From Alley to Longtang : Interlingual Reconstruction of Local Spatiality in English Translation of Wang Anyi's Chang Hen Ge

Wang Anyi's Chang Hen Ge and its English translation, The Song of Everlasting Sorrow: A Novel of Shanghai translated by Michael Berry and Susan Chan Egan, has been particularly well received and become an important example in the transnational dissemination of contemporary Chinese literature. This paper examines the interlingual reconstruction of longtang as a form of local spatiality in this novel. Adopting a spatial approach that involves the four levels of material spatiality, literary-imagined spatiality, translated spatiality and readerly spatiality, this study understands longtang not just as a culture-specific term but rather a multilayered urban space influenced by architectural space, daily life, sensory experience and cultural memories. Methodologically, the paper makes use of techniques of close reading, comparative textual analysis and reception analysis. In terms of source text analysis, the paper begins with an attempt to understand how the source text has transformed Shanghai longtang into a literary space. Following this is a discussion on how the target text has reconstructed the spatiality through visuals, sound, touch and smell. The final section deals with reviews, awards and readers' responses in an attempt to find out the readerly space constructed in the target context.