Conflict Between Romantic Love and Traditional Morals: A Comparative Study of Two Late Qing Translations of Joan Haste

本文以英國作家哈葛德的言情小說Joan Haste為討論基點，從包天笑譯《迦因小傳》和林紓譯《迦茵小傳》不同的翻譯策略，探討譯者們各自的道德底線和考量，如何影響到翻譯文本的呈現。晚清批評家們對《迦茵小傳》的種種非議，反映出西式的浪漫愛情和中國傳統禮教之間的矛盾衝撞；而當時的青年學子們對此書的熱愛，則說明了下一個世代的五四文人如何從這類翻譯小說中汲取激情的能量，以開創出他們日後的浪漫主義書寫。回顧從晚清到五四的文學發展軌跡，我們可以說，藉著翻譯《迦茵小傳》，林紓在無意間引進了一種具有顛覆性的強大力量，不僅挑戰了他自己堅信的傳統倫理道德，也為中國現代文學開啟了新的道路。This paper takes the British popular writer Henry Rider Haggard’s (1856-1925) sentimental novel Joan Haste as the starting point of inquiry. By analyzing Bao Tianxiao’s (1876-1973) and Lin Shu’s (1852-1924) varied translations of Joan Haste, I investigate how their different translation strategies and morals influenced their representations of this romantic love story. The late Qing critics’ disapproval of Lin’s translation, Jiayin xiaozhuan (A brief story of Joan), shows the conflict between Western-style romantic love and Chinese traditional ethics. However, contemporary youths were fascinated by Jiayin xiaozhuan. The enthusiasm and praise that they showed for this book demonstrate how the power of intense emotion in this kind of translated novel influenced the May Fourth writers of the next generation, thus helping them to create their own romanticism. Tracing the trajectory of the literary development from the late Qing to May Fourth, it is clear that by translating Joan Haste, Lin Shu not only unintentionally imported a subversive power that challenged the very morals that he held so dearly, but also opened up new possibilities for modern Chinese Literature