Reproduction of Haruki Murakami's Writing Style Based on the English Translation of 1Q84

Haruki Murakami is a well-known Japanese writer living in the United States, deeply influenced by Western writers and works; and even many of his English novels have been translated back into Japanese. Taking Jay Rubin's English version of 1Q84 as an example, this paper discusses the difficulties and strategies of translating Haruki Murakami's near-English-styled Japanese works into English. This study applies the famous British translation theorist Tytler's three principles of translation, specifically analyzes the typical sentences in the English translation, mainly from the perspective of linguistic expression, then examines the translator's translation strategy from the cultural level, comprehensively examines the translation's communication effect. The study finds that Jay Rubin's translation faithfully reproduces the original ideas and style and has its own unique way of dealing with Murakami's special genre. There are few studies on the English translation of 1Q84 , most of which focus on the literary exploration of 1Q84 and the development of the meaning of the work, so this study can be said to be a cutting-edge study in the analysis of the translation of the work at present. It not only verifies whether Murakami's work leaves more room for the translator when translated back into English but also gives some insight into translation study and practice.


Introduction
Nowadays, reading Haruki Murakami is increasingly becoming a worldwide literary phenomenon. His works are constantly being translated into languages other than Japanese, and in addition to being widely distributed in Asian countries, they are also extremely popular in Europe and America. According to Hosea Hirata, a professor of East Asian Studies at Princeton University, "there is no modern Japanese writer whose works have been so thoroughly translated into English as Haruki Murakami," and Nobel laureates Yasunari Kawabata and Kenzaburo Oe cannot be compared to him. The reason for this is that it has some relevance to the translation of Murakami's works.
Murakami himself said that he often needed to think in English to get rid of the excessive sentimentality in Japanese when he was working on his works. Japanese scholar Nori Ikenouchi has also jokingly referred to Haruki Murakami as "an Englishman in his head". Scholar Masayoshi Numino points out that many of the exaggerated descriptions in Murakami's novels are derived from American expression habits. For example, the main characters in Haruki Murakami's novels often have some catchphrases, "それ は悪くない" is actually "not bad" in English, and "キュウリみたいにクール" is "as cool as cucumber". Jay Rubin has also pointed out that the phrase "個人的にとらないでくれ", which Murakami wrote in Kibito Gyokusho, does not exist in Japanese because it is a direct translation from the English "Don't take it personally".
On the surface, it seems to be a good thing for Murakami's English translators to translate such expressions into English quite smoothly, and the expressions that were originally awkward in Japanese become quite common in English. At the same time, however, Jay Rubin believes that Murakami's proximity to English is a double-edged sword and that it is difficult to "turn" it back into English. Therefore, it is still worth exploring whether the simple "translation" back into English can restore the Japanese values, culture, and society in Murakami's works.
In terms of literature, the main focus is on the characterization, symbolism, and narrative art in Murakami's works; in terms of education, the main focus is on the social problems exposed in Murakami's works, such as violence and cults; in terms of journalism and media, the main focus is on the causes of globalization and the process of localization of Murakami's works. There are few studies on the translation of Murakami's works, especially the analysis of English translations, which may allow us to discover the magical connection between this non-traditional Japanese writer and the English language. Therefore, this study will take the English translation of Jay Rubin's 1Q84 as the main object of study within the framework of Tytler's famous translation theory of three principles of translation, specifically analyze the typical sentences in the English translation, examine the translator's translation strategy from the cultural level, and conclude whether the translation can reproduce Murakami's unique stylistic style, which is deeply influenced by foreign cultures, and convey the value orientation and culture of the original work. The study finds that Jay Rubin's translation faithfully reproduces the ideas and style of the original work and has his own unique approach to Murakami's special genre that mixes Japanese and English.

