【正文】 o last, is hardly able to be retained in English. More often than not, translators would make a change of it on halfway, which then make a certain loss of the beauty in sound.Another point here should be presented is that translators usually take iambi as a counterpart to Chinese level and oblique tones. Iambus is a unit of sound consisting of one short syllable followed by one long syllable. To some extent, consequently, it seems translators doing like that have transferred the beauty in sound of Tang poems. Yet in fact, Chinese level tones are not always given to long syllables and oblique tones not always to short syllables. Therefore, if taking iambi as a counterpart to the level and oblique tones, a slight dissimilarity can be noted by those careful readers in the parison between the translations and the originals.Above all, Chinese is tone language while English is intonation language. This is what makes the two languages not corresponding in sound to each other sometimes. Thus naturally, Tang poems of Chinese version are in possession of the musical beauty of tone language － they are in measured cadence and sound loud and sonorous。 of English version, however, they hold another kind of musical beauty given by intonation language － they are incessant like floating clouds and flowing water.Since the beauty of sound in Chinese and in English is not the same one, it can be said from this point of view that the sound of Tang poems is untranslatable in English rendering. Examples that can exemplify this position are available in Part in the thesis, such as Du Fu’s Yue Ye (A Moonlit Night) and Chun Ye Xi Yu (Happy Rain on a Spring Night). Cause in formSecondly, the exclusive beauty in form of Tang poems is another reason for the issue of untranslatability.First, a Tang poem is always given not only the same number of syllables in each verse but also the same number of characters. If translated into English, one verse may be long and another may be short, because translators would often rather sacrifice the beauty in form for the sake of keeping the beauty in sound. In that case, such a uniform beauty in form of Tang poems gets lost undoubtedly.Second, it is about the Chinese antithesis, a matching of both sound and sense in two lines in Chinese Tang poems. Due to the differences of the language structures and the logic thinking between Chinese and English, it is awfully difficult even not possible to render the Chinese antithesis into English. Liu Miqing maintains that any language and writing is a distinctive semiotic system, and that many language structures in Chinese, like Duilian which is designed in accordance with the language and writing system, cannot find its exact equivalence in a foreign language (1999: 34).Lastly, Chinese characters are ideographic writing so that they can make a vivid visual effect to the readers. Yet English words are alphabetic writing so that they cannot make the same visual effect as Chinese characters do. This also causes the untranslatability issue. Cause in senseFinally, in the process of translating Tang poems into English, the artistic ambiance in the original changes more or less due to the different textual characteristics of the two languages.In order to make English readers have a real ability to appreciate a Tang poem through the translation, translators have tried all their best but still feel powerless to stride over the barriers of untranslatability between Chinese and English. They could do nothing but to put a note within or after the translation. As a result, the implication expressed indirectly in a Tang poem may be presented directly or explicitly, and it follows the loss of implied beauty of the original.Besides, languages reflect cultures。 the translation process is not only a process of transferring languages, also a process of transferring cultures. As a matter of fact, translation work is a crosslinguistic and crosscultural munication activity (Chen Hongwei, 2006). Since Chinese and English have a certain disparity in cultural backgrounds, there is no denying that something related to culture in Tang poems is untranslatable, such as some word with a “connotative meaning” (Tan Zaixi, 1999: 154). Like “紅豆(red beans)” in the verses of “紅豆生南國, 春來發(fā)幾枝” (Cao Shunfa, 2007: 8), in Chinese it signals “missing someone or something”, but in English it does not mean so at all.Furthermore, language translation also has something to do with the history of the nation. Abundant of allusions, cited in Tang poems and related to the history of China, are seldom translatable in English rendering, for the reason that they may be not understandable to the English readers who do not possess the related historical background knowledge.Likewise, the puns of homophones are nearly untranslatable as well, because the Chinese languagehistory and languageculture differ from those of English. There are more puns of homophones in Chinese language while in English language, there are more puns of homographs or homonyms.4. Analysis on the untranslatability of Tang poems in English translationIn the above the characteristics of Tang poems and the causes of the untranslatability have been discussed in detail. Nevertheless, there still should be a further elucidation on the untranslatability of Tang poems in English rendering, by listing examples and making analysis on the examples. Analysis on sound untranslatabilityThe first example can be chosen here is Du Fu’s Yue Ye (A Moonlit Night): 今 夜 鄜 州 月，閨 中 只 獨 看。遙 憐 小 兒 女，未 解 憶 長 安。香 霧 云 鬟 濕，清 輝 玉 臂 寒。何 時 倚 虛 幌，雙 照 淚 痕 干。Translation 1 (Cao Shunfa, 2007: 120):At the moon over Fuzhou which shines bright,Alone you would gaze in your room tonight.I’m grieved to think our little children areToo young to yearn for their father afar.Your cloudlike hair is moist with dew, it seems。Your jadewhite arms would feel the cold moon beams.O when can we stand by the windowside,Watching