Xu Yuanchong, a leading figure in translation, passed away

Xu Yuanchong, a leading figure in translation, passed away. Xu Yuanchong was born in Nanchang, Jiangxi in 1921. In 1938, he was admitted to the Foreign Languages ??Department of National Southwest Associated University, where he studied under academic masters such as Qian Zhongshu, Wen Yiduo, Feng Youlan, Liu Wuji, and Wu Mi. In 1944, he was admitted to the Institute of Foreign Literature at Tsinghua University and later went to study at the University of Paris in France. Xu Yuanchong, a leading figure in the translation industry, passed away 1

The reporter learned from Xu Yuanchong’s family that at 7:40 this morning, Xu Yuanchong, a leading figure in the translation industry in my country and a professor of journalism and communication at Peking University, passed away peacefully at home at the age of 100.

Xu Yuanchong was born in Nanchang, Jiangxi in 1921. In 1938, he was admitted to the Foreign Languages ??Department of National Southwest Associated University, where he studied under academic masters such as Qian Zhongshu, Wen Yiduo, Feng Youlan, Liu Wuji, and Wu Mi. In 1944, he was admitted to the Institute of Foreign Literature at Tsinghua University and later went to study at the University of Paris in France.

He is currently the only expert in China who can translate classical poetry into English and French verse. He is known as "the only person who can translate poetry into English and French" and has published 120 translations. Yuben. In 2010, following Ji Xianlin and Yang Xianyi, Xu Yuan won the "China Translation Culture Lifetime Achievement Award". In 2014, he won the highest award in the international translation community - the "Northern Lights" Outstanding Literary Translation Award. He is the first Asian translator to win this honor.

Cycling is one of Xu Yuanchong’s great pleasures in his life

In March 2017, reporters went to Xu Yuanchong’s home for an exclusive interview. He was cute. , The persistent side is fully revealed——

Xu Yuanchong: Spend his life defending the beauty in translation

The 96-year-old translator Xu Yuanchong is wearing a suit and leaning on the most fashionable furniture at home—— —Asleep in a beige faux leather rocking chair. In the past hour and a half, he had been "yelling" in a high-pitched voice continuously, and he was really tired.

After the first episode of CCTV's "The Reader" was broadcast, Xu Yuanchong quickly became popular. His friends overseas sent congratulatory emails one after another, and publishers came one after another to publish books for him. In the past two days, he hurried back to his hometown of Nanchang, revising his family tree and giving speeches. He was extremely busy. Previously, Xu Yuanchong and his wife Zhaojun declined all media interview requests. Only recently did they finally agree to an exclusive interview.

Crazy

"He is a 'surgery' and I am a 'physician'"

Xu Yuanchong, a professor at Peking University, lives in an apartment with only 70 square meters. In an old house with a concrete floor, the old bookshelves and dining table look very old. The overall furnishings of the home were a bit shabby, but as soon as the imposing old man sat down, the whole room instantly became brighter and became more joyful. Hearing that he had become an Internet celebrity, he grinned, "I don't have time to care about this, but others have told me."

Xu Yuanchong's achievements in his life surround him, and his Chinese translation There are more than 120 books translated from English and Chinese into French, as well as his English-Chinese and French-Chinese works, standing neatly on two rows of simple bookshelves leaning against the wall. Among them is his translation of "Red" and Black", "Madame Bovary", "John Christophe", etc., as well as "Chu Ci", "The Book of Songs", "The West Chamber", "Three Hundred Tang Poems" and "Three Hundred Song Poems" that he translated in English and French wait. Above the desk hangs a piece of calligraphy written by an old friend: "Translating ancient and modern poetry, translating world famous works, creating the theory of three beauties, and drinking the morning dew."

The bookshelf at Xu Yuanchong's home

Unlike those quiet and restrained old scholars, Xu Yuanchong has a flamboyant and wild personality. The nickname "Xu Dapao" he got when he was in college has never faded. "I am the only person who translates poetry into English and French. In the 1960s, I was The only one, and he is still the only one." Finally, he made another powerful comment, "There is no other person like me in two thousand years."

Regarding translation, Xu Yuanchong emphasized "Three beauties. "Principles: Beautiful content, beautiful sound, and beautiful form. If anyone shakes his principles, he will be like a warrior and will fight to the end. Once, he talked about the "Three Beauties" in class. A student objected to him and said that there were "Five Beauties". He said angrily, "He just wants to be better than me. Studying is for the pursuit of truth, not for the limelight. Peking University students think they are great.

