinese literature into Indian languages before Indian sinologists began to loom large in this field. Although the translation of Chinese literature into Indian languages during this period is characterized by a salient diversity of subjects dwelling at seemingly opposite ends （e.g. institution and individual， China and India， independent translation and cooperative translation， inward translation and outward translation）， these subjects do not exist in isolation from each other but are incorporated in a “translation field” comprising multiple relationships. This translation field is distinctively polyphonic， where harmonious chords and discordant noises coexist and often result in a certain degree of heteroglossia. It is these polyphonic relationships that connect heterogeneous and even ostensibly antagonistic translational subjects in a network of action， generating a substantial and diverse corpus of Chinese literary translations for Indian readers through dynamic processes of alignment and differentiation.
- Chinese literature in Indian translation,
- Hindi,
- Foreign Languages Press,
- translation field,
- multiple subjects,
- polyphonic

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References(27)

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