April 24, 2012

Next week on 3 and 4 May 2012, the conference 崑曲傳習與中國文化傳承學術研討會  [Kunqu chuanxi yu Zhongguo wenhua yantaohui] which translates into ‘Passing on Kunqu Skills and the Heritage of Chinese Culture’ will be held at the Chinese Civilisation Centre. Topics of the presentations include the research into recordings of interviews with Kunqu performers, the nurturing of new young opera performers, Kunqu performance on stage, ways to achieve a better understanding of the heritage of Kunqu tradition, etc etc. The speakers are experts and scholars from universities and institutions in Hong Kong, China and Taiwan.

The conference will start with the opening ceremony on Thursday 3 May at 9:30 am and a speech by Professor Cheng Pei-kai at 9:40 am. After the group photo the first session of presentations will start at 10:20 am and run through to the third session which ends with a discussion by 6 pm. The next day Friday 4 May starts with the fourth session at 9 am which is followed by a discussion on the Centre’s Kunqu project. The conference closing ceremony will follow at 11:40 am. For more details, please visit the website with the programme in Chinese or contact Ms Zhang Hui at Huizhang@cityu.edu.hk.

Written by: Audrey

January 6, 2012

In about two weeks’ time the Department of Chinese, Translation and Linguistics, City University of Hong Kong, will host the ‘International Conference on Cross-cultural Studies: China and the World’. As the list of topics shows the talks are on a broad range of cultural aspects, from literature and film to history and philosophy, and are presented by Western and Asian scholars from all over the world.

It is a pity though that on the website there is only a poster with the titles of the papers and the names of the presenters. There is no description of the aim or background of the conference nor does the link work. Although it says ‘all are welcome’, there is no detailed programme available. Instead anyone interested must send an email first.

A few hours ago, I sent them an email for the programme but so far no response yet. For those interested, you may visit the CTL website at www.ctl.cityu.edu.hk.

Written by: Audrey

May 4, 2011

On 8 April I posted on Pulse the announcement about our Symposium on Chinese Ceramics to be held at the end of this month. I have had queries about this and although I have responded to them, it seems that my messages did not get through. So here goes, anyone interested in attending the symposium, please send an email to Dr Zhou Yue at yuezhou@cityu.edu.hk, or Dr Amy Fan at amyfan@cityu.edu.hk.

Written by: Audrey

April 8, 2011

From Saturday 28 till Monday 30 May 2011, the Chinese Civilisation Centre and the Macao Museum of Art will jointly host the International Symposium “Chinese Export Ceramics in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries and the Spread of Material Civilisation.” The opening ceremony is scheduled for Saturday morning at CCIV in Hong Kong, with presentations through to Sunday noon, after which the Symposium is shifted to Macao with more presentations until the closing ceremony on Monday.

Invited guests at the symposium include renowned scholars and experts from Asia, Europe and North America who will be sharing their latest research output and expertise on various topics related to the export of Chinese porcelain and the cultural exchange between East and West during the Ming and Qing dynasties.

The aim of the symposium is to provide a platform to share new findings and engage in scholarly exchange. If you are interested, you are welcome to join the discussion. The programme and other details about the Symposium will be released soon. Be sure to check out the website for the latest update.

Written by: Audrey

December 21, 2010

Today and tomorrow ‘The First International Symposium on Intellectual Thought and Scholarship in East Asia: Zhang Taiyan and Late Qing Chinese Scholarschip’ is held at the City University of Hong Kong. Speakers at the symposium will share their views on intellectual thought and scholarship in late imperial China, with a focus on Zhang Taiyan and his works in particular. Perhaps better known as Zhang Binglin (1868-1936), Zhang was a Chinese philologist, linguist, philosopher and anti-Manchu revolutionary.

As explained on the website (see link below), the discussion at the symposium will include issues such as how Chinese scholars encountered Western civilisation in the late Qing, the role of Japan in the East-West encounter in China, the influence of the May Fourth Movement on modernizing scholarship in China, and other relevant historical events. In this context, Zhang Binglin played an important role as ‘his works constitute a kind of comprehensive conglomeration of learning both modern and traditional, from East and West, encompassing both Late Qing China and Meiji-era Japan.’

