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Variation and Reconstruction of Zhuge Liang’s Images in Three Kingdoms Translated by Moss Roberts



Author(s)

YI Zi-ning

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DOI:10.17265/2159-5836/2025.05.002

Minnan Science and Technology College, Fujian, China

As a classic novel, San Guo Yan Yi raises a crucial cross—cultural communication question: how can Western readers accurately and objectively understand Zhuge Liang’s image in its overseas translation? Influenced by cultural context disparities and the intervention of the translator’s subjectivity, Moss Roberts has boldly transformed and reshaped Zhuge Liang’s traditionally-perceived image. In Three Kingdoms, from the image of an omnipotent wise man, a benevolent person, and a loyal and unwavering sage, Moss Roberts constructs images of Zhuge Liang who, while possessing genuine talent and knowledge, is also narrow-minded, jealous of the able and virtuous, and has a tinge of hypocrisy, thus creating a strong tragic implication. Through comparisons, this study aims to provide a new dimension for Zhuge Liang’s image, offering references for the study of cross-cultural translation of Chinese classical literature, deepening the understanding of how cultural identities are negotiated in translation.

Three Kingdoms, Moss Roberts, Zhuge Liang, variation, reconstruction

Journal of Literature and Art Studies, May 2025, Vol. 15, No. 5, 366-374