Translation of Ren and Li in Lunyu

Lunyu, a record of Confucius' sayings and deeds compiled by his disciples, had great influence not only on the Chinese but also on the whole world. It was translated into many languages, among which there are more than 50 English versions. In Lunyu, Confucius employed a good number of terms to express his ideas on what good ethics and politics were, such as ren and li. Due to cultural differences, it is a great challenge for translators to find English equivalents of these culture-specific items. The paper will discuss the translation of two main concepts in Lunyu-ren and li through the comparison of five English versions and try to find out the proper method to translate the Chinese culture-specific items in the book.