A Study on the C-E Translation of Metaphors in the Zhuangzi from the Perspective of Conceptual Blending Theory 概念整合理论视域下《庄子》中隐喻的英译研究开题报告

1. 研究目的与意义（文献综述包含参考文献）

文 献 综 述a study on the c-e translation of metaphors in the zhuangzifrom the perspective of conceptual blending theory概念整合理论视域下《庄子》中隐喻的英译研究1. introductionour daily life is full of metaphors, and there are very few sentences without metaphors at all. in the traditional sense, metaphor has been regarded as a rhetorical device, but in fact, it is a universal way of thinking and a powerful cognitive tool for conceptualizing abstract categories. according to lakoff and johnson, metaphor is viewed as involving the cognitive mechanism by which humans use their experience in one field to explain or understand another new field. this statement has overturned the traditional view that metaphor is only a rhetorical method used in literary works and has attracted great attention from academic circles at home and abroad. therefore, many scholars have rushed to conduct extensive research on conceptual metaphor from all levels. as a result, after more than 30 years of development, the present situation of metaphor research has changed.zhuangzi is a famous thinker and philosopher in the warring states period. he was one of the main representatives of the daoist school. the zhuangzi was written by zhuangzi and his students, reflecting zhuangzis philosophy, art, aesthetics, outlook on life, and politics. due to the importance of this work, scholars have conducted a large number of studies from different perspectives, such as linguistics, philosophy, and politics. however, there are relatively few studies on the conceptual metaphors in zhuangzis language and the c-e translation of these metaphors.this thesis intends to study the conceptual metaphors in the zhuangzi and the corresponding translations from the perspective of conceptual blending theory. it analyzes the metaphorical thinking mode behind the language to better understand zhuangzis philosophical thoughts.this thesis consists of five chapters. chapter one is the introduction part, which presents the research background, research purpose, research methodology and the overall structure of the thesis. chapter two reviews previous research on conceptual blending theory and studies on english translations of the zhuangzi. it also summarizes the research gap. chapter three illustrates the theoretical framework, including a general introduction to conceptual blending theory and metaphor translation based on conceptual blending theory. chapter four analyzes metaphors in the zhuangzi and the translation strategies of metaphors from the perspective of conceptual blending theory. the last chapter is the concluding section, which summarizes the major findings, points out the limitations, and puts forward suggestions for further study.2. literature review2.1 previous studies on conceptual blending theory2.1.1 previous studies on conceptual blending theory abroadconceptual blending theory (cbt), was founded and developed by fauconnier and turner (1996, 1998, 2002). in 1985, fauconnier first proposed the mental spaces theory, which laid the foundation for cbt. conceptual blending here refers to the integration of mental spaces, which refer to the conceptual packet constructed for partial understanding and action when people are talking and thinking (fauconnier turner, 1996). in 1998, they found that conceptual integration is an important cognitive operation in mental space reflecting many linguistic phenomena. later, they (2002) add that cbt is a theoretical framework for exploring meaning construction, especially real-time meaning construction and information integration.coulson (2000) explores the function of mental space and conceptual integration in language comprehension. she (2001) further develops mental spaces and conceptual integration into a comprehensive cognitive theory of discourse understanding and discourse management. in 2002, fauconnier and turner not only comprehensively summarize the development and achievements of mental space and cbt and some principles that restrict conceptual integration but also further put forward the type of conceptual integration network: simplex networks, mirror networks, single-scope networks and double-scope network.subsequently, coulson and petten (2002) combine event-related potential (erp) experiments with conceptual integration and metaphor studies, which provides experimental evidence for theoretical research of mental space and conceptual integration. brandt (2005) argues that fauconniers cbt fails to analyze instantaneous discourse, text, dialogue, language, general signs, and the meaning people express in context. to put cbt into good use, it is necessary to extract the content to be analyzed from the real context, or turn the expressions as examples of analysis, instead of analyzing just to grasp the meaning of the data. grady (2005) argues that one of the most striking aspects of conceptual synthesis is the attempt to unify a wide range of complex conceptual phenomena and to treat them as the product of a single cognitive process.evans and green (2006) hold that conceptual integration is central to human thinking and imagination. radden et al. (2007) study the role of mental space and conceptual blending theory in meaning construction and compile a collection of essays, aspects of meaning construction.handl and schmid (2011) argues that cbt has huge explanatory potential and can enhance our understanding of how traditional and creative ways of thinking affect our language. oakley and pascual (2017) emphasize that mental spaces are best viewed as scenes in more complex networks, where conceptual blending form the general framework and model for mastering the details of those activities.berberovic and dzanic (2020) apply cbt to explore the construction of the (humorous) meaning of two satirical texts in conceptual blending and the role of conceptual blending in achieving rhetorical goals. they find that in addition to explaining the creation of (humorous) meaning, cbt can also reveal why blends have rhetorical power. 