The symposium is organized by the Department of Chinese, Translation and Linguistics, City University of Hong Kong, and co-organizer is UTCP, The University of Tokyo Centre for Philosophy. More information about the speakers and the schedule can be found on the website (http://zhangtaiyan.ctl.cityu.edu.hk/ZTY_index.html).

Written by: Audrey

December 3, 2010

Earlier this week the International Conference on Globalized Knowledge: World Literature and World Civilisation was held at CityU. It was organized by the Department of Chinese, Translation & Linguistics and sponsored by the Drs Richard Charles & Esther Yewpick Lee Charitable Foundation.

Questions central to the conference were ‘How do we study the various literary traditions of the world? How many regions can we divide the globalized knowledge we propose to study? How much of each of the traditions can be realistically included in a manageable form of presentation or curriculum? What are the points of convergence or divergence and how do we connect them in the globalized framework?’

One of the papers I found interesting was the one by Dr Linder on ‘Applied World Literature: Goethe’s East-West Divan, the Tradition of Nachdichtung, and Inter-cultural Studies.’ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832) introduced the term Weltliteratur and he made use of foreign cultures in his own work, among which the collection West-oesterlichen Divan is the most prominent.

The Divan is a collection of lyrical poems inspired by the fourteenth-century Persian poet Hafiz. This work is significant because it is not a strictly linguistic translation but it is close enough to Hafiz to call it ‘Nachdichtung’. It is a clear case of so-called ‘cultural transfer.’ At the same time it is an exchange and Goethe brought together the Orient and Occident.

By sharing her findings Dr Linder has further connected Goethe and Hafiz in the globalized framework which will enhance the knowledge of the various literary traditions of the world and help us reflect on the impact of cultural transfer.

Written by: Audrey

November 12, 2010

One of the most interesting topics during the conference was ‘translation and (un)translatability’. When is a text or word (un)translatable? There are of course in every text parts or words which are difficult to translate but are they ‘untranslatable’?

As Professor Sun Yifeng explained ‘Translation is aimed at resolving the underlying incommensurability that divides the source and target cultures and gives rise to untranslatability, which prompts respect for difference and uniqueness.’

So if we keep in mind that no two cultures and no two languages are the same, surely we can find a solution to translate the impossible? I think Professor Sun is right in saying that ‘To make translation possible, it is necessary to explore how different types and degrees of untranslatability affect translation in its various forms.’

Eventually it is the translator (or in some cases the editor) who has to make the decision of which is the best equivalent for the ‘supposedly untranslatable’. A major consideration here is the ‘transferrability of the cultural meaning’ and the ‘compensation and adaptation carried out to produce significant effects on the problem of less than full translation.’

Written by: Audrey

November 4, 2010

This weekend the FIT Sixth Asian Translators’ Forum—Translation and Intercultural Communication: Past, Present and Future will be held in Macao, 6-8 November 2010. It is co-organized by the Federation of Translators and Interpreters of Macau and the University of Macau. Topics include: translation and cross-cultural studies, translation history and culture in Macao and Asia, tourism translation and media translation, diplomatic translation/interpreting, business and legal translation/interpreting, literary translation, etc.

Among the keynote speakers are well known names in translation studies, including Tang Wensheng, Huang Youyi, Wu Zhiliang, Martha Cheung, Sun Yifeng and Christina Schaffner. Besides the keynote speeches and individual presentations, there are also two so-called translation salons: one is a dialogue of Tang Wensheng and Zhu Yinghuang with young translators, and the other is a dialogue on research and publication between young scholars and professors.

As always I look forward to participating in the conference; it is great to have the opportunity to exchange ideas about translation, for inspiration and practical application and it will help further develop my own research on the translation of culture and China. If you are interested in the forum, please visit the website here.

Written by: Audrey