MY PROFICIENCY IN ENGLISH TRANSLATION OWING TO MR YUANCHONG XU
I come across his autobiography again today in WECHAT reading, and reading it for the second time makes me complete. Memory flashes back as if I were back to the college library again, sitting by the glossy French window, having a detailed taste of his translation of Chinese ancient poetry. Finding the wording rhythmic he takes is like a treasure hunt to me. And my eyes widen every time I got a perfect word describing things vividly appropriate and acting as a rhyme at the same time.
I had no idea that I would fall in love with lyrics and poetry translation at that time, and I didn't even see it clear that I will make teaching foreigners learning Chinese as a hobby then. As it is said by Mr Xu, translation could be an occupation. Now I do understand what he means. You don't have to be a translator or interpreter for a living, but you can make it part of your life guided by hobby only. I still remember the day the HR took a look of my CV, saying that I am not a graduate with translation or English degree, and they preferred someone majoring in subject related to handle their tasks. I promised myself that day that I would make translation part of my life even if I haven't got a job as translator. I become a marketing specialist in foreign trade, and that's how I make myself stay sharp in English by taking it as my working language. I know that I have a gift for language, and this self consciousness brightened itself when I read Mr Xu's translation works, appreciating all the rhyme seemingly matchable with each other by coincidence but actually selected with great time and effort, knowing how excited I could be when something shining in wording got in my eyes. I like the feeling of getting the corresponding meaning in another language, the feeling of getting to know more about my native language while digesting to figure it out in a foreign language. Now I know I have become a bilingual to make translation a real occupation of mine, which may be supported by lifelong motivation.
I owe my proficiency in translation to Xu due to his brilliant works impressive to me, as well as the following 4 aspects he makes me understand.
Creating something beautiful may be the biggest pleasure of human life
If one has no sense to the pleasure for beauty, numb with the things around enough to blind his eyes to the beautiful objects in life, he may not bother to do any translation, or translate in a wonderful way at all.
Always keep the nature of a child
I have seen photos of him a lot, and he seems simple and excited like a child in most of them. It dawns on me that one needs to be innocent in thought, sensitive in mind, pure in soul to capture everything beautifully fantastic and make it enlightening to people around. If you are not curious, how could you find. If you are not observant, how could you share. Translating is about finding the relation between languages and building a bridge available for people to go across and approach to culture they would like to know without linguistic barrier. It is about discover and sharing, which could not be achieved without being curious or observant. And that's why one should be like a kid, stay young and stay foolish to be a good translator.
One's works may impress himself first then the others
Every time I see Xu read what he has translated aloud with immersed attention, I realize that it is his positive self impression on his own works that makes them such a hit among readers. It is true that something cannot catch the eyes of others if his creator doesn't feel like giving it a mere glance.
Translation is more than figuring out the corresponding meaning in another language
The beauty of rhythm in phonetics in Xu's translation tells us that how the translation sounds does matter, or a translated version unable to match with the original text in sounds is not complete in the beauty of form.
