Abstract:
This dissertation is going to draw attention to the Nüshu language, unanimously referred to as the “female writing”; it is indeed a type of language which significantly differs from the Chinese language and that found its origins among peasant women, in the Jiangyong County of the Hunan province, in China. Today Nüshu is the only language in the entire world which has been created and is still being used solely by women; its mysterious and secretive nature makes this language exceptionally fascinating, as well as completely inaccessible to men.
The present study shall initially provide a comprehensive analysis of Nüshu, from a socio-cultural and linguistic perspective, emphasising its predominant gender identity, as well as its striking importance in the wider Chinese feminism phenomenon. In the first instance, this special language allows women in Jiangyong to communicate with their laotong (sworn sisters), with a view to support one another and to find relief from their challenging everyday lives. These women lived in total submission to the men of their society, in particular their husbands, who would regularly inflict physical pain and use cruel violence towards their wives. Therefore, these women started using little objects such as fans, pieces of paper, napkins and needleworks in which they wrote and express their sorrow, using the special language that they themselves designed for such purpose. Despite the fact that Nüshu produced a remarkable cultural heritage, unfortunately most pieces of written work have gone missing throughout the years; the current situation of Nüshu works shall also be investigated in this essay.
The last section of this thesis aims to thoroughly examine the two articles, translated from Chinese into Italian, on this topic. In particular, the first article offers a general overview on Nüshu, as a spoken and written language, drawing on a wide range of studies and research about its origin, identity and nature. The second article shall consider the Nüshu phenomenon from a strictly feminist perspective, which defines it as a gender language, cautiously voicing women’s desire for equality and independence from men. My commentary shall look at the contents of both articles, their linguistic aspects and style, as well as the specific translation strategies adopted in this specific process.
