본문 바로가기
  • Home

Reception and Translation of Russian Literature in Republic of China, 1914-1949: A Case of Nikolay V. Gogol

  • The Journal of Chinese Cultural Studies
  • 2017, (38), pp.51-74
  • DOI : 10.18212/cccs.2017..38.003
  • Publisher : The Society For Chinese Cultural Studies
  • Research Area : Humanities > Chinese Language and Literature > Chinese Literature > Chinese Culture
  • Received : October 15, 2017
  • Accepted : November 15, 2017
  • Published : November 30, 2017

Kim Sojung 1

1부산대학교

Accredited

ABSTRACT

In China, Russian Literature was introduced in earnest after the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917. Chinese intellectuals regarded the 19th Russian literature as intrinsic force for the revolution. In the early years of the twentieth century, Chinese left-wing intellectuals supported literature for life's sake. They believed that literature has the power to change the social status and miserable life of the lower classes. Under these special historical context, N. V. Gogol's works was introduced and translated into Chinese. This paper explores the reception and translation of N. V. Gogol by three major Chinese translator groups: the Russian translation group focused mainly on N. V. Gogol as a great realist ; the English translation group placed N. V. Gogol among the best English humorists. As a Results, Chinese literary world was able to a new realization of the humor and laughter of N. V. Gogol. Also, they first translated the work of Gogol that held romantic spirits ; the German and Japanese translation group attempted to absorb N. V. Gogol as a whole including his spirit of humor, humanism and poetics of banality. At length, most of stories and plays of N. V. Gogol translated into Chinese in Republic of China, 1912-1949. Realism works of his was estimated highly, but romantic spirits did not receive a fair assessment. Chinese left-wing intellectuals recognized N. V. Gogol overcame limits of his own feudal landlord classes by using realism techniques and became a critical realism writer. N. V. Gogol's works opened a channel for the reception of western critical realism at that time.

Citation status

* References for papers published after 2023 are currently being built.