On Skopos Theory and Ku Hungming’s Translation of Lunyu

Abstract

There are a variety of translations of Lunyu into English, among which Ku Hungming’s version is highly debated. Some people argue that Ku’s translation is too creative while other people believe his selection of wording is superior to that of others. Lin Yutang’s comments on Ku’s translation of Lunyu are, “His English is outstanding, which is rarely seen in the late two hundred years. His diction and word selection is outstanding.†As is pointed out by Jing Shuoyu, the purpose of translation is to help communication and understanding. Ku’s translation of Lunyu has made comparisons between well-known figures and books from the source and target cultures, it has also cited famous authors from the target culture. Therefore, it is argued in this article that Ku had decreased barriers between the source culture and target culture, hence the translator seemed ‘invisible’.