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Among the numerous German translations of the traditional Chinese cultural classic Zhuangzi, the version by the missionary Richard Wilhelm, Dschuang Dsi. Das wahre Buch vom südlichen Blütenland (1912), is of great significance as the first direct translation from Chinese. The work contributed greatly to the popularity of Taoism in Germany. However, studies on the German versions of the Zhuangzi are limited, and most focus on the text itself, whereas the research value of the paratexts has been neglected. This study explores the role of paratexts of Wilhelm's translation in the construction of Zhuang Zhou's philosophical ideas. We find there is a noticeable presence of the translator's voice in the paratexts of Wilhelm's translation. Moreover, the interpretative role of the paratexts can enhance readers' understanding of Wilhelm's construction of the philosophical ideas conveyed by the text. Based on the analysis of paratexts, we conclude that Wilhelm's translation is characterized by Western cultural interventions, such as analogies between Zhuang Zhou and Western philosophers and the adoption of Christian claims. This may be attributed to the goal of Wilhelm's translation (i.e., to introduce the Zhuangzi to general German-speaking readers), his cultural background of Western education (especially at the Tübingen Seminary), and the sinological tradition of studying and translating Chinese classics from the perspective of Western culture at the time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on paratextual elements in the form of endnotes and footnotes in four annotated English translations of Mikhail Bulgakov's most famous novel, The Master and Margarita. The paper aims to analyze the translators' perception of the reader's cultural knowledge, what the translators believe the audience might not know that they consider important, and the translators' ability to recognize Bulgakov's allusions and references. The paper explores the thematic categories and the content of the notes to evaluate how they introduce the readers to a different cultural environment and to what extent the notes are helpful to the reader. The empirical section is based on an analysis of more than five hundred footnotes and endnotes divided into thematic categories. The importance of notes in understanding translators' decisions based on assumptions about what may be unfamiliar to the target audience has been extensively researched (Toledano-Buendia 2013; Landers 2001; Sanchez Ortiz 2015; Pellatt 2013). No scholarly attention has so far been paid to any paratextual material connected to the English translations of Bulgakov's The Master and Margarita, which is one of the most often retranslated works of fiction of Russian classics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims at investigating the phenomenon of censoring and withholding translated books in Jordan. The source of data is a list of all banned translated books at Yarmouk University Library in Jordan (n = 60). The list was first analyzed and classified thematically. Qualitative data were obtained via semi-structured interviews with the librarians. When available, reference was made to the paratextual material of the withheld translated books. Moreover, the official website of the Jordan Media Commission was consulted to identify the factors that may contribute to censoring and blocking translated works in Jordan. The results show that librarians ban books for various religious, moral, social, political, and ideological reasons. Furthermore, it was revealed that censorship in Jordan is subjectively conducted and does not follow clear-cut rules and regulations. Finally, using paratextual elements in investigating the motives for censoring books proved to be an effective method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the Ming and Qing dynasties the translation of Western books fueled the phenomenon known as Eastward Transmission of Western Sciences. In this context, the collaborative translation of The Chinese Classics by James Legge (1815–1897) and Wang Tao (1828–1897) was of particular significance because it promoted the transmission of Eastern learning to the West in the late Qing dynasty. This process of collaborative translation provided an opportunity for cultural interaction between China and the West; at the same time, it also generated competition between the two cultures. This paper sets out to investigate the paratexts written by the two co-translators, namely Legge and Wang, and aims to answer the following questions: How did the translation process of The Chinese Classics generate a dialectical interaction and why did it create a cultural struggle between the two translators? What impact did such a cultural collision exert on the translation and interpretation of The Chinese Classics and its reception in the West? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to examine news translators' para-textual visibility suggested through their names and other indicators of identity in TTs to gain clues to their status within media organizations. For this purpose, (1) whether translators' identity is given in TTs, (2) what type of information, if any, is provided, and (3) how it is presented in terms of location, size, colour and space is explored. The corresponding data for ST writers, particularly reporters, are also analysed for comparison. The findings suggest that while more than half of the 11 organisations analysed present the translators' identity in some form in the TTs, the full name is provided only by two organizations with one presenting the title of translators as a reporter and most of the identity indicators are visible only when readers scroll down several times to reach them. The identity indicators of reporters and other contributors, on the other hand, are provided in a very detailed and conspicuous manner. The findings show that translators, despite being one of the key contributors in news production, remain considerably invisible in the very texts they produce, indicating that they are denied the recognition and credit they deserve within media organisations, which can in turn reinforce their low status. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article aims to investigate the relationship between paratexts and the translation product with a case study of Lolita translations in China. Since Lolita has been one of the most frequently retranslated literary works in China over the past three decades, it can serve as a bellwether of the changes that have taken place in the translation field as well as those in the social, cultural and historical context. Therefore, a comparative study of the paratextual elements of Lolita translations acts as a reflection of the negotiations between the translation activity and the changing socio-political context. The analysis of paratexts locates translation as a social activity in which many agents are involved other than simply the translator and the source text. Through their organic integration with the translation products, the paratextual elements, functioning as genre indicators, work to promote the translation while potentially predicting its target readership. In the translation and retranslation of the same source text, a discussion of the paratexts may provide new insights into understanding the relationship between translations and retranslations as well as the evolution of the translation field in relation to Chinese society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a participant in interpersonal communications, the interpreter is subject to a number of different and sometimes conflicting ethical constraints. It may be argued that the interpreter negotiates between three main ethical spheres: that of the professions they provide interpreting service to, that of the interpreting profession, and the personal ethics of the interpreter himself.This article compares the ways translators and interpreters define their ethical positions in terms of paratexts and framing. The author argues that while paratexts are not available for the interpreter to define and delimit his ethical position, there are other factors that effectively frame this position. These factors are either controlled by the interpreter himself, encoded in the codes of his professional association or stipulated by the regulations of the profession that he provides interpreting service to. By examining how such factors intersect, the author believes that it is ultimately personal ethics that prevail in the ethical positioning of the interpreter. From such an understanding the article seeks in particular to define the ways in which an interpreter frames her personal ethical position in the interpreting setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]