The Global Times reports:
Renowned Taiwanese writer Chen Yingzhen (陈映真) has been appointed deputy honorary chairman of the Seventh National Committee of the Chinese Writers Association, a leading literature organization in China, becoming the first from Taiwan to do so.
A fitting honor, perhaps, for someone who did prison time (1968-73) in Taiwan for allegedly “leading procommunist activities.”
Not quite sure what to make of this, but looks like another “lost in translation” classic:
“After reading Xi Jue (西决), I was surprised by Li’s writing skills. I must say that Xi Jue is not an interesting novel, but I was totally involved in it,” said Su. (Zheng Yi at Global Times quoting veteran author Su Tong (苏童) on young writer Li Di’an (笛安) and her best-seller, Memory in the City of Dragon I (西决)).
Some 100 presenters from 30+ countries, including China, will take part in panel sessions on themes such as Cultural Translation, Gender Issues in Translation, Translation of Specific Texts and Forms, Best Practices within Translation, and Freedom of Expression. The congress will be held at Istanbul Bilgi University.
Jiang Zilong (蒋子龙), Vice-President of the Chinese Writers’ Association (at right), will speak on Authors Rights, along with Sandhya Rao of India, editor of Chennai-based Tulika Publishers, and Martin de Haan, a Dutch essayist and literary critic who has translated Michel Houellebecq and Milan Kundera from the French into Dutch.
Will update regularly in the coming weeks. For now:
The 2010 show has ended. See BIBF Post-mortem for a review…
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The biggest annual publishing event in China welcoming overseas visitors, the Beijing International Book Fair, opens its doors in the capital’s China International Exhibition Center on August 30. Let’s hope it’s an improvement over 2009, when, as one Australian attendee puts it bluntly, it was just “A Canton Fair with books instead of shoes [hosted by] bored store minders who didn’t know or care what they had on show.” We can expect:
As Guest of Honor this year, India will host/co-host several of them. Since 1949, relations between Asia’s biggest nations haven’t always been so cozy, of course, and problematic translations may play a part. Take the English-language description of one of the more interesting events, Publishing for Contemporary Children: A Panel Discussion of Indo-Chinese writers, publishers and illustrators. Surely they meant Indian and Chinese writers?
Nor have contemporary translations of Chinese classics into Hindi been easily achieved. For an item recounting how it took almost 30 years to render Journey to the West (aka Monkey King, 西游记) into India’s national lingo, see Monkey King Shows Off his 72 Transformations—in Hindi.
Traditionally, the schedule for the forums/seminars is posted online in Chinese just 1-2 days beforehand. This time around, it is up online a bit earlier (Aug 20) in English! Here is the book fair’s Chinese web site, and this is the English-language list of events. Warning: Only IBM-compatible PCs running IE should view these sites; if you don’t have IE, or if you are running Firefox on your Macintosh, your computer may be temporarily disabled (my Mac was).
While the events can be very rewarding, two things to be kept in mind: 1) There may—or may not—be simultaneous interpreting services for the event you happen to attend; 2) The descriptions of the events online are sketchy, so choosing the right ones is pretty iffy!
A few that seem promising:
Press conference for Confucius from the Heart
(于丹 《论语》心得) by Yu Dan (于丹), where the overseas sales of this Chinese best-seller —reportedly 70,000 in French (Le bonheur selon Confucius: Petit manuel de sagesse universelle)—will be discussed. (Venue/time: 1A.A01 in Activities Zone (展出活动区), 10-11 am, Monday Aug 30).
2010 BIBF Literary Night: Chinese, Russian and Indian authors gather to discuss the mindsets and creative directions of “Post-80 generation” authors (those born during the 1980s). Special guests will include: Bai Ye (白烨), Cao Wenxuan (曹文轩), Di An (笛安), Jiang Nan (江南) and Xiaoshi Binni (消失宾妮), pictured at left. (Venue/time: Beijing Come & Go Center for Arts, Fangjia Hutong Number 46 in Chengdong District (东城区，方家胡同 46 号，北京聚敞现代艺术中心 46 号剧场) 19:00-21:00, Wednesday Sep 1).
The second annual Fu Lei Translation Award (傅雷翻译奖) for the best translation of a French book published in China will be awarded, with the jury members, publisher and translator present. Seventy percent of the 8000 Euro prize goes to the translator. (Venue/time: Hall 8 Activities Zone, 10:30-11:30 am, Wednesday Sep 1).
