TITLE:
Types and Evaluation of Mistranslations in Literary Translation—A Case Study of Xu Chi’s Version of Walden
AUTHORS:
Xueke Zhao
KEYWORDS:
Literary Translation, Types of Mistranslation, Anomie Theory, Xu Chi, Walden
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Access Library Journal,
Vol.13 No.9,
September
7,
2026
ABSTRACT: Mistranslation is an inherent and inevitable phenomenon in literary translation, essentially an external manifestation of the tension between translation norms and practical objectives. Rooted in Merton’s Anomie Theory and adopting Fu Jingmin’s derived classification framework that divides mistranslations into four patterns, and they are innovation-driven deviation, conformity-oriented drift, alienated evasion and rebellious reconstruction, this paper takes Xu Chi’s Chinese version of Walden as a typical case. Through textual comparison between the source text and the target text, it systematically sorts out and analyzes the concrete manifestations of the four mistranslation patterns in literary translation. This study argues that the evaluation of mistranslation in literary translation cannot be confined to the single criterion of fidelity. Instead, dialectical judgments on its negative and positive functions should be made based on the specific context, practical goals and cultural communication effects of translation. It attempts to offer a new theoretical perspective for the classification and evaluation of mistranslations in literary translation, and provide references for in-depth research on the translation of foreign classical literary works in China.