Modern Social Science Research

Artificial intelligence (AI) translation may incur destructive consequences in literary text applications. Based on empirical evidence from the Japanese-to-Chinese translation practice of Kenzaburō Ōe’s The Burning Green Tree (Part 2: Vacillation), this paper identifies three primary destructive consequences of AI translation: Overly ornate rhetoric and excessive embellishment that compromise the source text’s stylistic integrity; Unauthorized omission of source content that disrupts intrinsic textual logic; Misinterpretation-induced mistranslation that undermines translational fidelity. These findings demonstrate that current AI translation tools, when applied to literary texts, prioritize informational efficiency at the expense of literary specificity. Consequently, human translator intervention remains irreplaceable. Translators must act as guardians of textual specificity by: Mitigating stylistic erosion caused by AI-added modifiers; Preserving functionally "redundant" elements essential to metaphorical systems; Intervening against AI-driven oversimplification of culturally specific expressions.

Artificial Intelligence translation; Japanese-Chinese translation; Destructive effects; Literary specificity; Kenzaburō Ōe