Publishing for Contemporary Children: A Panel Discussion by Indian and Chinese Writers, Publishers and Illustrators. Six professionals from the two countries converse about how children’s lit can cross one another’s borders today. (Venue/time: Writers’ Corner, 16:00-17:00, Monday Aug 30)
Xi Chuan (西川), a poet who’s fluent in English and has “traveled the world, translated world literature (Borges, Milosz, Norwegian poetry) into Chinese”—according to his translator Lucas Klein—will be starring in a solo session enigmatically entitled Wandering and 
Chatting. Here’s a backgrounder on him. (Venue/time: Trainspotting Bar, Beijing Come & Go Center for Arts, Fangjia Hutong Number 46 in Dongcheng District (东城区，方家胡同 46 号，北京聚敞现代艺术中心, 猜火车餐吧), 14:00-15:00, Wednesday Sep 1).
Two popular male novelists, Liu Zhenyun (刘震云) who appears at right, and Li Er (李洱), will be on stage. It’s not clear, however, if they will be reading from their works, interacting with the audience or even accompanied by their translators. (Venue/time: Trainspotting Bar, Beijing Come & Go Center for Arts, Fangjia Hutong Number 46 in Dongcheng District (东城区，方家胡同 46 号，北京聚敞现代艺术中心, 猜火车餐吧), 15:00-17:00, Wednesday Sep 1).
China Daily reports on a recent gathering in Beijing, the Chinese Women’s Literature Forum:
‘Gender provides an advantage but is not a weapon.’ [Wang Hongqi, Director of the China Research Center on Women's Culture]
The reform and opening up ushered in a series of transformations in women’s writing on the mainland. Female writers surged in numbers in the 1980s. A slew of new heavy hitters emerged, names like Zong Pu, Zhang Jie, Tie Ning (铁凝), Wang Anyi (王安忆), Zhang Kangkang (张抗抗) and Zhai Yongming.
Venue: Café Amsterdam (Dutch Cultural Centre, 800 Changde Lu, Shanghai)
In the final week of the World Expo in Shanghai, the Dutch Cultural Centre will open its doors to Café Amsterdam, a series of literary events bringing Dutch and Chinese authors together on stage.
Readings and live music to celebrate the start of Café Amsterdam in Shanghai
Dutch & Chinese authors in conversation
Fan Wen (范稳), the Chinese Catholic author who recently completed his fictional trilogy spotlighting cultural and religious collisions in the “multicultural wonderland” of the Yunnan-Tibet border, now has another historical novel in mind.
The first book in the published series, Harmonious Land (水乳大地), recounts the tale of a multi-ethnic settlement in Lancangjiang Canyon (gateway to Tibet), beset by battles between arrogant French Catholic missionaries, incompetent officials and their marauding troops, Naxi Dongba Shamanists, and the dominant Tibetans, not all of whom lead pacific, vegetarian lives in the local lamasery.
Chinese Books, English Reviews spoke with Fan Wen about his new work-in-progress:
Q: Word has it that you’re working on a new novel about the rail line linking China’s Kunming and Vietnam’s Haiphong that was constructed during French colonial rule of Indochina. How are you preparing for this project?
A: Yes, it’s about this railroad that’s soon to be completely abandoned. I rather enjoy the ‘history of decline’. It gives one a certain sense of desolation. After the Yunnan-Vietnam railway was completed [1910], it actually brought with it the collision and fusion of two distinct civilizations. The railway passed through the lands of several of Yunnan’s ethnic minorities, whose cultures were more backward than that of the Tibetans, and even more vulnerable. I intend to use several French nationals who were working on the railroad as the main characters. I’ll write about their lives in a foreign land, and their experiences against the backdrop of that alien culture, including the dangers they faced, their loves and their fates.
I’ve already read a lot of background material, conducted interviews along the line, and even stayed in the old train stations. I’m conceptualizing the story right now. [end]
Venue: Chengdu Bookworm
Time: Thursday, August 19 (7:30 pm)
Speaker: Michel Hockx is Professor of Chinese at SOAS, University of London. He does research on contemporary Chinese literature, paying special attention to literary media, such as magazines and websites, as well as literary institutions.
