Lyon Translation Services

Author: Li Zhihua Jiang Li
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-12-01
Features: I am a Chinese language worker. I studied French for nine years in China. In 1937, I was recommended by the French University for a scholarship to further my studies in Lyon. After completing my studies, I married Jacqueline Aréza (Yage) in 1943, a French classmate, and taught Chinese in France for the rest of my life. Fortunately, teachers in French higher education institutions do not teach many hours: when I taught at the Institute of Oriental Languages in Paris (now renamed the College of Oriental Languages), I worked eight hours a week. In 1968, I moved to the 8th University of Paris, teaching six hours a week, and also taught two classes at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, still eight hours in total. Since my family lived in Lyon, I took the train to Paris every Monday morning and returned to Lyon every Wednesday evening. Within these three days, I completed my lesson preparation, teaching, and grading of homework; from Thursday to the weekend, these four days were entirely at my own disposal.
In 1942, I obtained a Master's degree in Literature from Lyon University and began writing my doctoral dissertation. The main thesis was titled A Study of Yuan Qu, and the subsidiary thesis was a French translation of Yuan Qu. Although the main thesis was not completed, I translated five Yuan Zaju. This is enough to prove that I have a stronger passion for and are more suited to translation work.
In 1950, before a good friend, Wang Zhenji, returned to China, he gave me a copy of Lu Xun's New Stories of a New China. After reading it, I liked it very much and translated it into French. Later, Father Jean Monsrerleet, who had once taught at Tianjin University in China, wanted to write a doctoral dissertation on Ba Jin. Since he was too busy, he asked me to translate the subsidiary thesis: Ba Jin's The Fog, one of his Trilogy of Love. After finishing the translation, he asked him to revise it himself, and he gave me a copy of Ba Jin's famous novel The Family. I also translated this book into French.
In 1958, I published a poetry collection Toward the Sun translated in collaboration with Madame Alice Hervéiller. The following year, I published Lu Xun's New Stories of a New China. After that, I published translations of more than ten famous works of Chinese literature.
In my translation work, I hope my work can meet the three standards of faithfulness, expressiveness, and elegance. The first two are checked by myself, while the third requires the help of Yage. As for the translation of Dream of the Red Chamber, it was completed with great assistance from my mentor, Andre D'Hormon.
In addition to translation, I have written some essays, most of which have been published in domestic and foreign newspapers and magazines. The content can be roughly divided into three parts:
(1) Reading Notes. This part can be further divided into three categories:
1. Praise Category: Since childhood, I have loved reading. When I encounter a good book, I feel ecstatic and write down my feelings to share with fellow readers. Works such as Rousseau's Confessions, Luo Dagon's Chinese and French poems, are all excellent and beyond reproach.
2. Criticism Category: If a work has errors or inappropriate places, I correct them, whether in translation or creation.
3. Sometimes, although the translation is correct, it may not meet the standard of "elegance," so I continue to explore beauty, such as discussing the translation of Paul Verlaine's short poems by Professor Feibai of Hangzhou University.
(2) Memoirs. Most of them are about my personal experiences in my early life. Because my family wants to know my past, they may be translated into French in the future, and a few more will be written.
(3) Prefaces, forewords, reviews, or speeches.
In short, these essays are written by me during my free time from translation work. Now, I am fortunate enough to have them published domestically, hoping to receive more readers' attention and corrections.
I especially hope that more Chinese language workers will actively write, translate, or introduce books on world literature, culture, and history, in order to deepen mutual understanding and recognition among humans and promote the ideal of world unity!