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Narrative Reframing in Translating Feminist Novel: Analysis of Chinese Translation of Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982

  • The Journal of Translation Studies
  • Abbr : JTS
  • 2023, 24(3), pp.147-182
  • DOI : 10.15749/jts.2023.24.3.005
  • Publisher : The Korean Association for Translation Studies
  • Research Area : Humanities > Interpretation and Translation Studies
  • Received : August 15, 2023
  • Accepted : September 19, 2023
  • Published : September 30, 2023

Lee Ji-Young 1

1한국외대

Accredited

ABSTRACT

Feminist novel features its tendency to critique gender inequality and misogyny. It generally promotes a very positive perspective of any type of female bonding, which supports the feminist goal of establishing equal civil and social rights for women. In this regard, Cho Nam-joo’s novel Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 is widely perceived as a feminist novel. However, its Chinese translation was not introduced as a feminist novel. Considering that the political and social context in China has been unfavorable for feminism during the late 2010s, this paper focuses on the book’s different reception in China. From the late 2010s until now, feminism confronts grave challenges, as the authoritarian state has been hostile to feminism and openly conservative in its gender policy for reviving patriarchal order. Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 and its Chinese translation are analyzed on the basis of narrative reframing. The analysis draws on the translated text material published in China. Such textual analysis is then combined with references to paratexts including the translator’s preface, literary reviews, and media reports. Narrative reframing is one of the good means to understand the social world around translation. Narrative theory and the notion of framing recognize the power of social structures, and explain translational choices in relation to wider social and political contexts (Baker 2007: 154-155). The empirical analysis of the translated text of Chinese translation of Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 and the paratexts illustrates that the feminist narrative of the original text was undermined in the translation. Through the narrative reframing, feminist narrative was changed into Kim Jiyoung’s ontological narrative, emphasizing her life story. The particular aspects in the feminist narrative were suppressed and deleted. Issues discussed include gender inequality, misogyny, and female bonding. This kind of narrative reframing is related to the views and interests of power groups in China. In the context of a severe backlash against feminism in China, the Chinese government has promoted a public discourse of femininity by rearranging gender practices, which lead to conflict with feminism. This case study demonstrates that translation is a kind of invisible act of control deeply grounded in the political and social context of the target language.

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