He has also written on modern Chinese poetry and poetics. Recent publications: Culture in the Contemporary PRC (co-edited with Julia Strauss), and Questions of Style: Literary Societies in Literary Journals in Modern China.
Director Feng Xiaogang’s gaze graces the cover of several publications this week, and indeed, the “disaster movie” genre in China may never be the same again thanks to him. His adaptation of Zhang Ling’s Aftershock (张翎的 “余震”) is mesmerizing the nation’s moviegoers, and this tale of the 1976 Tangshan earthquake that killed over 200,000 leaves many drenched in tears.
Even Time is writing about the new film, the first IMAX film ever shot outside the US, based on the fictional work by the Chinese-Canadian author. Here’s Time’s synopsis of the plot:
As if a deadly earthquake weren’t devastating enough, a Tangshan mother is forced to decide between saving her son or daughter.Both are trapped under a collapsed building, and rescuers can reach only one of them before the structure topples. She chooses the son, but, unbeknownst to her, the daughter miraculously survives. With her mother’s betrayal fresh in her ears, the little girl flees her family and is raised by a husband and wife in the People’s Liberation Army. Thirty-two years later, she travels to help victims of the earthquake in Sichuan. There she sees how another mother is forced to make a similar choice, and the experience changes her appraisal of the past.
I haven’t read the book or seen the movie (唐山大地震), but I just read a fascinating interview in the weekly SMW (2010.7.26 南都周刊), that offers insights into how the movie script was conceived: From Cold Novel to Warm Movie (从冷小说到暖电影).
As you read my translated excerpt (below) from SMW’s interview with Su Xiaowei (苏小卫)—the screenwriter for Aftershock, pictured above—keep in mind that she also puts in two days a week at the Film Review Board, i.e., she works for the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television (SARFT), the body that enforces China’s censorship guidelines.
(Note: Words inside quotation marks below are quotes from Su Xiaowei cited by the author of the article, Chen Yu (陈雨)).
The excerpt:
Besides [changes to] the structure of the story, the movie also “performed major surgery” on the theme; the basic tone of the story was altered from one of darkness and pain, to one of warmth and hope [in the film]. The novelist Zhang Ling intended to convey that even after the disaster was over, the ravaged land gradually flattened and structures rebuilt, the blood from the wounds scratched open by the earthquake in the souls of children continued to ooze silently long thereafter.
The novel emphasizes the description of how the daughter, Fang Deng, undergoes a “series of post-earthquake disasters”: her adopted mother dies, she’s molested by her adopted father, her husband falls in love with another woman, her daughter leaves home, she finds herself in a hospital unit for psychological therapy, and tries to commit suicide several times. These somber and cruel events reflect the fate assigned to the female protagonist by Zhang Ling: Having lived through an earthquake, Fang Deng’s soul is veiled in darkness, her personality has become skewed, she cannot return to her family nor can she live a normal life. The novel leaves the reader downcast and tearful.
But “the movie is much more heart-warming, and cuts parts such as the adopted father’s sexual aggression, the husband’s infidelity and the departure of her daughter,” says Su Xiaowei. “Much more of the story is devoted to describing daily life and warmhearted emotions. After the earthquake, people overcome their grief, regain a sense of calm, and get on with their lives.”
“Film is a mass medium that speaks to greater numbers of viewers, and it’s not like a book that represents a more ‘personalized’ account,” says Su Xiaowei. “After all, a film should offer a sense of warmth and consolation.” At the outset, Su Xiaowei was told quite clearly by the director and producer that she was to write a script for a film that would warm the hearts of the audience, not a film that would hurt their feelings and leave them in despair. The film should “cure” the daughter of her hatred for her mother.
In order to create a heart-warming theme, the movie not only cut the scene in which the adopted father violates Fang Deng, it also recasts the adopted parents as People’s Liberation Army soldiers.
“All these requirements were decided after discussion with the producer,” says Su Xiaowei frankly. “We didn’t reject a melodramatic approach to the story, but everyday life can also fully express a person’s emotions. In everyday life, the great majority of fathers would not molest their adopted daughter. We chose to represent good relations between the father and adopted daughter as in a normal life. And our film is not rated—adults and children can view it—so we intentionally altered this part.” [end excerpt]
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