Wang Wei's 100 Poems (Chinese-English Parallel Text with Illustrations and Characters)

Author: Wang Baotong
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-07-01
Features: This book selects 100 poems by the famous Tang Dynasty poet Wang Wei and presents them in Chinese-English parallel form. It captures the original poems' essence and poetic flavor; it conveys his Zen philosophy, his "poetry within painting," and his unique musical beauty. The translated poems have a clear rhythm and rich rhyme. At the end of the main text, there is an essay by the author published in 1993 on the translation of Chinese poetry into English, followed by a bibliography that includes other articles on this topic. In poetry translation, I advocate translating poetry with poetry, aiming to convey the original poems' essence and poetic flavor. Specifically for the English translation of Wang Wei's poems, I translating his Zen philosophy, his "poetry within painting," and his unique musical beauty. The original poems have a clear rhythm, and the translated poems should also have a clear rhythm; the original poems have rich rhyme, and the translated poems should also have rich rhyme. If one ignores these characteristics of Wang Wei's poems while translating them, the result will not be Wang Wei's poetry. How these principles are implemented in this book is for the readers to judge. At the end of the main text, there is an essay by the author published in 1993 on the translation of Chinese poetry into English, followed by a bibliography that includes other articles on this topic, all of which are for the readers' reference. In poetry translation, I advocate translating poetry with poetry, aiming to convey the original poems' essence and poetic flavor; specifically for the English translation of Wang Wei's poems, I translating his Zen philosophy, his "poetry within painting," and his unique musical beauty. The original poems have a clear rhythm, and the translated poems should also have a clear rhythm; the original poems have rich rhyme, and the translated poems should also have rich rhyme. If one ignores these characteristics of Wang Wei's poems while translating them, the result will not be Wang Wei's poetry. How these principles are implemented in this book is for the readers to judge. At the end of the main text, there is an essay by the author published in 1993 on the translation of Chinese poetry into English, followed by a bibliography that includes other articles on this topic, all of which are for the readers' reference.