Introduction-Chinese discourses on translation: Positions and perspectives

Chinese discourses on translation have always been a site for negotiating cultural politics, and for heated debates about the perennial problem of China's relation with the world. In its most recent form, the debate revolves around whether the import of foreign translation theories and the application of these theories to Chinese materials have resulted in a marginalization of traditional Chinese discourse on translation within the Chinese system of knowledge, and in the muting of Chinese voices to mere echoes of the voice of the West. Also debated vigorously is the related question of the importance of asserting Chineseness in academic discourses on translation. The reasons behind the Chinese preoccupation with issues of national and cultural identity are explored in the broader context of the postcolonial world and the plight of scholars working in non-metropolitan centres. The positions and perspectives of the major participants in this local debate are almost certain to have reverberations not only among the scholars concerned but also among those committed to moving beyond Eurocentric modes of thinking and promoting dialogue between major and non-major translation traditions.