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A Comparative Study of the Translation of “Li” in The Analects from the Perspective of Translator’s Subjectivity

by Xinyi Huang 1,*
1
School of International Studies, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang , China.
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
JASES  2025 7(4):251; https://doi.org/10.69610/j.ases.20250823
Received: / Accepted: / Published Online: 23 August 2025
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Abstract

This paper analyzed the English translations of the key term “Li” in The Analects, comparing the versions by James Legge, Arthur Waley, Ku Hung-Ming and LAU Din Cheuk to explore differences in translation strategies and styles from the perspective of translator’s subjectivity. While Arthur Waley and LAU Din Cheuk tended to favor literal translation, uniformly rendering “Li” as “ritual” or “rites”, James Legge and Ku Hung-Ming adopted a more interpretive approach. However, James Legge didn’t distinguish the different meaning of “Li” and preferred to use words and phrases related to “propriety”. Ku Hung-Ming, in contrast, flexibly used terms like “art”, “civilization”, “courtesy”, etc. based on context to accurately convey the multidimensional meanings of “Li” in The Analects. Waley’s and LAU’s translations were closer to the syntactic form of the original texts, while Legge’s and Ku’s translations were closer to the semantic meaning of the original text, considering cultural disparities and contextual meanings, conveying the essence of Confucian thought. Overall, both translations contributed to the spread of Confucian philosophy, enriching global readers’ understanding of Chinese culture.

Keywords: The Analects; “Li”; translator’s subjectivity.;
Copyright: © 2025 by Huang. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) (Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

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ACS Style
Huang, X. A Comparative Study of the Translation of “Li” in The Analects from the Perspective of Translator’s Subjectivity. Journal of Arts, Society, and Education Studies, 2025, 7, 251. doi:10.69610/j.ases.20250823
AMA Style
Huang X.. A Comparative Study of the Translation of “Li” in The Analects from the Perspective of Translator’s Subjectivity. Journal of Arts, Society, and Education Studies; 2025, 7(4):251. doi:10.69610/j.ases.20250823
Chicago/Turabian Style
Huang, Xinyi 2025. "A Comparative Study of the Translation of “Li” in The Analects from the Perspective of Translator’s Subjectivity" Journal of Arts, Society, and Education Studies 7, no.4:251. doi:10.69610/j.ases.20250823

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