Theory
In 1790, Tytler said in Essay on the Principles of Translation that "That, in which the merit of the original work is so completely transfused into another language, as to be as distinctly apprehended, and as strongly felt, by a native of the country to which that language belongs as it is by those who speak the language of the original work." From this definition, Tytler deduces three principles of translation: I that the Translation should give a complete transcript of the ideas of the original work. II. That the style and manner of writing should be of the same character as that of the original. III. That the Translation should have all the ease of original composition. (Tytler 1978:8-9) Under each of these general laws of translation are comprehended a variety of subordinate precepts, which I shall notice in their order, and which, as well as the general laws, I shall endeavor to prove and illustrate by examples. If any one of them must be sacrificed in unavoidable circumstances, one must be aware of their priority and comparative importance. As we can see, there are three levels to Tytler's three principles of translation, from the fidelity of content to consistency of style and fluency of language.

The outline of 1Q84
The longest of Murakami's works, 1Q84, was a hit when it was first published. In spite of the economic crisis, the book performed an amazing sales miracle. It sold over 1 million copies 12 days after its release and was the bestseller in Japan in 2009. The novel has a parallel world, with odd-numbered chapters telling Aomame and even-numbered chapters telling Tengo. The two meet as children, live separately as adults and enter the world of 1Q84 sometime in 1984. In this new world, they go through many trials and eventually find each other. This novel contains Murakami's views of the social problems of modern Japan. It depicts many social problems in Japan, including cults and violence, and expresses his thoughts on the state of the world and the course of humanity. The novel's content leaves a deep impression on the readers.

The style of 1Q84
Haruki Murakami has a distinctive writing style that is unique among many Japanese writers. His translator Jay Rubin writes in Haruki Murakami and the Music of Words (Rubin 2005:108), "He has become a 'one-man revolution' in Japanese literature. He has cultivated in Japanese literature a new, urban, cosmopolitan, and distinctly American taste in literature."Shibata says Haruki Murakami's style is influenced by the English language and can be described as husky. He has said that it is easy to translate, but that peculiar smell of looseness has completely disappeared. The freshness of Haruki Murakami's writing style, the central and most important part, has disappeared. This study summarizes the stylistic characteristics of 1Q84 as follows: First, The use of short sentences. Murakami attaches great importance to rhythm, and many sentences are expressed in a single sentence, and even if there are multiple sentences, they are basically expressed in parallel construction. He often uses unconventional metaphors and Japanese expressions. Generally speaking, when using metaphors, the relationship between the metaphor and the subject should be considered, and the metaphor should be more easily accepted and understood by the reader than the subject, but Murakami's metaphors are completely different from this and clearly break with the traditional Japanese way of thinking. Japanese scholars and literary researchers from other countries agree that the Japanese used in Murakami's novels is not traditional Japanese and is clearly different from the Japanese used in contemporary Japanese literature. For example, when he writes about lilies, he says they are somber, like little exotic animals in meditation. But there is little connection between lilies and animals. Another feature of the novel is the unconventional Japanese expressions. For example, when one of the characters in the novel says "それは悪くない," this is not a normal Japanese expression but most likely a direct translation of the English "not bad." Second, The use of the third person. In his previous works, he always wrote in the first person, but in 1Q84, he began to use the third person. The advantage of writing in the third person is that there is no restriction on time and space, and the author is free to express what he or she wants to say, thus expanding the scope of writing.
Third. It is difficult for the reader to see ambiguous meanings. Generally speaking, Japanese is characterized by ambiguous and self-explanatory expressions. For example, in Japanese, there are three indicative pronouns: ここ、そこ、あそこ. This is different from "this" and "that" in English. The use of pronouns in a sentence is also related to the psychological distance between the narrator and the other person. He breaks through this point. On the one hand, the indicative pronouns have a clear pointing meaning, but at the same time, they are less psychologically suggestive than in traditional Japanese literature. In Murakami's novels, the personal pronoun "僕" appears far more frequently than in other works of Japanese literature. The presence of this pronoun accentuates the subjectivity of the narrator and dissolves the self-invariant nature of personality in Japanese.
Fourth. A sense of humor and full of mystery. His writing style is humorous with the style of the western language. The combination of Arabic numbers and English letters in the title of 1Q84, the Little People, the parallel world, and the two moons are some of the strange things in 1Q84. The most typical is the novel's dual structure, depicting the two worlds of 1984 and 1Q84 as one is real, and the other is unreal. This novel tells the lives of two people in the world of 1Q84, arousing the curiosity of many readers and making them guess the deeper meaning of this mystery. The parallel two-line structure always has some internal connection that ultimately represents the content and theme. By looking at it from different angles, we can see different aspects of a theme.

