Translation and Reception of Contemporary Chinese Crime Fiction in the English-speaking World

Abstract

This thesis examines how contemporary Chinese crime fiction in English translation is
positioned by publishers and received by lay readers in the US and UK markets through
analysis of fourteen Chinese crime novels published between 2008 and 2023. Despite
increasing global interest and the emerging prominence of Chinese crime fiction in
international markets, there remains limited scholarship on how they accumulate symbolic
capital and are received by the target readership. The study addresses this gap by investigating
the interactions between publishers’ paratextual strategies, lay reader responses, and the
evolving image of China in translation.
Drawing on sociology of translation, the study employs a mixed-methods approach
combining paratextual analysis, thematic analysis of 1,085 online reviews from Amazon and
Goodreads, questionnaire responses from 126 participants, and insights from 6 focus group
discussions with 26 readers in the UK. This data enables an examination of how translated
Chinese crime fiction is positioned, received, and interpreted in the Anglophone world, while
considering the impact of state policies and institutional support on literature and literary
circulation.
The findings reveal how UK and US publishers adopted paratextual strategies as
mediators to package and market Chinese crime fiction in the target readership. The digital
platforms like Goodreads and Amazon play a part in accessing readers’ responses and focus
groups bring about more nuanced insights into how lay readers understand and interpret
translated Chinese crime fiction. This interaction between texts, paratexts, and readers indicate
an evolving image of China in translation.
The research makes contributions to translation studies and reader reception research by
providing empirical evidence of how lay readers respond to Chinese fiction in English
translation. It advances the sociology of translation by examining how capital is accumulated
and influences the reception of translated genre fiction. It practical implications for positioning
non-dominant literatures in English-speaking markets.

Date of Award	13 May 2025
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	University of Bristol
Supervisor	Ruth A L Bush (Supervisor) & Carol M O'Sullivan (Supervisor)