Abstract

This paper examines the transmission of Xíngshì yán in Joseon Korea and the roles of the translator in late Joseon literary culture. Through a comparative study of the Chinese vernacular short story collection, Xíngshì yán 型世言, alongside its Korean translation, we show how the translator in question went further than simply transferring the text from Chinese to Korean. Rather, the translator also acted as a text moderator and an editor, domesticating the text for its readers, mainly royal and gentry women. In the capacity as a textmoderator, the translator made a creative contribution in reconstructing the narrative style and in the use of lexical items and speech style. Simultaneously, as an editor, the translator omitted parts of the text that required an advanced contextual knowledge of Chinese language or culture to comprehend, while also adapting parts of the text that relate to story background, conversations between characters, description of story details, and characters’ psychological processes. Drawing upon Skopos theory, we argue that the act of translating Xíngshì yán was motivated by the goal of presenting the story to a new audience, that is royal and gentry women.