On the Formal Equivalence of Translating Classical Chinese Drama —Centered on the English translations of the Northern Drama Han gong qiu of the Yuan Dynasty

Abstract

The Northern drama (zaju) of the Yuan Dynasty has distinct formal characteristics in terms of script structure, arias and speaking lines, musical modes and song suites, as well as the linguistic register and metrical requirements. By comparing the three English translations of the Northern drama (zaju) Han gong qiu with the original Chinese text, there appear several deficiencies in presenting the capacity of performability and readability of this text, which includes the misplacing of the literary status of the songs and dialogue, the omitting of the musical modes and metrics. The formal feature exemplifies the “significant form” and poses an indispensable part of the content of Yuan Zaju.