2.1.2 previous studies on conceptual blending theory at homethe research on conceptual blending theory by chinese scholars started relatively late, beginning at the beginning of this century. in november 2000, wang shaohua published the first paper, from blended space theory to the meaning construction of metaphors, introducing cbt in china. it is the first time for chinese readers to understand the framework of cbt and its interpretation of metaphorical meaning construction. since then, conceptual blending theory has become one of the hot topics in cognitive linguistics in china.huang hua (2001) makes a brief comparison between cmt and cbt. he finds that cbt is more complex and thorough, and more convincing in explaining the metaphorical nature and novel metaphors of discourses such as fables. wang wenbin (2004) introduces cbt from five aspects: the development track and main ideas, domestic research and application, achievements, existing problems, and the test of this theory. he makes a conclusion that conceptual blending theory is a continuation and development of mental spaces theory, but it cannot provide an inclusive explanation for all speech patterns at present.wang zhengyuan (2009) proposes that concept integration is a way of human thinking. conceptual integration not only produces linguistic products but also promotes scientific progress and technological innovation. wu weishan(2011) analyzes the framework of concept integration from elements, types, mechanisms, and word innovation, thus deeply discussing concept integration and meaning construction.conceptual blending theory has been widely applied by domestic scholars to discourse analysis, translation practice, second language acquisition, and some other fields. although conceptual blending theory is not a specific translation theory, it is still a breakthrough to apply it to translation studies. however, most scholars only use cbt to explain the translation process, and few apply it to translation practice to verify its explanatory power in translation studies (zhang hui, 2008).wang bin (2001, 2011) points out that translation is a two-way process of conceptual integration between the original text and the target text and deeply analyzes the explanatory function of conceptual integration in translation. starting from meaning and translation, he explores the relationship between metaphor and equivalence, objective meaning and subjective meaning, and metaphor and integration, and points out the limitations of the traditional translation metaphors. from the aspect of cognitive structure, he brings translation into the conceptual integration network and makes it dynamically operable to explain various contradictions that are difficult to be solved in the traditional translation view. yin fulin(2007) puts forward that the translation process is dynamic and explains in detail the operation mode of the translation process under the conceptual blending mechanism and the determination of the translation subject. he (2007) adopts cbt to study the subjects and their inter-subjective relationships in translation and concludes that the interaction between various subjects takes the concept mapping as the medium and the harmonious intersubjectivity as the goal to complete the blending and creativity of translation．miao ju believes that translation criteria and their functional process are one of the phenomena of translation thinking. she (2014) applies the schema of cbt to analyze the participation mechanism of translation criteria in the translation process, revealing the complex cognitive thinking process of translation. luo miaobao argues that traditional translation theories are only applicable to informational texts. he (2015) takes the abridged translation of twenty-eight artists and two saints as an example to expound the applicability of translation strategies generated by cbt, thus providing a new perspective for the translation of biographical literature.in recent years, researches conducted have mostly interpreted various works from different fields from the perspective of conceptual blending theory, including literature, medicine, film, television, etc. by comparing different versions of the work, scholars analyze the strategies or cognitive process of metaphor translation and demonstrate the rationality and universality of cbt. examples of literary works include the autobiography decision point (xu jiajia, 2017), the field of life and death (ma haijuan, 2018), rickshaw boy (huang min jiang min, 2021), etc. in addition, film and television works are also involved, such as the movie gone with the wind (da shan, 2018). yao qiuhui and chen zhan (2021) and zhang huan (2021) all choose the medical work huangdi neijing as the research object. 2.2 previous studies on english translations of zhuangzizhuangzi, one of the daoist classics written in the pre-qin period, has a strong romantic style and has a great influence on the literature of later generations. it has gained great popularity both at home and abroad because of its high research value in philosophy and literature. the english translation of zhuangzi began in the late 19th century. as early as 1881, balfour published the first english translation of zhuangzi simultaneously in shanghai and london, the divine classic of nan-hua. later, several full and selected translations appeared, and the research on the english translation of zhuangzi increased as well.some scholars have reviewed the translation history of zhuangzi and its translations in different historical periods. bao zhaohui (2004) reviews the general situation of the studies of zhuangzi in english-speaking countries and holds that it is not until about 1980 that the studies of zhuangzi abroad become really mature. based on the development of daoism, huang zhongxi (2010) expounds on the result of the english translation and research of the zhuangzi and points out three translation characteristics. he holds that philosophy, literature, and religion are the three perspectives for the