Tagore's poetry translation recalled for vulgarity

By Kou Jie Source:Global Times Published: 2015-12-29 0:33:02

Publisher pulls Chinese version of Nobel winner’s work after public outcry


A Chinese translation of a collection of poetry by Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore was removed from shelves on Monday due to criticism of its vulgar connotations by the public and the media.

Writer and translator Feng Tang, 44, has been accused of inserting unwarranted obscenity and vulgarity into his new Chinese translation of Tagore's Stray Birds, published in early July.

The book's publisher, Zhejiang Literature and Art Publishing House, released a statement via its official account on Sina Weibo on Monday, declaring that "the book will be recalled, as it caused considerable controversy in literature and translation circles."

"Many readers and media have given us their benevolent feedback about the book, saying that the book contains inappropriate content that may mislead teenage readers. We accepted their suggestions and decided to recall the books," Zheng Zhong, president of Zhejiang Literature and Art Publishing House, told the Global Times on Monday.

Zheng said that the book is now under revision but did not give details about when it will be republished.

Feng's translation drew criticism for what many social media users called "a terrorist attack against poetry translation in history."

One of Tagore's original lines reads, "The great earth makes herself hospitable with the help of grass," while in Feng's translation, the word "hospitable" is translated as sao, a sexually charged Chinese word which is closer in meaning to the English word "coquettish."

Feng translated another line, "The world puts off its mask of vastness to its lover," using a Chinese phrase that literally means "take off her pants" in English.

Such translated lines have been trending on Sina Weibo under the hashtag "Feng's translation has been criticized," garnering more than 770,000 page views as of press time.

"Feng's translation has tarnished the beauty of Tagore's poems. The horrible translation is the result of his desperate attempt to gain popularity," one netizen wrote on Sina Weibo.

"Translation should follow its own strict rules. Willfully imposing the translator's personal style on the original work, and even distorting the original words have led to sweeping negative comments among the public," read a commentary on Feng's translation published by the People's Daily on Thursday.

Others defended Feng, saying that his "bold language is an inspiration to modern literary translation."

"It's good to have a new translation of the classic works. There are only a few inappropriate words in Feng's translated poems, but the public focused excessively on these controversial lines and ignored the merits of the book," Qiu Huadong, deputy editor-in-chief of People's Literature magazine, told the Global Times on Monday.

Responding to the recall of his translation, Feng told news site thepaper.cn on Monday that, "Time will speak for the book, and so will the book itself."



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