박경리 『토지』의 중국어 번역본 검토 - 『토지』는 ‘번역’될 수 있는가?

Abstract

Toji (토지, The Land), Pak Kyong Ni’s epic novel set against the backdrop of Korea’s turbulent modern history has been translated into six languages but none to completion. This study takes stock of the status of translations that have been conducted outside of Korea thus far, clarifies the circumstances and facts related to the Chinese translation in particular, and compares the linguistic differences between the original and translated texts. In doing so, this study will assess the conditions and methods that must be considered in for mid to late 20th century Korean literature that deals with East Asia’s modern history to be translated beyond its era and region / to transcend its era and region in translations. Known as a veritable repository of Korean language, Pak’s Toji frequently contains dialects, honorific forms, tenses, quotations, idioms, pronunciations, slurs, etc. Not only is such language important to the narrative development and esthetics of the novel, it also reveals the novel’s/author’s ideas and world view. This study examines the method, effect/achievement, and problems in how the expressions are translated into Chinese. Comparing the texts shows that the Chinese translation of Toji selects and adopts both domestication and foreignization strategies for each issue/chapter. The study also confirms that the Chinese translation has similar difficulties as the Japanese, German, and French translations while achieving a different effect. Translation research such as ours must go beyond comparing languages to reveal the point where the cultural translation of ideas and sensibilities occurs. Furthermore, while only the first part of Toji has been translated into Chinese to date, it is hoped that critical studies of the translation in Part 1 can be appropriately reflected in translations of Parts 2-5 which differ in perspectives and styles.