從後殖民觀點探究奈及利亞伊博文化的呈現: 以Things Fall Apart的兩本台灣中譯本為例

Representations of Igbo Culture in Mandarin Chinese Translations of Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart: A Postcolonial Perspective

戴維禮(David Idesis)

指導教授 ： 孔思文

國立臺灣大學/文學院/翻譯碩士學位學程/碩士(2022年)

https://doi.org/10.6342/NTU202200347

摘要

非洲文學的翻譯在台灣學術界至今所受到的注目仍顯不足。若從後殖民主義的觀點探討非洲文學的翻譯作品，可觀察到非洲文學的譯者在處理相關文本時，有貶低、邊緣化非洲文化，甚至加深對非洲文化的負面刻板印象的傾向。奇努瓦・阿契貝的作品Things Fall Apart是非洲近代文學的經典小說，作者在述說奈及利亞殖民統治故事的同時，試圖以具尊嚴的形象呈現作品中的伊博文化。阿契貝曾經多次提到，西方文學作者長期以異化的手法形塑非洲和非洲人，因此他撰寫這部作品旨在導正這類對非洲有欠公允的形象。雖然Things Fall Apart是英文作品，但阿契貝採用許多伊博文用語，使這本著作能更深入刻劃伊博族遭受殖民統治的經歷。本論文研讀兩本Things Fall Apart在台灣所出版的中文版本，希望藉此探討中文翻譯如何邊緣化非洲、深化外界對非洲的負面刻板印象，並因此扭曲阿契貝想要傳達給讀者的信息；相對的也會同時爬梳不同的翻譯版本又如何在譯文中形塑伊博人和文化的尊嚴。為詳探相關的翻譯策略，本研究分析兩本譯文：楊安祥的〈支離破碎〉（1989）及黃女玲的〈分崩離析〉（2014），重點會聚焦在譯者如何翻譯文化詞、對話與信仰相關的內容和強化或避開特定的刻板印象。文本研究結果呈現，楊安祥的翻譯帶有對非洲的負面刻板印象以迎合中文的語言規範，然而黃女玲做了很厚實的文化背景研究，使得其譯本裡的伊博文化有更尊嚴的呈現。

關鍵字

文化表徵 ； 後殖民文學翻譯 ； 後殖民文學 ； 非洲文學翻譯 ； 分崩離析

並列摘要

The translation of African literature in Taiwan has thus far garnered relatively little academic attention. Postcolonial approaches to translation recognise the propensity for demeaning, marginalising or entrenching negative stereotypes of African culture in literary translation. Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart, a modern African classic, was intended to provide a dignified representation of Igbo (an ethnic group living primarily in modern-day Nigeria) culture in its narrative of Nigeria’s colonisation. Achebe spoke extensively about his work being aimed at redressing unfair portrayals of Africa in Western literature which had long exoticized the continent and its peoples. Although written in English, Achebe infused his work with Igbo vocabulary, making it carry the weight of the Igbo colonial experience. This study seeks to determine to what extent Mandarin translations of Things Fall Apart in Taiwan distort Achebe’s intended message by marginalising and reinforcing negative stereotypes of Africa, or conversely by rendering Igbo people and culture with dignity. To identify what types of strategies were employed to do this, two translations – by Anna Yang [楊安祥, 〈支離破碎〉 (1989)] and Huang Nu-ling [黃女玲, 〈分崩離析〉 (2014)] – are examined with a focus on their rendering of culture-specific items, dialogue, and belief systems, as well as how certain stereotypes are highlighted or avoided. The textual analysis reveals that Yang’s translation tends to adapt Achebe’s work in accordance with Mandarin language norms and stereotypes of Africa, depicting Igbo people and culture as less civilised, while Huang’s translation – backed up by extensive research – depicts them with greater dignity.

並列關鍵字

cultural representation ； postcolonial approaches to translation ； postcolonial literature ； translation of African literature ； Things Fall Apart

參考文獻

Achebe, C. 1965. English and the African Writer. Transition No. 18. Indiana University Press.

Achebe, C. 1958. 支離破碎. Translated from English by Anna Yang (楊安祥), 1989. 台灣商務印書館印行.

Achebe, C. 1958. 分崩離析. Translated from English by Huang Nu-ling (黃女玲), 2014. 遠流出版公司.

Akers Rhoads, D. 1993. Culture in Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart. African Studies Review Vol. 36, No. 2. Cambridge University Press

Anonymous. 2021. Looking beyond skin color: It’s time for Taiwanese to reckon with racism. Crossing (online: https://crossing.cw.com.tw/article/14710)