| Chapter 1: | Introduction |
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from the one that was described earlier. (Institutional translation was described in 1988 as “a missing factor in translation theory,” but it still attracts little research.7) The FLP was no ordinary institution: it was a part of a massive state apparatus for controlling information—specifically, the release of information about China to the world.Translation was made from Chinese into languages that were not native to the translation staff, and the editorial staff who selected the translation texts had little or no knowledge of foreign cultures. Little or no feedback from readers was sought or entertained; accuracy was prized, but creativity was not. Starting in the 1980s, the FLP’s authority was challenged and its voice was limited by yet another kind of translation model, one that resulted from a personal relationship between the author and the translator, without mediation by a third party, and not intended primarily for academic or commercial gain. Although such transactions were marginal within general global practice, they still constitute a significant part of translation history.
Scope and Focus
The time frame in this book is primarily the 1980s, although some account is given of the preceding and following decades. It should be noted that studies of this period, that is, the immediate aftermath of the Cultural Revolution, do not provide reliable evidence for the early years of the People’s Republic of China (1949–1966), still less for the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976). In some ways, the first half of the 1950s was relatively relaxed as the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) proceeded to negotiate or impose the party line upon a huge population that was dubious but not entirely unconvinced of the benefits of its acceptance. The following ten to twelve years were a time of increasing tensions between and among rulers and ruled. The decades since 1989 also brought huge changes that were not foreseen at the time. My comments on translation practices that were used before and after the 1980s are therefore based on other sources (including hearsay).
The subject matter of this book is the translation of modern Chinese literature into English (and secondarily into other languages). Literary