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Even in the face of authority, he insisted on the principle of translation beauty and never backed down. He recalled that translator Wang Zuoliang was the first person to oppose him, saying that his translation was "mandarin ducks and butterflies. The earliest disagreement between the two people arises from whether Valéry's poem "Wind Spirit" is a literal translation or a free translation. There is a line in the poem, which roughly means "Inspiration comes without a trace and leaves without a trace, just like a beauty who changes her underwear to reveal her breasts." At that moment". Wang Zuoliang translated it as "Without a shadow or trace, changing underwear and exposing breasts, two pieces in one moment". Xu version translated it as "Without a shadow or trace, at the moment of changing clothes, the breasts were vaguely visible". Xu Yuanchong believed that Wang Zuoliang used The word "chest" has no aesthetic value, because it can refer to both men and women. The word "chest" he used has a hazy beauty. Many years later, Xu Yuanchong argued that Wang Zuoliang's translation was "surgical school". It's like a wounded soldier who was hit by an arrow. The surgeon just broke the arrow and took it out, but the poison was still inside. But he was a "physician" who not only pulled out the arrow, but also took out the poison inside.

He also had a "war" with the writer and translator Feng Yidai. The last sentence of "Red and Black" mentions that the mayor's wife is dead. According to the original text, it is "she died", but Xu's version. The translation is "The soul returns to leave and hates the sky." At that time, Feng Yidai criticized Xu Yuanchong for why he added those colorful things. He also pointed out at an academic conference that "the soul returns to leave and hates the sky" was stolen from "Dream of Red Mansions". To this day, Xu Yuanchong still insists on his opinion. He believes that the translation "she died" means a normal death, but the mayor's wife did not die normally, but died with hatred. There is no more appropriate translation than his. , this "Li Hentian" is not unique to "A Dream of Red Mansions", but comes from "The Romance of the West Chamber". Could it be that "The Romance of the West Chamber" stole "A Dream of Red Mansions"? "The translator Luo Xinzhang said at the time that if he had thought of it, he would also know it. Translated like me. "Xu Yuanchong is like a child, and finally found a warm supporter.

"Pride makes people progress, inferiority makes people regress" - Such a banner hangs high in Xu Yuanchong's home, "My experience is that light Humility cannot make people progress. Without pride, a person's life is over. "As he and his friends said many years ago, we Chinese should be confident and a little bit crazy.

Tenacity

Translating Shakespeare in the nineties, we must translate thousands of works every day Words

Xu Yuanchong has just completed the translation of Shakespeare's play "Caesar". At three o'clock in the morning on the day he was interviewed by this reporter, he had already started writing the translator's postscript. His manuscript is full of energy and energy. < /p>

Summarizing the translation he just completed, Xu Yuanchong gave the listeners a lesson in translation aesthetics

Caesar’s three most famous sentences: “Veni, Vidi, Vici. "This is Latin. When translated into Chinese, it means "I came, I saw, I won." When translated into French, it means "Vines, Vois, Vinc", and in English it means "I came, I saw, I won." Xu Yuanchong said that only French can translate the beauty. It is difficult for him to translate it in Chinese, and it cannot be translated in English. “This shows that the translation must not only be true, but also beautiful. It is not surprising that it is true, but it is difficult to achieve beauty. . Xu Yuanchong waved his hands high and said that he had been doing this all his life, but he couldn't do it every time. "There are more things you can't do than what you can do, so you need encouragement from others." "

Xu Yuanchong accepted the invitation of Dolphin Publishing House the year before last and launched a fierce attack on the translation of Shakespeare's plays. So far, he has translated 11 plays and published "King Lear" and "Romeo" "With Juliet", "Twelfth Night", "The Merchant of Venice" and other 10 films. It's not too late for me to be happy! "Xu Yuanchong eagerly shared his secret: During the day, he had to spend time dealing with people coming, but no one disturbed him at night. Once he got excited, no one could stop him. It was his exclusive happy time. He Set yourself a limit of 1,000 words of translation per day. If this number is not completed, you will make up for it no matter how late it is. “It’s good to have a limit, but it will make you tired if you don’t have a rule. "

Last year was the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare's death. Several domestic publishing houses launched the Chinese version of "The Complete Works of Shakespeare". Facing the different versions of new translations on the market, Xu Yuanchong said confidently: "I still translate. To be better, Shakespeare turned reality into words. I not only translated words into words, I also wanted to translate the reality in the words, so I translated better.

