Thresholds of Interpretation: Paratexts of The Four Books Translated by Cheng Lin

3.1 Unveiling the Translation Purpose: Correcting Misreadings, Preserving Authenticity, and Discovering China

The reason why Cheng Lin decided to re-translate the Four Books is briefly explained in “Common Compiling Rules for Newly-Compiled Ancient Books Series of The Western Han Period Transmitted from Pre-Qin Classics” in the Chinese Version: “The quality of previous English translations of the Four Books is lowered by some misunderstandings of the text or by choosing improper Chinese base texts; hence it is necessary to re-translate the book.”^[19] “Preface” to the Translation also mentions that: “Other English translations are mostly based on Zhu Xi’s Collected Annotations on the Four Books, and the translators […] are more or less misled by Zhu Xi’s biased annotations.”^[20] Cheng Lin holds that there are some misreadings and misinterpretations in the English versions by Western missionary translators due to cultural differences. He also believes that Zhu Xi’s Collected Annotations, which contains Zhu Xi’s subjective interpretations, to some extent, misleads these translators’ pertinent understanding of the Four Books. “The focus of Zhu Xi’s Collected Annotations on the Four Books is primarily on textual meanings and its textual research is insufficient.”^[21] It is known that Zhu Xi focuses mainly on the discerning and inventing of textual meanings in Collected Annotations, and his interpretations and explanations of names mostly rely on previous annotations, lacking convincing textual research, which leads to such numerous errors, omissions, and misinterpretations that Mao Qiling 毛奇齡 (1623–1716) criticizes Zhu Xi’s Collected Annotations as “full of errors.”^[22] In Mao’s monograph Correcting The Four Books’ Mistakes, Mao lists Zhu Xi’s improper annotations and classifies them as follows: “The erroneous entries are categorized by error types into 32 sections, totaling 451 entries.”^[23] Cheng Lin, aiming to translate and introduce the genuine Confucian Classic to the Western world, reluctantly takes Zhu Xi’s imperfect Collected Annotations as the base text. He believes that the two existing complete English translations of the Four Books, with misreadings and misinterpretations of Confucian thoughts and Chinese culture, are improper for the Classic’s worldwide dissemination. Different from David Collie and James Legge’s Christian stance and missionary purpose, Cheng Lin’s translation is in response to the cultural call of the time. He assumed the historical mission of spreading Chinese culture to the world, and his goal of translating the Four Books is to “correct previous translations’ misreadings and misunderstandings” to help Western readers “have a better understanding of Chinese ancient Classics, in the meantime to preserve the book’s original essence,”^[24] and thus to help readers “discover the genuine Confucian thoughts.”

Preface and introduction are the first channel of interpreting a book, by which translators can guide readers to understand deeply the translated work, and is thus also a window for temporal and spatial message exchanges between translators and target readers. “Introduction” to the Translation is such a window: (1) The “Introduction” introduces the following aspects on the Four Books: its international historical context, its origins, its Chinese historical context, including the prehistoric periods, the three eras of Emperor Yao 堯, Emperor Shun 舜, King Yu 禹, the rise of the Zhou Dynasty, the emperorship, the feudal states during the Zhou Dynasty (the Spring and Autumn Period), nobles and commoners, the rise of the literati, and lives of Confucius and Mencius. (2) It makes an overview of the texts and authorship of the Four Books, aiming to popularize Chinese Confucianism among Western audience and cultivate their interest in Chinese Confucian thoughts. (3) It concludes a statistical analysis of European translations of the Four Books, including complete translations and single-text ones, which is academic-worthy and “enlightening.”^[25] “Preface” to The Translation presents the political, ideological, and educational status of the Four Books in China, its influences in Asia, and its dissemination worldwide. As a scholar and translator, Cheng Lin’s review of the Four Books in this part makes a diachronic and synchronic comparison of Chinese Confucian thoughts between the East and the West contexts. He places the Classic under the frame of world civilization, providing readers with macro- and micro-social contexts for the study of the Four Books. This section also showcases the translator’s motives. Additionally, in “Introduction” to the Chinese Version, Yang Jialuo 楊家駱 (1912–1991) analyzes Cheng Lin’s approach to re-editing the Four Books as well as the authorship of the four texts, namely, Confucius, Zengzi 曾子 (505–436 BCE), Zisi 子思 (483–402 BCE), and Mencius. Yang conducts research on the making of the four texts, and explains the reasons for Cheng Lin’s re-editing of the Four Books and the Chinese base texts he chooses. This information helps Western public further understand the Classic in a vast historical background.

The purpose of Cheng Lin’s dissemination of Confucianism to the Western world is also reflected in “Indexes” of the Chinese Version. “Indexes,” including “[t]he names of people, places, objects, and the social system, as well as idiomatic expressions, are all listed at the end of the book.”^[26] According to Cheng Lin, due to different times and cultures, these names and idiomatic expressions in the Four Books are no doubt difficult for Western readers. His listing of these items is reader-friendly. The scholastic translation purpose is also reflected in “Tables for Cross-Reference” of the Translation. His translation is based on a self-reedited Chinese version, its page numbers in the translated versions of The Analects of Confucius and the Discourses of Mencius are matched with those in the popular versions of the Four Books, which is convenient for target readers to locate the exact page information of Cheng’s translation in popular versions.