Introduction of the translation and translator 4.1 Introduction to the translation
In 2011, the entire volume of 1Q84 was translated by Jay Rubin (parts 1 and 2) and Philip Gabriel (part 3), a well-known American translator of Japanese literature. Jay Rubin basically used a direct translation and was faithful to the original text. However, in special cases, such as when translating proper nouns in Japanese or when translating metaphorical phrases, he used paraphrasing. The refined, humorous, and cold language style of the original work is tempered, and the translation flows smoothly while retaining the style of the original work.

Introduction to the translator
Jay Rubin, who translated the first two parts of 1Q84, was born in 1941, holds a Ph.D. in Japanese literature from the University of Chicago, and is the chair of the Japanese Department at Harvard University. He has been a translator of Japanese fiction for 45 years. He has translated 45 years of Japanese fiction, including神の子どもたちはみな踊る，ねじまき鳥クロニクルand so on. He is the primary English translator of Murakami's works. He also has a very close relationship with Murakami. Murakami actively helps him introduce Japanese literature to the world, and when he translates a book, Murakami writes the foreword for it. Murakami has written forewords for many of his translations, including Natsume Soseki's 坑夫and三四郎. He has a deep understanding of Japanese culture, especially Japanese literature, and has extensive experience in translating Japanese works. Thanks to his translations, Murakami and his works have gained attention and appreciation in the Western world.

Translation techniques for linguistic expressions
When translating a literary work, translators do not just passively understand the content of the original work but actively imagine all the details described by the author--sights, sounds, smells, textures, tastes and look for words that can be expressed as accurately as possible in one's own language. In Chapter 3, this study will apply Tytler's three principles of translation to analyze typical cases translated into English, examining the translator's approach and strategy, as well as the overall effectiveness of the translation, primarily from the perspective of linguistic expression, vocabulary, and sentence structure through the perspective of cultural differences and understanding. Example(2b): ◎ She always took the Yomiuri newspaper and read it from cover to cover, paying close attention to the human interest stories--especially those involving crimes (which comprised fully half the human interest stories in the evening edition). (Rubin 2011:102) In Japan, the most common name for newspapers is "~新聞", but in the United States and other western countries, there is no unified name, such as The Wall Street Journal, New York Times, or The Economist. Here, the translator presents the name of the newspaper in a direct translation. The name is in Roman letters, followed by the word "newspaper". If a name does not conform to English conventions, it may be difficult for English speakers to grasp the exact meaning. However, they are the easiest and most direct way to translate proper nouns, and they can also indicate foreign cultures.
Example(3b): ◎ In 1926 Japan's Taisho Emperor died, and the era name was changed to Showa. (Rubin 2011:3) According to Wikipedia (天皇2021-4-28 <https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/天皇>), 天皇は日本国憲法において日本国および日本国民 統合の象徴と規定される地位、またはその地位にある個人である. The title was first used by 大王 around the 7th century and has undergone historical changes in power since then. In other words, 天皇 is the western equivalent of a monarch or emperor. Instead of simply using the word 'emperor' here, the translators have added 'of Japan' before 'emperor' to indicate that the name is uniquely Japanese. The emperor's name is also given in Roman letters. The translators have preserved as much of the Japanese culture and characteristics as possible while ensuring the reader's understanding.

