Six Records of a Floating Life

Author: Shen Fu (Qing Dynasty)
Translator: Zhang Hong
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-04-01
Features: The Six Records of a Floating Life is a thin little book, yet it possesses a rather extraordinary charm. Its popularity as "beautiful prose" and "emotional prose" in the first half of the 20th century was greatly appreciated by renowned scholars and writers such as Lin Yutang, Yu Pingbo, Gu Jiegang, and Zhao Shaoqiang. The original text is concise and elegant, a natural masterpiece in its own right. Translating it into colloquial language, however, always feels as though its spiritual essence is difficult to capture. Still, as the saying goes, "words cannot fully express meaning." The prose of Shen Fu, however, seems to imply an endless depth of meaning. If one were to say "words can fully express meaning," then translating it into colloquial language would naturally have its own justification. In truth, all languages are, and always will be, merely bridges—helping you reach the shore of meaning.
The Six Records of a Floating Life has various editions, such as the Collected Works of Dugu An and the Red Swallow Anthology. Today, there is also a so-called Complete Edition of The Six Records of a Floating Life, which was printed based on the Complete Edition of The Six Records of a Floating Life published by the Shanghai World Publishing House fifty years ago. This edition was included in the Collected Works of Beautified Literary Classics compiled by Zhu Jianmang, followed by Zhao Shaoqiang's Annotations. However, according to modern scholars' research, the last two volumes are forgeries, extracted from the works of Zeng Guofan, Li Dingyuan, and Zhang Xiang, among others. This is now a consensus in academia. Today, there are multiple annotated and corrected editions of this book. Here, the Yuelu Publishing House has reprinted the translated and annotated version, and the author has consulted these various editions, correcting the text, clarifying the wording, and translating the entire work. This may make it more accessible for readers to enjoy this masterpiece, savor its charm, and appreciate its spirit. If this is achieved, the author's wish will be fulfilled!