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ORCID
https://orcid.org/0009-0001-1445-9010
Access Type
Campus-Only Access for Five (5) Years
Document Type
thesis
Embargo Period
9-1-2028
Degree Program
Comparative Literature
Degree Type
Master of Arts (M.A.)
Year Degree Awarded
2023
Month Degree Awarded
September
Abstract
This thesis project is comprised of a partial Chinese translation of The Awakening, a translator’s introduction in Chinese for Chinese readers, and an accompanying critical analysis for my translation. My Chinese translation is guided by feminist translation theory. Its central ideas are that translations should expose and redress gender-based prejudices, challenge and subvert male-dominated linguistic and cultural systems, and promote gender equality in cross-cultural communications.
The Awakening is a pioneering feminist novel written by the American author Kate Chopin and published in 1899. It centers on protagonist Edna Pontellier’s gradual departure from her socially conventional roles as a mother and wife and her unfolding awakening to her individuality and sexuality in the late Victorian era. My partial Chinese translation focuses on the gender and sexuality-related excerpts in the novel, which include the depictions of the female body, the Victorian patriarchy, the inner emotions of the protagonist, and the intimacy and sexuality displayed between the protagonist and the male characters in the novel. The translator’s introduction aims to introduce Chinese readers to Kate Chopin and her works and explain the translation interventions I have made in my translation. The accompanying critical analysis discusses my translation approaches and the decision-making process to foreground the feminist themes and convey them to the Chinese readership while preserving the language texture of an English novel from the 19th century in its Chinese rendition.
DOI
https://doi.org/10.7275/35824205.0
First Advisor
Moira Inghilleri
Second Advisor
Corine Tachtiris
Third Advisor
Enhua Zhang
Recommended Citation
Zhang, Xiaobo, "Translating Gender and Sexuality in The Awakening by Kate Chopin" (2023). Masters Theses. 1363.
https://doi.org/10.7275/35824205.0
https://scholarworks.umass.edu/masters_theses_2/1363