Singular and plural of nouns
In Japanese, nouns are not singular or plural. In Murakami's literature, the distinction between singular and plural is not obvious because he thought that distinguishing between singular and plural in Japanese as in English would complicate the issue. In 1Q84, "リトル・ピープル" are described as supernatural beings. They usually appear in groups. The English word is the Little People. When they act in the same way as a group, there is no problem, but when one of them speaks or acts as an individual, there is a translation problem. To translate this into English, we need to add "one of" in front of "the Little People" to convey this subtle nuance.
◎ After a few seconds' pause, he added," It's a nice night for moon viewing. Aomame frowned slightly into the phone."Where did that come from all of a sudden?" "Even I am not unaware of natural beauty; I'll have you know." "No, of course not," Aomame said. But you're not the type to discuss poetic subjects on the phone without some particular reason, either. After another short silence at his end, Tamaru said, "You're the one who brought up moon-viewing the last time we talked on the phone, remember? I've been thinking about it ever since, especially when I looked up at the sky a little while ago , and it was so clear -not a cloud anywhere." Aomame was on the verge of asking him how many moons he had seen in that clear sky, but she stopped herself. It was too fraught with danger. (Rubin 2011:343-344) In 1Q84, Aomame is convinced that there are two moons in the sky. One is the usual large yellow moon, and the other is a small, green, distorted moon. Aomame wants to ask the others if they can also see two moons, but she is afraid they will think she is silly, and she is unsure if she wants to confirm. In Japanese, when a character talks about the moon, it is not necessary to say whether he sees one or two moons. Example (5a) is a short conversation in which Tamaru directs Aomame's attention to the moon but does not tell her why. During their conversation, Tamaru suddenly says that the moon is beautiful today, which surprises Aomame. During this conversation, it proved difficult to distinguish between singular and plural when referring to the moon. For example, between "It's a nice night for moon viewing." and "You're the one who brought up moon viewing the last time we talked on the phone, remember?" In example (5b), the translator solves the singular-plural problem by translating "月" as "moon viewing," cleverly turning the noun into a verb and omitting the word "月." In "Where did that come from all of a sudden?" and "Even I am not unaware of natural beauty, I'll have you know", the translator also omits the word "月" in example (5b). By using English pronouns, he expresses "moon viewing" as "it" and the sky or the whole country as "it".

adverb 5.2.1 superposition
Example(6b): ◎ When she was a fifth grader, Aomame had made up her mind to break with her parents and had gone to live with an uncle on her mother's side. The uncle's family understood her situation and welcomed her warmly as a member of the household, but it was, ultimately, not her family. She felt lonely and hungry for love. Unsure where she was to find a purpose or meaning in her life, she passed one formless day after another. "It is true that superposition is one of the commonly observed word formation devices in each language, and this morphological marker can produce several effects. However, the extent to which it is embedded in each language will vary from language to language." (yu 2015:29) Examples (6a) and (11a) show that"日々" 常々" indicates a high frequency. The translators used "one day after another" and "always" instead of superposition. In English, the frequency of action is usually expressed by an adverb or fixed conjunction. In example (7a), "往々" indicates a state of continuity or repetition. The translator still uses the adverb "often." In example (10a), "広 々" indicates emphasis and enhances the effect of the expression. He uses the compound adjective "too-large" instead of superposition. From example (8a), "家々" indicates a large number of houses. However, he does not make the meaning of the superposition clear. However, it is clear that English focuses on the structure and rules of the language, while Japanese is rich in meaning. The translator must use adverbs, adjectives, and fixed combinations to achieve the effect of superposition as much as possible.

