A Review of Chinese Studies on the Translation of Female Images

Women constitute a crucial force in societal transformation, and the portrayal of female images holds significant importance in literary works. With the rise of feminism, China has witnessed a surge in feminist research over the past two decades. This paper, utilizing the China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) database, explores and summarizes Chinese academic achievements in the translation studies of female images. The research characteristics are as follows: (1) There is a predominant focus on the translation from foreign languages into Chinese; (2) before 1949, the number of foreign works far exceeded those of China; after 1949, Chinese works far surpassed foreign ones; (3) the translation of certain female images during the May Fourth Movement has brought positive impacts to Chinese society, inspiring the desire for women’s liberation and independence. However, after 1949, the translation of Chinese novels in some English-speaking countries has made a negative impact on the image of China; (4) the main translation strategies include domestication, foreignization, a combination of domestication and foreignization, and deconstruction of domestication and foreignization; (5) there are 12 translation methods involved in the translation of female images in Chinese literature, including literal translation, free translation, substituting appellation, rewriting or restoring psychological descriptions, poetic descriptions, supplementing, hijacking, prefacing and footnoting, instructional preface and postscript, explanatory annotation, informative epitext, and fabrication; (6) regarding the selection of translated works, translators are deeply influenced by the contemporary background; (7) the translation of female images in different periods reflects the transformation and evolution of discourse about women in Chinese society; and (8) current Chinese research also covers situational studies, cultural implication, communication paths, and descriptions of female images.

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