A Comparative Study of Four English Translations of <i>Six Records of a Floating Life</i> from the Perspective of Translation Aesthetics

The English translation of literary works has always been regarded as an important research field in translation studies, and excellent works possess high aesthetic value in translation. Based on Liu Miqing’s translation aesthetics, the paper compares four versions by Lin Yutang, Shirley Black, Pratt, and Graham Saunders, from the perspective of translation aesthetics, focusing on aesthetic elements such as the sound, images, symbols, and perceptual emotions. This study examines parallels and discrepancies between how the aesthetic subject interprets and replicates the aesthetic object in four current English translations of Six Records of a Floating Life. The analysis shows that translation aesthetics plays an important role in literary translation, and different translators apply various translation methods due to their different knowledge and background, which sheds light on translation theory and practice in the future.