onomatopoeia
Example(11b): ◎ "Which is what I was trying to tell you from the start," he grumbled."Uh... Mr. Miyama...?" she ventured."Excuse me, but I think you have something stuck to the back of your neck." (Rubin 2011:35) Compared to English, Japanese has a much stronger linguistic system that allows for the creation of a large number of onomatopoeic and mimetic words through the use of kana in addition to kanji. Although Murakami uses many onomatopoeic words in his novels, they are generally used to express the actions and attitudes of the characters. When Japanese onomatopoeic words are translated into English, they are mainly converted into adjectives, verbs, and adverbs, some into idioms and nouns. In the example (11a), Aomame disguises as a hotel employee and finds an excuse to approach Fukuyama and try to kill him. The meaning of "おずおず" in デジタル大辞泉 (おずおず 2021-4-28 <https://www.weblio.jp/ content/>) is "恐れてためらいながら物 事をするさま." Thus, she approaches Fukuyama in a fearful and timid way. Given the example (11b), the translator used the verb "venture". The word means "proceed somewhere despite the risk of possible dangers". He not only maintains the original idea but also stays true to what Aomame was feeling at the time.
As you can see from the examples above, most Japanese onomatopoeic words cannot be translated directly into a verb, but rather the subtle differences between words with similar meanings must be considered to select the one that best fits the context. Although English does not have onomatopoeic words, its verbs are relatively mature and rich in meaning, so they are often used. For this reason, translators often use adjectives, adverbs, and coordinating verbs in their translations. Although they cannot fully express the specificity and vividness of rhythmic Japanese onomatopoeia, their nature, grammatical function, and meaning make them the best choice for expressing Japanese onomatopoeia, and they can be used as much as possible. Example(13b): ◎ "Hmm," Komatsu said with another noncommittal answer and a yawn. He took a drink from his water glass. (Rubin 2011:17) In example (12a), Komatsu and Tengo are discussing Fuka-Eri's work. Tengo thinks her work is worth studying, but Komatsu does not comment on it. However, according to the following analysis, Komatsu already has a plan. He wants to steadily include Tengo in his plan. The word "ふうん" has two meanings in デジタル大辞泉 (ふうん 2021-4-28 <https://www.weblio.jp/content/>). The first is "感心したり考え込んだりしたときに発する語". The other is "軽視の気持ちを表すときに発する語". Komatsu's attitude was clearly closer to the second meaning. Tengo knew that Komatsu had something to say. From example (12b), the translator translates 'Well, well' here as 'ふうん'. The word 'well' is often used in English, and it can subtly convey two meanings here. The first is to give Tengo time to think before Komatsu opens his mouth, and the second is to indirectly deepen the story and attract Tengo's interest. The translation reproduces the emotions and thoughts of the original text, as well as its style. In example (13b), the translator uses the word "Hmm". This is a word that indicates a voice, indicating that a person has doubts or hesitations about something. This fits Komatsu's mental state at that time.

Sentence structure 5.4.1 Additional translation
Example(14b): ◎ Fuka-Eri nodded, took out a kind of notebook, and slowly, painstakingly, wrote the characters for Tengo on a blank sheet with a ballpoint pen. The"Ebisu" part was the character normally used for ancient Japan's wild northern tribes. The"no" was just the usual character for"field" The way Fuka-Eri wrote them. The two characters could have been scratched into a brick with a nail, though they did have a certain style of their own. (Rubin 2011:116) A part of the novel introduces the name of Professor Ebisuno(戎野). In Japanese, the name "戎野" is not common. In English, it is translated directly into Roman letters. Since the following story is closely related to this name, the translator has briefly explained the meaning of "戎" and "野" using the additional translation. The Japanese name itself is unfamiliar to non-native Japanese readers, and the name "戎野" also refers to Japanese culture. This makes the source text easier to understand and maximizes the experience of reading the original text. The translator's treatment of the source text helps the reader understand it better.

Affirmation and Negation
Example(15b): ◎ Tengo fell silent. He had no idea what Komatsu was getting at, but he sensed something disturbing."The Akutagawa Prize!" Komatsu declared after a moment's pause. "The Akutagawa Prize?"Tengo repeated the words slowly as if he were writing them in huge characters with a stick on the wet sand. a"Come on, Tengo, you can't be that out of touch! The Akutagawa Prize! Every writer's dream! Huge headlines in the paper! TV news!" b" Now you're losing me. Are we still talking about Fuka-Eri?" (Rubin 2011:23) In example (15a), Komatsu has told Tengo about his plan and his purpose of rewriting the novel. Tengo is so surprised that he is unable to answer for a while. From example (15a), we can see that in Japanese, affirmative sentences are used. In English, on the other hand, negation is used. The use of double negation not only strengthens Komatsu's speech but also makes his expression stronger. In example (15b), the translator changed the subject of the sentence from "Tengo" to "Komatsu". If the translator had translated directly, the reader might have found it unintelligible because the sentence"よくわからない" in Japanese has many different meanings depending on the context. By switching the subject, the meaning in English can be made clearer.