"

Regarding the poetic version of Shakespeare that appears on the market, Xu Yuanchong disapproves of the misuse of Yuan opera-style translations, ""Romeo and Juliet" is translated as 'Lang, Luo Lang'. It’s awkward to think about it. Sometimes this style works, sometimes it doesn't. Romeo and Juliet's meeting cannot be called that. ”

“Shakespeare is satisfied with his writing, and I am also satisfied with his translation.” "Xu Yuanchong said repeatedly that a person should enjoy happiness as much as possible in his life and make others happy, and he did this. This old man who loves translation even made a loud vow, "I will live to be 100 years old and write Shakespeare's plays. All turned over! ”

Pure

Memories are like telescopes, they can see both far and near

“Memories are like telescopes, they can see both the distance and the near future. Joy can reduce the pain of the past. Memories are like a magnifying glass. When you magnify the little things of the past, you can discover unexpected fun. "Xu Yuanchong loves memories, but the memories are hidden in his turbulent passion with poetry and beauty.

In "The Reader", Xu Yuanchong recalled translating Lin Huiyin's poem "Don't Throw It Away" into English poetry and sending it to When he recited the touching poem to the girl he liked back then, he actually shed tears, and the audience was also moved to tears. The girl he liked back then was Zhou Yanyu, a female classmate of Southwest Associated University. He sighed, "In 1939, Qian Zhong. Shu, Yang Zhenning, Zhou Yanyu and I, a few of us met, which was very fun. "

Xu Yuanchong on the "Reader" program

Xu Yuanchong's tone became gentler. Zhou Yanyu was the queen of the school back then, and there were ten boys in the class. , she was the only girl. Xu Yuanchong sat at the next table with her. He was talented and she was beautiful. Two translated poems of "Accidental" and an English letter were dropped into the mailbox of the girls' dormitory. He also added that Zhou Yanyu's beauty was not only his exclusive feeling, but also the diary of his teacher Professor Wu. When I saw classmate Zhou, "she was applying pink and white like a ripe cherry", and when I met her the other day, "there was another kind of elegance and elegance". But unfortunately, Zhou Yanyu was engaged. Faced with the reality, Xu Yuanchong turned his sadness into strength. He found a new world in the foreign language department where girls gathered.

Xu Yuanchong not only wrote letters and poems to college girls, but his wife Zhaojun said, "Look at how beautiful our wedding photos are, Mr. Xu also said. He wrote poems to me, but they were all confiscated during the house raid. "When their son was just born, Xu Yuanchong's poetry creation was particularly vigorous, but Zhaojun couldn't remember what he wrote. He only vaguely remembered sentences like "Willows send true feelings."

As for his classmate Yang Zhenning, the winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics, he was also constantly mentioned by the elderly. Xu Yuanchong recalled that in the first-year English class at Southwest Associated University in Kunming, Professor Ye Gongchao taught Pearl Buck. In "Desolate Spring", there is a verb in the text whose past participle does not mean passive. None of the students in the class noticed it. Only Yang Zhenning raised the question. It was only after Yang Zhenning won the Nobel Prize in 1957 that Xu Yuanchong thought of this. It is the result of his good ability to detect abnormal phenomena. He still remembers the meeting with Yang Zhenning at Tsinghua University in 1998, 60 years after they were separated. At first, Yang Zhenning memorized Yan Jidao's "Partridge Sky", "Dancing low in the willow tower and the moon in the heart, singing to the end." The wind at the bottom of the peach blossom fan..." This poem was translated by Xu Yuanchong, and his English translation meant "Singing the wind behind the shadow of the peach blossom fan." Yang Zhenning immediately pointed out that Xu Yuanchong's translation was wrong, and that was not what was written in the book. But Xu Yuanchong argued loudly: "'Peach Blossom Fan Shadow Wind' is much more beautiful. 'Fan Bottom Wind' is a painting of peach blossoms. I translated it into 'Fan Shadow Wind', which is a real peach blossom. It is the shadow of the peach blossom falling on the fan. "Many years later, Xu Yuanchong is still having conversations with his old classmates through the air, "In my opinion, the 'fan-bottom wind' is reality, and the fan-shadow wind is imagination. This is the contradiction between truth and beauty, and we can also see the difference between science and art. "

When he was admitted to Southwest Associated University in 1938, a classmate asked Xu Yuanchong what his dream was. At that time, "Wang Baochuan" and "The Romance of the West Chamber" translated by his cousin Xiong Shiyi were performed in the United States and caused a sensation. He He replied: “I want to be a translator like my cousin. "Now, his dream has become a reality, and he did it.

