![Lin Shu](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ef/Lin_Shu.jpg)
Lin Shu (, November 8, 1852 – October 9, 1924;
courtesy name
A courtesy name (), also known as a style name, is a name bestowed upon one at adulthood in addition to one's given name. This practice is a tradition in the East Asian cultural sphere, including China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.Ulrich Theobald ...
Qinnan () was a Chinese man of letters, especially for introducing Western literature to a whole generation of Chinese readers, despite his ignorance of any foreign languages. Collaborating with others, he translated from
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
or
French into
Literary Chinese
Classical Chinese, also known as Literary Chinese (古文 ''gǔwén'' "ancient text", or 文言 ''wényán'' "text speak", meaning
"literary language/speech"; modern vernacular: 文言文 ''wényánwén'' "text speak text", meaning
"literar ...
over 180 works, mostly novels, drawn from 98 writers of 11 countries.
Life
Early life and education
Lin was born in Min County (now
Fuzhou
Fuzhou (; , Fuzhounese: Hokchew, ''Hók-ciŭ''), alternately romanized as Foochow, is the capital and one of the largest cities in Fujian province, China. Along with the many counties of Ningde, those of Fuzhou are considered to constitute t ...
City) in
Fujian
Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its capi ...
Province, and died in
Beijing
}
Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
. He was born into a poor family. However, he enjoyed reading Chinese books and worked hard at assimilating them. In 1882 he was granted the title of ''
Juren
''Juren'' (; 'recommended man') was a rank achieved by people who passed the ''xiangshi'' () exam in the imperial examination system of imperial China. The ''xiangshi'' is also known, in English, as the provincial examination. It was a rank high ...
'', given to scholars who successfully passed
the imperial examination at the provincial level. The young Lin Shu held progressive views and believed that China should learn from Western nations in order that the country might advance.
Translations
In 1897 Lin's wife died. His friend Wang Shouchang () (1864–1926), who had studied in France and hoped to distract Lin from his bereavement, suggested that together they translate into Chinese
Alexandre Dumas
Alexandre Dumas (, ; ; born Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie (), 24 July 1802 – 5 December 1870), also known as Alexandre Dumas père (where '' '' is French for 'father', to distinguish him from his son Alexandre Dumas fils), was a French writer ...
's ''
La Dame aux Camélias
LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States.
La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Music
* La (musical note), or A, the sixth note
* "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figure ...
''. Wang Shouchang
interpreted the story for Lin, who rendered it into Chinese.
The translation () was published in 1899 and was an immediate success. Progressive intellectuals realized that the effect of translated literature on the public could be exploited for their reform agenda.
In Lin Shu's time, many scholars of bourgeois inclination, such as
Kang Youwei
Kang Youwei (; Cantonese: ''Hōng Yáuh-wàih''; 19March 185831March 1927) was a prominent political thinker and reformer in China of the late Qing dynasty. His increasing closeness to and influence over the young Guangxu Emperor spar ...
and
Liang Qichao
Liang Qichao (Chinese: 梁啓超 ; Wade–Giles, Wade-Giles: ''Liang2 Chʻi3-chʻao1''; Yale romanization of Cantonese, Yale: ''Lèuhng Kái-chīu'') (February 23, 1873 – January 19, 1929) was a Chinese politician, social and political act ...
, engaged in translating literary works and political novels, with a view to promoting bourgeois reforms.
Lin Shu is also known widely as a ''guwenjia'' (古文家 master of ancient-style prose), which also casts him as an anchor of the traditionalist cultural politics. Lin Shu used
classical Chinese
Classical Chinese, also known as Literary Chinese (古文 ''gǔwén'' "ancient text", or 文言 ''wényán'' "text speak", meaning
"literary language/speech"; modern vernacular: 文言文 ''wényánwén'' "text speak text", meaning
"literar ...
in the translation of novels in an attempt to bridge the gap between classical Chinese and Western literary languages.
On the one hand, he strengthened the narrative function of classical Chinese to adapt itself to a realistic description; on the other hand, he tried to make his translations more succinct than the original by simplification to fit the habit of the Chinese readers. As a famous translator, Lin Shu has used his imagination to communicate with the invisible text and collaborate with the foreign authors.
Lin describes, in his translator's preface to
Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian er ...
's ''
The Old Curiosity Shop
''The Old Curiosity Shop'' is one of two novels (the other being ''Barnaby Rudge'') which Charles Dickens published along with short stories in his weekly serial ''Master Humphrey's Clock'', from 1840 to 1841. It was so popular that New York r ...
'' (), how he worked on his translations:
Scholarly comments
Lin's translations were much forgotten until the essay "Lin Shu's Translations" () by
Qian Zhongshu
Qian Zhongshu (November 21, 1910 – December 19, 1998), also transliterated as Ch'ien Chung-shu or Dzien Tsoong-su, was a renowned 20th century Chinese literary scholar and writer, known for his wit and erudition.
He is best known for his sati ...
appeared in 1963. Since then, the interest in Lin's translations has been revived. In 1981, the
Commercial Press
The Commercial Press () is the first modern publishing organisation in China.