translation of the zhuangzi. by comparing the differences between the three english versions of a happy excursion, yang yan (2010) analyzes the different translation methods adopted and believes that the c-e translation of chinese classics should focus on such translation strategies as scene restoration, lexicalization of sports events, and filling up cultural gaps, etc.some studies from the perspective of culture and philosophy are applied to the english translation of the zhuangzi. xu lai (2005) uses the descriptive method to study various versions of zhuangzi to reveal the role of translation played in the broadcasting of daoism to the west. fung yulans translation of zhuangzi is the first version translated by a chinese translator and the first to emphasize zhuangzis philosophy. based on this version, jiang li (2010) finds that fung yulan did not distinguish zhuangzis philosophical thoughts from guo xiangs and did not analyze the philosophical differences between zhuangzis philosophy and guo xiangs annotations. zhu shuran (2019) believes that the translation of zhuangzi from the perspective of literature and culture cannot fully reflect its ideological value. it is necessary to explore further the way of philosophical translation to present the philosophical thoughts in zhuangzi to the english- speaking world.for zhuangzi, a daoist classic full of philosophy, metaphor is not only a vital tool to convey the authors thoughts but also an important means to embody its literariness. the systematic mapping of conceptual metaphors in zhuangzi is reflected in words, discourse, and even language. in recent years, relevant research carried out from the perspective of cognitive linguistics has greatly increased, mainly focusing on conceptual metaphor. zhang xiaojing (2013) extracts metaphors from the chinese version of zhuangzi translated and annotated by fang yong to study how metaphor is constructed in english translation and the relevant translation strategies. at the same time, the english versions translated by james legge (1891a, b), watson (1968/2013), mair (1994), and wang rongpei (1999) are selected as the research objects. lei jing (2015) selects three typical english versions of wang rongpei, mair, and watson and makes a comprehensive analysis of metaphor translations in the three versions by using conceptual metaphor theory and schema theory, trying to explore the ways to reproduce the metaphorical characteristics of the chinese original in its english translation from the cognitive perspective. long juan (2017) makes a comparative analysis of different representations of metaphors in zhuangzi based on the idealized cognitive model (icm) theory and then further investigates the translators subjective initiative. starting from ecological philosophy, lin lin and tong yuping (2021) compare the animal metaphors in the three english versions of zhuangzi, aiming to explore the differences in the effects of different animal metaphor translation strategies on the ecological value of the source text. based on the metaphor theory of lakoff and johnson, tang jiali (2021) chooses the english versions by watson, hamill, seaton, and fung yulan to analyze the c-e translation of metaphors in zhuangzi from three categories: structural metaphor, orientation metaphor, and ontological metaphor.2.3 research gapit can be seen that the research on conceptual blending theory have been deepening since the 21st century. on the one hand, some scholars begin to question the internal operation mechanism of the theory and put forward suggestions for modification and solutions. on the other hand, it is more widely used in literature, stylistics, metaphor, grammar, discourse analysis, neurolinguistics, and translatology. however, relatively few studies have applied cbt to the c-e translation of metaphors in traditional chinese literature. besides, studies of metaphor translation in zhuangzi are rather limited. to bridge these gaps, this thesis aims to study the conceptual metaphors in zhuangzi and the corresponding translations from the perspective of conceptual blending theory.referencesaugustyn, r. (2013). conceptual blending and translation equivalence: cognitive linguistics meets translation studies. paper presented at the 12th international cognitive linguistics conference, edmonton, canada. berberovic, s., dzanic, n. d. (2020). the president and the viper: political satire and conceptual blending theory. jezikoslovlje, 21(3), 371-393.brandt, l., brandt, p. (2005). making sense of a blend: a cognitive-semiotic approach to metaphor. annual review of cognitive linguistics, (3), 216-249.evans, v. (2019). cognitive linguistics: a complete guide. edinburgh: edinburgh university press.fauconnier, g., turner, m. (2002). the way we think: conceptual blending and the minds hidden complexities. new york: basic books.grady, j. (2005). primary metaphors as inputs to conceptual integration. journal of pragmatics, 37.handl, s., ano, i. (eds.). (2013). cognitive linguistics and translation: advances in some theoretical models and application. berlin: walter de gruyter.兰文燕、王斌（2014），解读概念整合理论，安徽文学(下半月)，（1）：33-34。

雷静（2016），从认知视域论《庄子》隐喻英译，湘南学院学报，(6):68-73。

林琳、佟玉平（2021），《庄子》的生态哲学英译研究以动物隐喻表述为例，语言教育,9(1)：67-72。

2. 研究的基本内容、问题解决措施及方案

MethodologyAs the main purpose of this study is to analyze the C-E translation of metaphors in Zhuangzi, a descriptive method is needed to describe many linguistic phenomena and the result. In this way, the features or functions of the translation are indicated.A qualitative study is employed to explain the translation of metaphors and give a preliminary explanation of the translation strategies. In terms of research methods, induction is more commonly used than deduction in a qualitative study.Case analysisis also applied in this thesis. It will give the readers many typical examples of metaphors selected from the Zhuangzi to reinforce the points of view presented. These examples will be divided into different categories by specific criteria and then described in detail from the perspective of Conceptual Blending Theory.