As the interview came to an end, 96-year-old Xu Yuanchong picked up the teacup in his hand.

The tea was pure and mellow, and a snow chrysanthemum in the cup bloomed stubbornly and full of vitality, just like his life. Xu Yuanchong, a leading figure in translation industry, passed away 2

Xu Yuanchong was working in front of the computer in the study. Photo provided by family members of the interviewees. The Paper reporter learned from a friend of Mr. Xu Yuanchong that Mr. Xu Yuanchong, a leading figure in my country’s translation industry and a professor at the School of Journalism and Communication at Peking University, passed away in Beijing on the morning of June 17 at the age of 100. In 2014, the International Federation of Translators awarded the 2014 "Northern Lights" Outstanding Literary Translation Award to the 93-year-old Chinese translator Xu Yuanchong. This international award, selected every three years, aims to recognize those translators who have promoted the development of literary translation and made outstanding contributions to world cultural exchanges. This is the first time it has been awarded to an Asian scholar since its establishment in 1999.

Having published more than 120 works in Chinese, English and French at home and abroad, Xu Yuanchong is known as "the only person who can translate poetry into English and French". But it was not until 2017 that Xu Yuanchong appeared on the stage of the CCTV program "The Reader" and "The First Lesson of School" that he became known to ordinary people. He recited the poem "Don't Throw It Away" written by Lin Huiyin to Xu Zhimo at the scene. His emotion, his frankness, and his sincerity moved the audience in front of the screen.

Xinhuanet published an article in June last year titled "Centenary-year-old translator Xu Yuanchong: Remaining sincere and sincere across the ages." The article reads: Born in 1921 and graduated from Southwest Associated University in the 1940s, Xu Yuanchong has experienced China's vicissitudes for hundreds of years, and China's modern history is also his life. Recalling the glittering days of Southwest Associated University, his teachers included Wen Yiduo, Qian Zhongshu, Fu Lei... He said that in academic terms, Qian Zhongshu had the greatest influence on him.

Qian Zhongshu praised his English translation of "Mao Zedong's Poems": "You dance with the shackles of rhyme and rhythm, your flexibility is amazing." Ye Jiaying, a master of classical literature, also praised his Chinese-English poems for their "beautiful pronunciation and long-lasting sentiment."

Xu Yuanchong devoted his life to translating Chinese classical poetry and dedicated his life to this.

Xinhuanet article introduction: In 1994, his Chinese-English translation of "Three Hundred Immortal Chinese Poems" was published by Penguin Books in the UK. This was the first Chinese translation published by the agency, and It was rated as "a wonderful translation". In 1999, his French-Chinese translation of "Three Hundred Ancient Chinese Poems" was published in France and was called "a great sample of Chinese traditional culture." He translated "The West Chamber" into English, which was praised by the British Wisdom Publishing House as "comparable to Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" in terms of artistry and appeal."

He said that transforming the beauty created by a country into the beauty of the world is the joy of the world, and it is also his original intention of translating poetry.

In his more than 80 years of translation career, Xu Yuanchong adheres to the translation concept of "beautiful form, beautiful meaning, and beautiful sound", that is, the translated poems must rhyme neatly like the format and rhythm of the original poems, and more importantly, they must have the original rhythm. The beauty of the artistic conception of poetry. When translating, "Only by adhering to the beauty of Chinese culture can Chinese culture go to the world." His enthusiasm and sincerity in spreading Chinese culture are moving.

Therefore, the poems he translated focused on rhythm, and when recited, they were catchy, very rhyming, and rich in phonological beauty and rhythm. Classical poetry contains metaphors, metonymy, personification, and antithesis, and his English translation also contains metaphors, metonymy, personification, and antithesis. Moreover, the poems express all the realms, which is an out-and-out "free translation school".