History
In 1897, 26-year-old Xia Ruifang and three of his friends (including the Bao brothers Bao Xian'en and Bao Xianchang) founded The Commercial Press in Shang ...
(), the original publisher of many Lin's translations, reprinted ten of Lin's renditions (in
simplified characters
Simplified Chinese characters are standardized Chinese characters used in mainland China, Malaysia and Singapore, as prescribed by the ''Table of General Standard Chinese Characters''. Along with traditional Chinese characters, they are one o ...
, with modern punctuations).
In his essay, Qian Zhongshu quoted
Goethe
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as treat ...
's simile of translators as "''geschäftige Kuppler"'', which stated that Lin Shu served well as a matchmaker between Western literature and Chinese readers, as he himself (a most avid reader of western books) was indeed motivated by Lin's translations to learn foreign languages. Qian also pointed out that Lin Shu often made "improvements" to the original as well as abridgments.
According to Qian, Lin Shu's career, which lasted almost 30 years, can be divided into two phases. In the first phase (1897–1913), Lin's renditions were mostly vigorous, despite all the mistranslations. After that, Lin's renditions were dull, serving only as a means to eke out a living.
The following is Lin's rendition of the famous opening of ''
David Copperfield
''David Copperfield'' Dickens invented over 14 variations of the title for this work, see is a novel in the bildungsroman genre by Charles Dickens, narrated by the eponymous David Copperfield, detailing his adventures in his journey from inf ...
'':
The sinologist
Arthur Waley
Arthur David Waley (born Arthur David Schloss, 19 August 188927 June 1966) was an English orientalist and sinologist who achieved both popular and scholarly acclaim for his translations of Chinese and Japanese poetry. Among his honours were th ...
held a high opinion of Lin's translations, suggesting they are not inferior to
Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian er ...
' originals:
During the
New Cultural Movement
The New Culture Movement () was a movement in Beiyang government, China in the 1910s and 1920s that criticized classical Chinese ideas and promoted a new Chinese culture based upon progressive, modern and western ideals like democracy and scie ...
, Lin Shu was much considered as a defender of Literary Chinese. He did not oppose the use of
Vernacular Chinese
Written vernacular Chinese, also known as Baihua () or Huawen (), is the forms of written Chinese based on the varieties of Chinese spoken throughout China, in contrast to Classical Chinese, the written standard used during imperial China up to ...
(indeed he wrote a number of poems in the vernacular language), but he could not agree on the total abolition of Literary Chinese as was proposed then.
References
Sources
*Chen, Weihong, and Cheng, Xiaojuan. “An Analysis of Lin Shu’s Translation Activity from the Cultural Perspective.” ''Theory and Practice in Language Studies'', vol. 4, no. 6, June 2014, p. 1201.
*Rachel Lung (2004).The Oral Translator’s “Visibility”: The Chinese Translation of ''David Copperfield'' by Lin Shu and Wei Yi ,Volume 17, Issue 2, 2e semestre 2004, p. 161–184 Traduction, éthique et société
*Waley, Arthur (1958). "Notes on Translation", ''
The Atlantic Monthly
''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science.
It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...
'', the 100th Anniversary Issue.
*Relinque Eleta, Alicia (2021). "Entre tapices flamencos y brocados chinos", in Miguel de Cervantes. ''Historia del Caballero Encantado. Traducción de Lin Shu de El ingenioso hidalgo don Quijote de la Mancha'', Ginger Ape Books&Films, Mil Gotas, pp. 21-45.
*Xue Suizhi 薛绥之 Zhang Juncai 张俊才 (ed.) (1983). ''Lin Shu yanjiu ziliao'' (林纾研究资料 "Material for the study of Lin Shu"). Fuzhou: Fujian renmin chubanshe.
*Mikaël Gómez Guthart. "
Lin Shu, author of the Quixote",
World Literature Today, July 2018.
*Chen, Weihong, & Cheng, Xiaojuan. (2015). A Preliminary Probe into Lin Shu’s Creative Translation. ''Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 6'', 416-422.
*César Guarde-Paz (2015) A Translator in the Shadows of Early Republican China Lin Shu's Position in Modern Chinese Literature an Overview, Monumenta Serica, 63:1, 172-192
*Hill, Michael Gibbs. “National Classicism: Lin Shu as Textbook Writer and Anthologist, 1908-1924.” ''Twentieth-Century China'' , vol. 33, no. 1, Nov. 2007, pp. 27–52.
*Huang, Alexander C. Y. “Lin Shu, Invisible Translation, and Politics.” ''Perspectives: Studies in Translation Theory and Practice'', vol. 14, no. 1, 2006, pp. 55–65.
External links
Biographical sketch and some of his works* Qian Zhongshu
"Lin Shu's Translation"* Yang Lianfen
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lin, Shu
1852 births
1924 deaths
English–Chinese translators
French–Chinese translators
Writers from Fuzhou
Qing dynasty translators
Republic of China translators