This paper is intended to discuss the politics of culture inherent in the translation process based onone of the author's experience translating Zhang Ailing's Lust, Caution. In addition, it extendsthe discussion into Korea, focusing on the differences in strategy and cultural conditionssurrounding the translation of Chinese works in Japan and Korea. Further, this paper compares theJapanese and Korean translations of Zhang Ailing's Lust ,Caution and reflects on how suchdifferences actually affect the translations.