Analyzing English Translation Studies of the Classic Chinese Novel Jin Ping Mei: A Critical Review and Reflection

Abstract

This review examines 103 English translation studies on the ancient Chinese novel Jin Ping Mei (JPM) by utilizing multiple academic databases as data sources. The review is grounded in five elements generated from Lasswell’s model of communication: medio-translation subject, medio-ranslation content, medio-translation channel, medio-translation audience, and medio-translation effect, to conduct a comprehensive analysis and provide a thorough understanding of the current state of study on JPM’s English translation.The review summarizes the gaps in each dimension, scrutinizes the research themes of the English translation, and identifies the limitations in the current study on JPM’s English translation. It finds that despite the increasing interest in JPM’s English translation, the research on the subject is still in its early stages, with a limited number of publications and a lack of sustained commitment from researchers. Existing studies predominantly focus on medio-translation content, particularly studying strategies based on specific translated texts. However, this concentration results in gaps within the medio-translation model, hampering insights for the retranslation of JPM. The review also identifies centralization as a standard research corpus and methodology trend. The former predominantly centers on the translations by Roy and Egerton, while the latter leans heavily towards qualitative research methods grounded in linguistic intuition. Therefore, the study recommends breaking away from this centralization and fostering a more comprehensive and diverse exploration to advance future study on JPM English translation.