Reconstructing the English Translation Network of the Tao Te Ching An SNA-Based Study of Indirect Translation

Abstract

This study investigates indirect translation in the English history of the Tao Te Ching through Social Network Analysis (SNA). Based on a self-constructed corpus of 254 English translations, of which 40 exhibit clear indirect translation practices, translators are modeled as nodes and source-text dependencies as directed ties inferred from paratextual evidence. The network analysis reveals a pronounced core - periphery structure in which a small number of translations—most notably those by Witter Bynner, Paul Carus and Gia-Fu Feng and Jane English—function as central hubs, while academically authoritative translations remain relatively peripheral. Further analysis shows that translational influence is shaped less by linguistic competence than by readability, publisher mediation, and market circulation. By conceptualizing indirect translation as a relational system, this study challenges source-centered models of translational authority and argues for a decentered approach to the global translation history of Chinese classical texts.