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The History of Translation of Mujŏng 『無情』 for the 100th Anniversary
Chunwon Research journal
Abbr :
Chunwon Research journal
2017, (11), pp.33-60
Publisher : Chunwon Research Society
Research Area : Korean Literature
2017, (11), pp.33-60
Publisher : Chunwon Research Society
Research Area : Korean Literature
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The purpose of this study is to discuss the history of translation of Mujŏng, which has been translated into different languages since it was first published 100 years ago. Since first translated by Lee Suchang in Japanese in 1928, Mujŏng has been translated into English, Turkish, Japanese (2005), and Chinese. Differences between the two versions of Japanese translation resulted, in part, from the year of translation, 1928 and 2005, respectively; however, this study focused on the difference in philosophy of translation between the translators. Lee Suchang (1928) attempted to eliminate differences between the languages by centring the translation on the translated language. By contrast, translation by Hatano Setsuko left the traces of difference with the original language in the translated language. Mujŏng, the English translation, is a faithful translation based on meticulous comparison with original version. However, it substituted vocabularies that represent cultural components of Choseon with corresponding the translated language, thus, eliminating difference in cultural components or resulting in off-textual translation in certain parts. However, by preserving the hybrid text in Mujŏng, which frequently adopted English and Japanese, in the translation, it successfully conveys the linguistic situation and culture of the time. The Turkish translation Merhametsiz Yaşam opened up possibility for 『無情』 to be established as a work of foreign literature on its own. The Chinese translation 『无情』(2007) is not a complete work but was finished only partly as a piece of text in a Korean language textbook. Considering the active translation of Chinese modern literature in Korean in recent years, this highlights the asymmetry that exists between Korean and Chinese literature translation.
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