2 The Story of Stone
3 Story of Stone (Story of Stone)
4. A Dream of Red Mansions
The third kind of translation is the most common.
At present, the English version of A Dream of Red Mansions translated by Yang and Yang has been widely recognized. Mr. and Mrs. Yang are great translators. I didn't dare to say anything, but after years of thinking, I still think this translation is actually a mistake. I dare say it for everyone to learn and discuss. I think the "red building" mentioned in A Dream of Red Mansions does not refer to the "red building", just as the "brothel" does not refer to the "blue building" but the "brothel". Here, the "red building" refers to the "daughter building" or "boudoir", where girls live before marriage. If you translate "red chamber" into "red chamber", there is no such meaning as "daughter chamber". But if it only refers to the "daughter's building", it will be easier to translate, because in the west, there are also "boudoir" where girls live before marriage, such as "boudoir", which means "boudoir, a woman's bedroom or dressing room and living room". However, it is not appropriate to translate A Dream of Red Mansions into a boudoir dream, because the boudoir in the west is totally different from that in China. The "boudoir" in the west is only the place where women live before they get married, and it is only a woman's bedroom. But China's boudoir has a deeper cultural connotation. A good girl living in a "boudoir" in China is in a state of self-isolation, or house arrest. A good girl, the more high-ranking officials and nobles, is under a kind of strict monitoring and control, in a closed state, and can't talk or associate with any men except her own family. This is incredible in the west. In western feudal society, girls were much more free before marriage than girls in China, and they could associate with men without any restrictions. Feudal society in the west is far less feudal than that in China. Therefore, the western "boudoir" has no closed meaning in China's "boudoir". If A Dream of Red Mansions is translated into A Boudoir Dream, it still cannot accurately express the unique cultural connotation of China. In fact, in the final analysis, dreams are made by people, not houses. It is better to simply translate them into "girls' dreams". The dreams of girls in the East and the West are similar. Unmarried women in the East and the West have similar yearning and pursuit for love. In fact, A Dream of Red Mansions is not about Jia Baoyu's dream, but about twelve women in Jinling. More accurately, it is "12 girls' dream". I think this translation may be more accurate than A Dream of Red Mansions. Or, simply avoid it and call it "stone". "Stone" will not be controversial.