Renowned Sinologist,poet and essayist Wolfgang Kubin delves into a reinterpretation of the nuanced complexities of Chinese culture,language and philosophy to unravel fascinating insights into the fundamental yet fresh...Renowned Sinologist,poet and essayist Wolfgang Kubin delves into a reinterpretation of the nuanced complexities of Chinese culture,language and philosophy to unravel fascinating insights into the fundamental yet fresh perspective on life that is not limited to the confines of translations.It is a reintroduction for the rest of the world to the works and true essence of Confucian and Chinese philosophy.It seeks out the Chinese perspective on death and what constitutes a life well lived.It is helpful when reading this text to have a fundamental idea of Plato＇s Theory of Forms/Ideas and to be aware of the deterministic nature of Hegel＇s metaphysical philosophical ideas.展开更多
The first part of the article （pub- lished in our October issue） seeks out the Chinese perspective on the matters of death and what constitutes a life well lived. The second part, as seen below, continues on the pat...The first part of the article （pub- lished in our October issue） seeks out the Chinese perspective on the matters of death and what constitutes a life well lived. The second part, as seen below, continues on the path set out in the first one, and explores the hitherto hidden meanings behind the significance of repetitive physical actions and the link to spiritual satisfaction and joy, along with similar parallels ,found in European thought.展开更多
The fact that Lu Xun is no longer regarded as the most important Chinese writer of the 20th century raises many questions. Is there only one benchmark for good literature, or are there different norms？ To what extent...The fact that Lu Xun is no longer regarded as the most important Chinese writer of the 20th century raises many questions. Is there only one benchmark for good literature, or are there different norms？ To what extent are these norms dictated by the market？ Questions like these relate to the issue of evaluation. Is literature still evaluated according to the internationally recognized definition of ＂modernity＂ that prevailed before World War II, or is it unfair to judge contemporary writers according to standards that dominated before 19497 The reason why contemporary Chinese literature （after 1949） might sometimes seem somehow lacking in comparison with modern Chinese literature （1912-49） might be found in historical changes in the role of the narrator in the novel. Literature after 1949 often returns to the omnipresent narrator, whose comments can be taken for granted. But, in the works of Lu Xun, the reader is often confronted with a narrator who is not reliable. In this way, the literature becomes ambivalent, and it is precisely this ambivalence that makes the literature ＂modern,＂ as the reader has to decide which voice he or she is going to trust. It is also ambivalence which turns a narrating ＇T＇ into a fictional character, which cannot be equated with the （real） author.展开更多
Those who translate a verse literally are liars.——The Talmud According to popular opinion,all translations must be literal ones,that is,one should translate every text word for word without any additions.Although tr...Those who translate a verse literally are liars.——The Talmud According to popular opinion,all translations must be literal ones,that is,one should translate every text word for word without any additions.Although translation theory has developed very quickly since the 60s and shown that such a view of literal translation is much too simple,if not blatantly incorrect,these new insights into the true nature of translation work do not really play a role展开更多
There are some scholars who claim Chinese philosophy isn’t a genuine philosophy,and even if it is,they say,it is either too simple or too hard to understand.You will hear similar opinions not only in Europe but also ...There are some scholars who claim Chinese philosophy isn’t a genuine philosophy,and even if it is,they say,it is either too simple or too hard to understand.You will hear similar opinions not only in Europe but also in China.In this article,I don’t want to examine whether cases like these are only matters of opinion or fact.Instead,展开更多
文摘Renowned Sinologist,poet and essayist Wolfgang Kubin delves into a reinterpretation of the nuanced complexities of Chinese culture,language and philosophy to unravel fascinating insights into the fundamental yet fresh perspective on life that is not limited to the confines of translations.It is a reintroduction for the rest of the world to the works and true essence of Confucian and Chinese philosophy.It seeks out the Chinese perspective on death and what constitutes a life well lived.It is helpful when reading this text to have a fundamental idea of Plato＇s Theory of Forms/Ideas and to be aware of the deterministic nature of Hegel＇s metaphysical philosophical ideas.
文摘The first part of the article （pub- lished in our October issue） seeks out the Chinese perspective on the matters of death and what constitutes a life well lived. The second part, as seen below, continues on the path set out in the first one, and explores the hitherto hidden meanings behind the significance of repetitive physical actions and the link to spiritual satisfaction and joy, along with similar parallels ,found in European thought.
文摘The fact that Lu Xun is no longer regarded as the most important Chinese writer of the 20th century raises many questions. Is there only one benchmark for good literature, or are there different norms？ To what extent are these norms dictated by the market？ Questions like these relate to the issue of evaluation. Is literature still evaluated according to the internationally recognized definition of ＂modernity＂ that prevailed before World War II, or is it unfair to judge contemporary writers according to standards that dominated before 19497 The reason why contemporary Chinese literature （after 1949） might sometimes seem somehow lacking in comparison with modern Chinese literature （1912-49） might be found in historical changes in the role of the narrator in the novel. Literature after 1949 often returns to the omnipresent narrator, whose comments can be taken for granted. But, in the works of Lu Xun, the reader is often confronted with a narrator who is not reliable. In this way, the literature becomes ambivalent, and it is precisely this ambivalence that makes the literature ＂modern,＂ as the reader has to decide which voice he or she is going to trust. It is also ambivalence which turns a narrating ＇T＇ into a fictional character, which cannot be equated with the （real） author.
文摘Those who translate a verse literally are liars.——The Talmud According to popular opinion,all translations must be literal ones,that is,one should translate every text word for word without any additions.Although translation theory has developed very quickly since the 60s and shown that such a view of literal translation is much too simple,if not blatantly incorrect,these new insights into the true nature of translation work do not really play a role
文摘There are some scholars who claim Chinese philosophy isn’t a genuine philosophy,and even if it is,they say,it is either too simple or too hard to understand.You will hear similar opinions not only in Europe but also in China.In this article,I don’t want to examine whether cases like these are only matters of opinion or fact.Instead,