3.2 Presenting the Features of the Translated Work

Cheng Lin’s translated version of the Four Books is an integration of popularity and scholarliness. The format style of each translated work is introduced in Common Compiling Rules for Newly-Compiled Ancient Books Series of The Western Han Period Transmitted from Pre-Qin Classics, which include the text selection scope, base text, classification, compilation, revising and editing, labeling, formatting, introduction, indexes, and the style of the English translation. Cheng’s translated version is one of this series, and its style and composition align accordingly. “Preface” to the Translation lists three major differences between this version and others: (1) the translator-edited Chinese base text specially for the translation, (2) in-text notes in brackets, and (3) uniform translation of different names of a person.^[27] The scholarly nature of the Chinese Version is shown in its “Chinese Publication Information” page, where six major features are listed: (1) correcting the errors and misinterpretations in Zhu Xi’s Collected Annotations based on the results of previous researches and findings, (2) systematically compiling and organizing Confucian thoughts according to textual meanings, (3) providing detailed prefaces on the making of the Four Books as well as appended indexes, (4) concise annotations of characters and events with clear dates, (5) adopting modern punctuation throughout the text with consecutive section numbering, (6) making the format of English translation conform to that of the Chinese text.^[28] These features also reflect the academic nature of the Translation. Regarding notes, Cheng Lin “puts in-notes related to sentences and paragraphs in brackets”^[29] to make the text an easy read. “Preface” to the Translation mentions that only one name is used for the different names of a person throughout the text: “As for each person involved in the version, the translator uses only one name throughout to replace his or her different names in the text so as to reduce readers’ confusion.”^[30] This is because Chinese names contain rich information, and a person’s name often adopts different expressions such as names, courtesy names, titles, posthumous titles, official positions, etc. in different contexts. Diverse names for an individual person tend to be confusing for Western readers who are unfamiliar with the Chinese naming tradition. Cheng Lin adopts one uniform name for the different names of a person in the Translation, reducing the difficulty of remembering Chinese names and thus enhancing text readability for Western readers, thereby removing certain barriers to the international spread of Confucian thoughts.

Moreover, due to the ongoing development of Chinese writing, there are jia jie zi假借字 (phonetic loan characters) in the Chinese text of the Four Books, making it difficult for readers to understand the text. The Chinese Version addresses this difficulty as follows: “[…] Among the phonetic loan characters in the old editions of the Four Books, there are only 2,335 different characters. Therefore, the ancient text, not explained in modern Chinese, is not easily understood […] For the sake of readers, all phonetic loan characters in the text are substituted by their original ones. By doing so, there is no point using annotations, and readers can understand the thoughts of the ancient Chinese sages effortlessly. Those phonetic loan characters in the Four Books are summarized here for reference.”^[31] On the fourth page of the “Authorial Introduction” to the Chinese Version, 126 phonetic loan characters with their modern counterparts are listed, eliminating some reading obstacles and also proving helpful for sinologists studying Chinese phonetic loan characters in the Classic.

Paratext also includes publishing information. The publication information of the Chinese Version and the Translation provides useful information for readers to interpret further the translation process. The Translation adopts a horizontal typesetting, conspicuously aligned with the Western reading habits. So is the format of its cover and title page, with words centered on the page. The second line on the cover, “CONFUCIAN CLASSICS,” signifies the affiliation of the translated version. The third to sixth lines on the title page are in English, introducing the information of The Chinese Version. Below the translator’s name “CHENG LIN,” there is an illustration of a kylin running westward, seemingly demonstrating Cheng Lin’s relentless efforts in spreading Chinese culture to the Western world. The last line “ANCIENT CHINESE CLASSICS SERIES” informs readers of the series to which this book belongs. The “Copyright” page provides message on how to purchase the Translation and its Chinese Version, which indicates that the Chinese Version and the Translation are inseparable. On the “Dedication” page of the Translation, Cheng Lin dedicates the book to LEONG YEW-KOH 梁宇臯(1888–1963), who, like Cheng Lin, studied in the U.K. and worked for the Chinese Ministry of Railways around 1932. This dedication raises readers’ curiosity about what support or assistance Leong Yew-Koh offered to Cheng Lin’s translation of the Four Books. The Translation also provides valuable publishing information for readers. It adopts the traditional Chinese vertical format, showcasing target readers the format and printing style of ancient Chinese books. The page format of the Chinese Version includes the original text and annotations, chapter numbers in parentheses after annotations, section numbers in the header, and information such as text titles, chapter titles, section numbers, and page numbers in the footer, all of which are useful for retrieval. “Publication Information” page of the Chinese Version provides information on the publication date, book title, compilers, distributors, publishers, printers, sales outlets, and copyright statements: the first edition was published in May 1948 in Shanghai jointly by the World Publishers of Shanghai and the World Book Company of America, with a reissue in September of the same year. The publication date indicates the very time when the translation was produced, and provides an explanation of the publishing difficulties and limited international spread of the Translation.

