Exploring Transculturality in the Paratextual Mediation of Li（礼）: A Case Study of Lunyu Translation by Chinese Diasporas

Abstract

Translation is not a simplified activity of transferring meaning from one language or culture to another, but rather a dynamic process and outcome arising from the interaction between two languages and cultures. At its core lies cultural mediation. In the current context of cultural globalization, translators with diasporic experiences often utilize para texts to actively connect two cultures, mediate cultural differences, and reposition the way target-language readers comprehend the source text. Through this process, their translations exhibit transcultural characteristics. Combining theories of transculturality and mediation, this study adopts a mixed-method approach—integrating quantitative analysis (word frequency, semantic network analysis, and contextual analysis) with qualitative methods—to examine how two contemporary diasporic Chinese translators, Annping Chin and Peimin Ni, employ paratexts (prefaces, introductions, and annotations) to reconstruct the Confucian concept of li (礼) in their respective translations of The Analects. The study reveals that both translators elevate the significance of li in their translations. Compared to their Western Sinologist counterparts of the same period, diasporic Chinese translators place greater emphasis on interpreting li from an intrinsic perspective, highlighting its inward values. This paratextual mediation underscores a hybrid transcultural translation strategy in which diasporic translators pursue pragmatic objectives while emphasizing the ontological significance of li.