Summary
The above analysis can be summarized into the following three points: First, the translation is as faithful as possible to the style and characteristics of the original work in order to convey the culture. When translating terms unique to Japan, we adopted foreignizing strategy and direct translation. Since the cultures of Japan and the United States are very different, it is difficult for readers to understand this culture, but the translator strives to make it easy to read and accept by presenting the original Japanese culture and the foreign culture directly to the reader. Japanese interjection is difficult to find perfect counterparts in English, but the translator makes use of English interjection and idiomatic expressions to make the translation more fluent rather than sticking to the original form. Whenever the translator encounters a text that deals with Japanese culture or characteristics, he basically uses an additional translation method to briefly explain it. While faithfully conveying the original ideas, the translation retains a style that gives the reader a different experience.
Second, in terms of phonetic elements, Japanese onomatopoeia words translated into English are mainly transformed into adjectives, verbs, or adverbs, but some are into idiomatic phrases or nouns, and some are not translated at all. The same applies to superposition. English is a structured and systematic language. It is not as vivid as Japanese.
Third, Japanese is very different from English in terms of grammar and word order, but a good translation can convey the true meaning of the text to the reader without adhering to the word order of the original.
When faced with the issue of singular and plural nouns, the translator must follow grammar in English. In Japanese, the boundary between singular and plural nouns is not clear, but the grammatical structure of English is very firm. When it comes to this problem, the translator must express the singular and plural clearly; otherwise, it will be difficult for the reader to understand the original text.
In order to deal with the sentence structure, the translator uses the translation techniques of addition, affirmation and negation, and division. For example, in English, the subject must be made clear, while in Japanese, people are not often mentioned. The use of affirmation and negation not only enhances expressiveness but also makes the translation more smooth. Readability is enhanced while retaining the ideas of the original work.

Conclusion
Regarding the translation of Japanese into English, Japanese is a very different language from English, but it is still a language. Even for an "Americanized" writer like Murakami, a true word-for-word translation is impossible. Therefore, the subjectivity of the translator inevitably plays an important role. It is good because it can make the meaning of the original work clearer. A translator who treats himself or herself only as a passive medium, converting grammatical structures into other languages, is not literature but a text without a meaning.
Indeed, one way to accurately convey the style of the work is to translate Murakami's text into a traditional, stiff one, but Murakami's Japanese is never like this. The American flavor of the work is very subtle and feels fresh and natural. This is largely because Japanese readers have a higher tolerance for translated words than we do. However, as mentioned earlier, Murakami's almost English language style is a double-edged sword. Alfred Birnbaum compensates for this by introducing certain exaggerated hippie expressions into his English translations. Philip Gabriel uses the same expressions, but not as strongly as Alfred Birnbaum. But Jay Rubin's approach is to reproduce the simple rhythm of Murakami's work in the English translation. This is one of the qualities of Murakami's work.
On the one hand, the specific analysis of the English translation of 1Q84 can verify the rationality and systematicity of the Western translation theory of the three principles of Tytler's translation, as well as its important guiding significance for eastern literature.
First of all, it is most important that the ideas of the original work should be completely transcribed, and then the style and style of the original work should be preserved as much as possible. Finally, the translation should look smooth and natural. These three principles are necessary for a good translation. According to the situation, Jay Rubin chose the three principles appropriately. Jay Rubin gives appropriate play to the translator's subjectivity and adds his own understanding, striving to maximize the restoration of the original's characteristics and atmosphere. Translation itself is a process of cross-cultural communication, and the translator acts as a bridge. Jay Rubin is also an excellent communicator of foreign cultures. It is thanks to his English translations that Murakami's works have become increasingly known in the West, and the "Murakami boom" has become increasingly popular.
In conclusion, we consider Jay Rubin's English translation of 1Q84 to be an extremely valuable translation.
Funding: This research received no external funding