十九世紀美國漢學家衛三畏是《聊齋誌異》最早的英譯者之一。 1842 年他首先將數篇譯文編選入中文教本《拾級大成》。1848 年於《中 國總論》中正式將《聊齋》列入中國文學史。透過編譯，衛三畏建構 出一種「中國文學」，並賦予《聊齋》「伊索寓言」和「喻道故事」的 文學形象。可見編譯將某文本從一文化傳播至另一文化，作為看似單 純，實則不然。編譯實乃重寫，重寫者在譯入語文化詩學與意識形態 規限下操縱原文，建構出贊助者所欲、而預期讀者能解的文化他者形 象。本文首先說明在十九世紀初期「中國開放」呼聲日殷的背景下， 為因應西人中文學習的需求與困境，加上《意拾喻言》成功經驗，作 為初學津梁之《拾級大成》應運而生。接著說明，詩學的衛三畏「用 喻言法而以志怪」，將《聊齋》改寫成西人可解的證道故事；意識形 態的衛三畏認為中國乃僅次於西方最高的異教文明，唯各方面皆須經 基督教改造方可迎接千禧福臨，因此他重寫《聊齋》，向西方讀者證 明中國文學改造之必要與可能性。此舉亦令「小說」以載道之姿進入 中國文學殿堂，無疑重寫了中國文學史。

Samuel Wells Williams, a nineteenth century American sinologist, is one of the earliest English translators of Liaozhai Ziyi. He chose at first to compile some translated pieces of Liaozhai Ziyi in Easy Lessons in Chinese (1842), then introduced Liaozhai in The Middle Kingdom (1848) as Chinese literature. With translating-editing, he constructed a kind of ‘Chinese Literature’, providing Liaozhai Ziyi with a literary image resembling Aesopian fables and Christian parables. In this case, translating-editing is rewriting; the rewriter manipulates the original under the constraints of poetics and ideology dominant in the target culture, producing an image of the cultural Other desired by the patrons and acceptable to the audience. This paper first explains how Easy Lessons in Chinese as a primer for Westerners was produced in the early nineteenth century context of ‘opening China’. Then it shows that poetologically Williams rewrites Liaozhai Ziyi into beast fables and parables, while ideologically he considers China the most civilized pagan nation, though inferior to the West, a nation that won’t be saved at the apocalyptic end of the world unless reformed by Christianity in all respects. Therefore he rewrites Liaozhai Ziyi and Chinese literature, trying to persuade Western readers that China must change and can be changed. This not only canonizes Chinese novels because of their moral characteristics, but also rewrites the history of Chinese literature.