A Comparative Study of Two Chinese Versions of The Moon and Sixpence: A Narratological Perspective

Narrative strategies and discourse features correlate strongly with the characterization, thematic significance as well as rhetorical effect in narrative fictions. This paper will conduct a comparative study of Fu Weici's and Li Jihong's Chinese version of The Moon and Sixpence with particular reference to five examples from two narratological aspects, namely unreliable narration and narrative tense. Attention will be focused on to what extent and how relevant stylistic markers of these narrative features have been recreated in the target text. It is suggested that translators should always be sensitive enough to detect any stylistic markers of unique narrative features, identify their association with characterization, thematic and artistic value and reproduce them in the target text so as to ensure an optimal transference of their embedded rhetorical effect.