昇華：番異及/即翻譯

Abstract

普遍流行於我國翻譯界的一個觀點是認為外國人對中國典籍的外譯總是難免謬誤，因此這種「番異」必須予以批判及糾正。問題是本國人自己從事本國經典的外譯時，我們同樣會落入相對的「番異」牢籠，因為我們對於外語知識掌握的不全和外國人對於中文駕馭能力的不足在性質上是類同的。其實任何需要翻譯的東西都是有意義之物，也正因如此，翻譯才能成為「有意義的」行為。任何翻譯者的「參予」(participation)都是伽德瑪(Hans-Georg Gadamer)所提出的take part in而非take part。職此之故，無論翻譯者國籍為何，外語能力如何，「華」與「番」共同的翻譯努力提供了原作品得以不斷「昇華」（即意義不斷播散翻新的變化）的動力。

Prevalent in the circle of translation in our country is the misconception that foreign translators tend to make mistakes in translation of Chinese classics. This, it seems to me, is the origin of what I have called “fanyi” (番異)-- i.e.,“barbarization”-- of which many a foreign translator is wrongly accused. Irony comes when we realize the fact that even a native translator, with his/her not-so-perfect command of a foreign language, can never succeed in producing a “perfectly correct” translation into a foreign tongue much as a foreign translator who, with his/her limited linguistic competence in the Chinese language, cannot be immune to mistranslation of some sort. I argue that everything that requires translation is in the first place a thing with/of meaning, which in turn renders translation a meaningful act. The “participation” (à la Gadamer)-- i.e., “taking part in” rather than “taking part”-- of all translators, whether native or foreign and despite their translation talent, provides the momentum needed for the ever-changing “sublimation” (tantamount to the constant dissemination of meaning) of the original text.