The Literature Review of the Translation of China’s Online Novels - Paper/Article Review

Aug 23, 2026

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In the digital age, the flourishing of China’s online literature accelerates the global circulation of Chinese culture. China’s online novels carry rich traditional cultural elements, including Yin-Yang and eight diagrams, and rely on vivid, popular expressions and highly dramatic plots such as timetravel and rebirth, attracting many overseas readers. As a cultural export bridge, translation is crucial to strengthen foundations and expand online literature worldwide. This paper reviews definitions and classification, then analyzes translation research and its current status through medio-translatology, eco-translatology, and functional equivalence, identifying gaps for future in-depth study.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages7

Reading Time18 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Definition of Online Literature

Classification of Online Novels

Studies in Literature and Language Vol. 27, No. 1, 2023, pp. 31-37 DOI:10.3968/13089 ISSN 1923-1555[Print] ISSN 1923-1563[Online] [www.cscanada.net](www.cscanada.net)[ ](www.cscanada.net)[www.cscanada.org](www.cscanada.org) The Literature Review of the Translation of China’s Online Novels XUAN Yaojie[a],* [a] School of Foreign Languages, Zhejiang University of Finance and Economics, Hangzhou, China. * Corresponding author. Received 22 May 2023; accepted 19 August 2023 Published online 26 August 2023 Abstract In the digital age, the prosperity of China’s online literature has accelerated the process of Chinese culture going global. China’s online novels are rich in traditional Chinese culture, including Yin and Yang and eight diagrams, and have popular expressions and dramatic plots with creative imaginations such as timetravel and rebirth. In this way, China’s online novels gather a large number of overseas fans. As a bridge for Chinese cultural export, translation is all the more necessary at this moment to strengthen the foundation and push China’s online literature onto the world stage. This paper starts with the overview of China’s online literature by discussing its definition, classification, and its international communication. Then, the paper makes a detailed analysis of the current situation of its translation studies from the perspectives of medio-translatology, eco-translatology and functional equivalence theory. The deficiencies of the previous studies are also pointed out to provide some reference for a more comprehensive and in-depth translation study of China’s online novels in the future. Key words: China’s online literature; China’s online novels; translation; communication; review Xuan, Y. J. (2023) . The Literature Review of the Translation of China’s Online Novels. Studies in Literature and Language, 27(1), 31-37. Available from: [http://www.cscanada.net/index.php/sll/article/view/13089](http://www.cscanada.net/index.php/sll/article/view/13089) DOI: [http://dx.doi.org/10.3968/13089](http://dx.doi.org/10.3968/13089) 1. INTRODUCTION For a long time, China has been actively promoting Chinese culture to the world. Online novels, born with the advent of the technological age, possess the capability to spread without being constrained by time or geography. Once published, they can receive rapid feedback from readers. With such high interaction, they has won the hearts of both authors and readers, promoting the updating and improvement of works. The contemporary value of the research on the translation of online novels is expanding and extending, and related research continues to advance. While there are quite a few domestic research results, foreign literature is very scarce. A considerable number of scholars conduct researches at the macro level, varying from the definition to countermeasures of the online novel. At the micro level, scholars tend to study the translation strategies, methods or techniques from a certain theoretical perspective or adopt a multidisciplinary approach to their study. This chapter will review the current research on the definition, classification and status quo of online novels. Most previous studies on the international communication of online novels have first started by defining and classifying “online literature” and then moved on to analyzing the current situation. 2.1 Definition of Online Literature Xu Hongjun (2013) talks about the earliest online novels and the author’s own definition of online literature. In 1998, China’s first online novel, The First Close Contact, 31 Copyright © Canadian Academy of Oriental and Occidental Culture The Literature Review of the Translation of China’s Online Novels was serialized on the Internet and published by Taiwanese Internet writer Cai Zhiheng under the pseudonym “Pi Zicai” on BBS. Cai Zhiheng argues that online literature refers to the works published on the Internet by writers in the Inter

FAQs

Why is translation considered necessary for China’s online novels in this research?

The paper argues that online novels gather many overseas fans, and translation strengthens cultural foundations while pushing Chinese online literature onto the world stage.

How does the paper organize its review of online novel translation studies?

It reviews the definition, classification, and international communication of online literature first, then analyzes the translation research status using medio-translatology, eco-translatology, and functional equivalence theory.

What issue do previous studies on the translation of online novels face according to the paper?

The paper points out deficiencies in earlier research and uses them to provide references for more comprehensive and deeper future translation studies.

Aug 23, 2026

Upload by Skyler