1、 Shakespeare and British Museum Studies

This article elaborates on the origin and development of British natural history, especially during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, when it began to rise with Britain becoming a maritime hegemon and colonial expansion. During this period, the British's collection and curiosity of foreign objects promoted the development of naturalism, and naturalists began to systematically study and classify species. Shakespeare lived during this period and his works were influenced by natural history. He applied a large amount of natural history knowledge in his plays, including at least 200 plants, 130 animals, and over 30 minerals. Shakespeare's interest and knowledge in natural history are reflected in his detailed descriptions and localized naming of animals and plants, as well as how he personified or gave symbolic meaning to the knowledge of natural history. In the Victorian era of the 19th century, British natural history reached its peak, with a large number of related studies and literature emerging, further confirming the close connection between Shakespeare and natural history.

2、 Shakespeare's Natural History Knowledge and Its Translation

In China, there is a lack of research on Shakespeare from the perspective of natural history, and translators often overlook his knowledge of natural history when translating Shakespeare's plays, resulting in problems in translation. For example, Zhu Shenghao failed to accurately convey Shakespeare's specific references and symbolic meanings to plants such as onions, chives, carts, rosemary, and cedar trees in his translation, but instead adopted free translation or alternative translation methods, resulting in the loss of cultural background and semantic references in the original text. The leek has important symbolic significance in Henry V, but Zhu Shenghao translated it as "leek", ignoring the difference between the two. In "Romeo and Juliet," Zhu Shenghao translated "herb" in front of the big car, which failed to reflect Shakespeare's understanding of the specific functions of this herb. Rosemary is traditionally associated with funerals in the West, but Zhu Shenghao's translation of it as "fragrant flower" fails to convey its specific use in funeral ceremonies. The cedar tree symbolizes perfection and nobility in Shakespeare's plays, but the translator's translation of it as "pine and cypress" or "green pine" fails to convey its religious color in the Christian world. In addition, there are also issues with the translator's translation of animal names, such as translating a diving bird as "dog head", which fails to convey its subtle ironic meaning in the original text. The cormorant symbolizes greed in British culture, but in China it is seen as a symbol of the working masses, and the translator failed to accurately convey its differences in different cultural contexts. These issues indicate that translators often adopt the method of free translation when their knowledge of natural history is insufficient, resulting in the loss of cultural background and semantic references in the original text. Therefore, it is necessary to pay more attention to faithful communication of the original text and accurate understanding of natural history knowledge in translation.

3、 Conclusion

In the Chinese translation of Shakespeare's plays, translators often use the substitution method, replacing species in English with species in Chinese to maintain consistency in symbolic meaning. However, this approach ignores the specific species that Shakespeare deliberately used, weakening its connection with natural history. Translation should balance domestication and foreignization, introduce heterogeneity from the source language culture, rather than just using existing Chinese words and imagery. For example, the symbolic meanings of cormorants, peacocks, goats, and wild rabbits are completely different in Chinese and English cultures, and direct translation can lead to a reversal of meaning. The purpose of translation is to present the cultural phenomena, ways of thinking, and rhetorical devices of the original text, rather than to explain or argue with Chinese culture. Early translators, due to a lack of knowledge in natural history, often used Chinese local images for alternative translations. Although this was considered clever, it actually separated context and meaning, narrowing Shakespeare's knowledge spectrum. Future translators should enhance their awareness of natural history in order to restore the natural history landscape of Shakespeare and his era.