"When I left there, Willows shed tear" in "The Book of Songs: Picking Wei", he translated it as "When I left there, Willows shed tear"; "Thousands of birds have flown away, and all traces of people have disappeared." , he translated it as From hill to hill no bird in flight, From path to path no man in sight; Li Qingzhao's "Looking and searching, deserted, miserable and miserable." He translated it as I look for what I miss, I know not what it is, I feel so sad, so drear, so lonely, without cheer.

Despite his advanced age, Xu Yuanchong is still concerned about current affairs. When it comes to the differences among civilizations in the world today, he believes that China's traditional culture may provide solutions.

He constantly mentioned the wisdom in the Tao Te Ching, "Truth can be known, but it may not be the well-known truth (The truth can be known, but it may not be the well-known truth)", which is his understanding of "Tao" The exquisite understanding and translation of "It's Tao, but it's not Tao". He also wrote an article about the wisdom of Confucius: "Don't do to others what you don't want others to do to you." Don't think only of yourself, but put yourself in the other person's shoes. If both parties can change places and consider each other, both parties can live in peace. Compared with the current situation, he believes that these are also principles that Western civilization should learn from.

On April 18, 2021, Mr. Xu Yuanchong, a leading figure in my country’s translation industry and a professor at the School of Journalism and Communication at Peking University, celebrated his 100th birthday. Peking University held a “Seminar on Mr. Xu Yuanchong’s Translation Thoughts and Achievements” , celebrating Mr. 100th birthday. Peking University Party Committee Secretary Qiu Shuiping, President Hao Ping, and Assistant to the President, Secretary-General, and Director of the Party-run School Office Sun Qingwei attended the seminar. The meeting was chaired by Vice President Wang Bo.

Guests attending the "Seminar on Mr. Xu Yuanchong's Translation Thoughts and Achievements" also included Yan Suilong, deputy director of the Luoyang Campus of the University of Information Engineering of the Strategic Support Force, Jia Wenjian, deputy secretary of the Party Committee and vice president of Beijing Foreign Studies University, and member of the Faculty of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences , Chen Zhongyi, President of the China Society of Foreign Literatures, Huang Youyi, Executive Vice President of the Translators Association of China and Vice President of the China Translation Research Institute, Yu Minhong, a 1980 alumnus of Peking University and Chairman of New Oriental Education Technology Group, Feng Qinghua, former Vice President of Shanghai International Studies University, and Xu Yuanchong Mr. Wang’s relatives, friends, students, scholars and guests in the domestic translation field, and heads of foreign language subjects in dozens of comprehensive colleges and universities in China. The guests, together with more than 200 representatives of teachers and students from the School of Journalism and Communication and the School of Foreign Languages ??of Peking University, congratulated Mr. Wang on his 100th birthday and discussed Mr.'s translation thoughts and achievements.

Qiu Shuihui, Secretary of the Party Committee of Peking University, delivered a passionate speech. Qiu Shuiping congratulated Mr. Xu Yuanchong on his 100th birthday on behalf of Peking University. He introduced Mr. Xu Yuanchong's 100th birthday at the same age as the Communist Party of China, and spoke highly of Mr. Xu Yuanchong's translation achievements, which "have ferried Chinese and foreign civilizations and contributed to the development of our country's cultural undertakings." made outstanding contributions."

Peking University President Hao Ping congratulated Mr. Xu Yuanchong on his birthday, presenting flowers and gifts - a birthday congratulatory couplet written by Zhu Shuai, a director of the Chinese Calligraphers Association and a teacher at the School of Journalism and Communication of Peking University, "May I hold the mountain as my "Longevity, always with cranes", in order to wish Mr. Xu and thank him for his outstanding contributions to Peking University over the years.

Introduction from Peking University: Mr. Xu Yuanchong was transferred to Peking University in 1983 and became associated with the School of Journalism and Communication at Peking University when it was established in 2001. May 28 this year marks the 20th anniversary of the founding of the School of Journalism and Communication. It is also the day that Mr. Xu has been associated with the school for 20 years. The school and college are very concerned and caring about Mr. Xu. School leaders have visited Mr. Xu’s home many times. Secretary Chen Gang and Dean Lu Shaoyang of the School of Journalism and Communication and other teachers visit Mr. Xu every Spring Festival, Teacher’s Day and his birthday, and arrange for college administration A dedicated person is responsible for visiting Mr. Xu at home regularly, paying attention to his living situation at any time, and helping him solve the difficulties in life. He strives to give Mr. Xu meticulous care without disturbing him while he is immersed in literary translation.