3.3 Responding to Criticisms on Drawbacks of the Translation

Responses to criticisms on the Translation have varied as follows:

1. Concerning critiques such as “there are still some typos in the Translation,” some explanations can be found in the paratexts of the Translation. The translator gives an explanation in “Errata” about the printing errors. “Errata” reveals the historical context of the Translation: The tumultuous Chinese Civil War made it challenging to print and publish books in China at that time due to high printing costs and depressed economy. Such incidents as proofread manuscript of about 100 pages being lost due to the printer’s negligence, printing plates being hurriedly replaced by the worker to meet the deadline, and replaced parts of the plates having not been sent to be proofread by the translator before being printed abounded, resulting in some punctuation errors (misplacements or omissions) and vocabulary errors (omissions or misspellings).^[32] It is regretful that though Cheng Lin appended errata to the translated version, these errors are still ubiquitous, undermining the quality of the work and exerting negative influence on its reception.

2. Regarding criticism that “there are no independent annotations and references in the Translation for readers to refer to,”^[33] an explanation is provided in the “Preface” to the Translation: “To avoid burdening readers, the Translation does not have independent footnotes and annotations but places expository contents related to sentences and paragraphs in brackets as in-notes.”^[34] In fact, this is a reflection of the Translation as a popular reader, for too many annotations in the text is certainly an impediment to smooth reading. Another reason for arranging notes and annotations in this way is that the Translation has its Chinese counterpart version, in which abundant background messages about the original text are presented.

3. As for criticism that “Cheng re-edits the Chinese original text according to themes, which has gains and losses,”^[35] the explanation is seen in the “Authorial Introduction” to the Chinese Version: “The Four Books involve the efforts of various authors, but these authors all share similar viewpoints nonetheless. From the Confucian perspective, the Four Books is a coherent work per se, with each book elucidating Confucius’ consistent teachings.”^[36] Therefore, Cheng Lin sorted out the core terms in the Classic and points out their relation: “Although the authors of the Four Books did not explicitly articulate Confucian thoughts in a logical and systematic way, ethics is clearly the center of Confucian philosophy. The main ideas scattered throughout the texts can be summarized into such 14 Confucian core terms as self-cultivation, benevolence, righteousness, propriety, loyalty, trustworthiness, sincerity, filial piety and brotherly respect, learning, self-reflection, inherent goodness, the way of forgiveness, virtuous governance, and the making of a nobleman. Among these items, self-cultivation is the core of Confucian ethics. The goal of self-cultivation is benevolence, righteousness, propriety, loyalty, trustworthiness, sincerity, filial piety and brotherly respect. Self-cultivation can be achieved only by learning and self-reflection. Achieving the highest level of self-cultivation makes a nobleman with exceptional virtue. With self-cultivation, one can manage the family, govern the country, and bring peace to the world effortlessly, implementing royal governance across the state.”^[37] Cheng Lin’s rearrangement of the Chinese text according to themes highlights the Confucian ideological system in the original text, helping target readers better grasp the themes and ideas of the Confucian Classic, which demonstrates the translator’s scholarly ingenuity and intent of cultural exchange.

3.4 Unfolding Zheng Lin’s Meticulous Translation Attitude

Cheng Lin is an erudite scholar with a profound understanding of Chinese and Western cultures as well as both languages. His vast scholarly horizon and pursuit of excellence in scholarship are the guarantee of high-quality translation. Regarding the re-editing of the Chinese texts for translation, he mentions in the “Preface” to the Chinese text that “this work was re-edited after the author compared the diversities and common denominators among substantial previous texts and carefully considered the strengths and weaknesses of different scholars. Compared with the widely circulated Collected Annotations by Zhu Xi, there are differences not only in the division of chapters and sentences but also between ancient Chinese characters and modern ones, which leads to additions and deletions at the lingual level. All the changes made by the compiler are justifiable, not merely for novelty or for convenience.”^[38] This reflects Cheng Lin’s mastery of classical Chinese language and unique insight into the Four Books. Yang Jialuo, in the “Introduction” to the Chinese Version, speaks highly of Cheng Lin’s translation works, academic achievements, and rigorous scholarly attitude: “After sorting out and comparing books of the Western Han Dynasty transmitted from pre-Qin period, Xiangheng (Cheng Lin’s courtesy name) re-edited the texts, making them concise to read, and then translated them into English with great endeavors, seeking to facilitate cultural exchange […] I find the re-edited editions well-organized, which summarizes the great teachings of ancient Chinese sages and brilliantly articulates the essence of their thoughts without the need of extensive quotations.”^[39] “Cheng made repeated revisions of the re-edited Chinese version and the English translation before their publication.”^[40] Cheng Lin’s meticulous, scholarly attitude is vividly portrayed in the paratexts of his two books.