Abstract:

The intrinsic connection between sensual narratives and artistic resonance lies in sensory perception. Grounded in sensory experiences such as vision, hearing, smell, taste, and touch, narrative construction relies heavily on vivid descriptions of these modalities. To translate the emotionally compelling force of a text effectively, it is crucial to reconstruct sensory experiences in the target language to enable readers or audiences to empathize with the characters’ emotions and experiences. The English translation of Chen Ran’s feminist novel, A Private Life, is examined in this study by analyzing how sensory narratives are rendered cross-linguistically and cross-culturally. Concrete examples are used to investigate the strategies that were employed to convey the sensory dimensions of the original text, and the methods for introducing contemporary Chinese literature to global audiences through “literary” translations are explored. The findings revealed that shifts in sensory representation within translations altered the degree of bodily presence and weakened or enhanced the emotional impact of the work, thus providing insights for translators of Chinese fiction.

Keywords: sensory narrative; sensory experience; English translation of A Private Life; translations of contemporary Chinese fiction

摘要：

感性叙事与艺术感染力之间具有本质关联。感性认识的基础是感官体验，因此叙事往往落实在视觉、听觉、嗅觉、味觉和触觉等感官描写上。要将感染人的力量翻译出来，使译文读者或观众也能够对原作中人物的感受和体验感同身受，感官体验的再现是关键。本文以陈染的小说《私人生活》英文翻译为例，结合具体例证，考察英文译文对于原文感官体验的呈现，分析《私人生活》这部女性主义小说中感性叙事的跨语言、跨文化再现效果，并探讨如何通过翻译以“文学”的方式将当代中国文学介绍给海外读者。研究发现，感官叙事在译文中有所变化，在一定程度上影响了身体在场性的强弱以及作品的文学感染力，值得未来中国小说英译者关注。

关键词: 感性叙事, 感官体验, 《私人生活》英译本, 中国当代小说外译