“The Chinese Translation of Samuel Beckett: A Critical History:” Bo Cao, professor of English language and literature at the College of Foreign Studies, Hunan Normal University, Hunan Province, China

The reception of Samuel Beckett in China has undergone a dramatic transition from “intentional misreading” to “purely aesthetic appreciation.” In the 1960’s he was introduced ironically as a “negative example.” During the three decades of political manipulation, very few of his works were translated owing to his profundity and the Chinese literary taste. The transition took place in the 1990’s as a result of the inward turn of the intellectual circle.

The 2006 publication of the 5-volume Collection of Samuel Beckett translated from French marked the rise of Beckett in China, and the 2016 publication of the 22-volume Complete Works of Samuel Beckett witnessed the climax. The current “Work in Progress” is The Letters of Samuel Beckett being translated more for scholarship.

For a nut as hard to crack as Beckett, research goes ahead of translation. And the history of the Chinese translation of Beckett is a mirror of the dramatic reception of other Western “non-progressive” authors in China.

Talk delivered at "What is the Word: Celebrating Samuel Beckett" colloquium in Olin Library at Washington University. See http://omeka.wustl.edu/omeka/exhibits... for more.