Introduction: Variational Translation: Practical and Theoretical Explorations

Variational Translation Theory (VTT), first formulated by Professor Huang Zhonglian in 1999, has incorporated both Chinese and foreign thought, especially the philosophy of change embodied in the ancient Chinese classic Book of Changes, and it sees change as a striking, gradual process. Compared with the change a text undergoes in complete translation, a change or “variation” in variational translation (VT) may be viewed as a kind of fast, thorough, and global changes, including instant, immediate, and substantial changes. VTT can help translators do their job more quickly and accurately with higher efficiency and better quality. Therefore, VT can be defined as an intelligent and intersemiotic activity in which a person or/and a machine uses one language to develop flexibly the cultural information in another language so as to meet the specific needs of specific readers under specific conditions (Huang, 2002: 97). Besides complete translation, VT is very common in human translation practices. It plays an important role in the reconstruction of knowledge and culture in cross-cultural communication. In fact, some scholars have dealt with the phenomenon of VT. For example, Andrew Chesterman (1997) discusses the translation strategy of “transediting”, and Daniel Gouadec (2007) summarizes some VT methods frequently used by professional translators, such as selective translation, synoptic translation, plain translation, no frills translation, and rewriting. Generally speaking, theoretical studies on VT are faced with the precariousness and imprecision in their definition of basic concepts and description of important principles, even though they are gaining more and more attention, at least in China. It seems that scholars across the globe focus only on one or several VT types, and few of them make a sustained, systematic study of it. As a result, VTT has not developed into an independent branch of translation studies as a discipline. In other words, the universality, rationality, value, and functions of the theory have yet to be fully realized. Therefore, VT practices are in desperate need of effective guiding theories. The relatively newly emerging VTT calls for academic criticisms and reflections. In this respect, Professor Huang Zhonglian has conducted fundamental theoretical studies on it, publishing four research monographs, including Studies on Translation Variation (2000), Variational Translation Theory (2002), Scientific Translatology (2004), and Exploring Yan Fu’s Variational Translation Thoughts (2016). These works shed light on the objects, methods, and reasons with respect to VT and have had a significant impact in China. Based on Huang’s research on VTT, the contributors in this volume make practical and theoretical explorations of VT.