Chronology Entry
Year
1986
Text
Wang, Jiaxiang. [Happy reading : selected translations of and essay on Ulysses]. In : Wai guo wen xue (Aug. 1986).
"45 years after his death, Joyce enjoys now a position in Western literature which ought to be described as established by consensus, yet in our country Joyce studies have been very tardy in getting started. It is impossible, however, to comprehend twentieth-century Western literature very well without a serious study and understanding of this important author who was a pioneer of modern English literature.
For quite some time till now, translations of Joyce were as a rule just stories from Dubliners, and writings about Joyce were usually confined to his biographical facts. People dared not approach Ulysses, mainly kept off by a chilly atmosphere, originating from nobody knows where, which enveloped the work as 'decadent', 'nihilist', 'pornographic', 'poisonous', etc. But what exactly is its theme ? It is, after all is said and done, a poisonous book or a superior literary masterpiece ? How should we view Joyce's ideas, principles and artistic styles ? This involves not only the evaluation of one book or one author, but the question of how we ought to appreciate and evaluate the whole modernistic literature in the West. Practice is the only criterion for testing truth, and Mr. Jin Di's translation of selected episodes from Ulysses has made it possible for readers themselves to get to know Joyce and his work."
"45 years after his death, Joyce enjoys now a position in Western literature which ought to be described as established by consensus, yet in our country Joyce studies have been very tardy in getting started. It is impossible, however, to comprehend twentieth-century Western literature very well without a serious study and understanding of this important author who was a pioneer of modern English literature.
For quite some time till now, translations of Joyce were as a rule just stories from Dubliners, and writings about Joyce were usually confined to his biographical facts. People dared not approach Ulysses, mainly kept off by a chilly atmosphere, originating from nobody knows where, which enveloped the work as 'decadent', 'nihilist', 'pornographic', 'poisonous', etc. But what exactly is its theme ? It is, after all is said and done, a poisonous book or a superior literary masterpiece ? How should we view Joyce's ideas, principles and artistic styles ? This involves not only the evaluation of one book or one author, but the question of how we ought to appreciate and evaluate the whole modernistic literature in the West. Practice is the only criterion for testing truth, and Mr. Jin Di's translation of selected episodes from Ulysses has made it possible for readers themselves to get to know Joyce and his work."
Mentioned People (2)
Joyce, James
(Dublin 1882-1941 Zürich) : Irischer Schriftsteller
Wang, Jiaxiang
(um 1994)
Subjects
Literature : Occident : Ireland
Documents (1)
| # | Year | Bibliographical Data | Type / Abbreviation | Linked Data |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2001 | Jin, Di. Shamrock and chopsticks : James Joyce in China : a tale of two encounters. Foreword by Weldon Thornton ; ed. with supporting essays by Robert Kellogg. (Hong Kong : City University of Hong Kong Press, 2001). S. 47-48. | Publication / JoyJ47 |
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