Cirrus@Austlit

'This paper attempts to clarify the issue of the translatability of poetry. However, the question whether poetry is translatable is a paradox because while quite a few renowned poet-translators like Dryden and Paz tend to deny the translation of poetry, poetry has been translated from ancient to present. The key point of the issue is not whether poetry is translatable, but what gets lost in the translation of poetry. Dryden sees the translator as servile, yet Bassnett emphasizes the “creative” spirit in translation, and points out “gain” in the translation against the persistent tendency to overemphasize on “loss” in translation in discussions of translation. This paper hence focuses on the key issue of “loss and gain” in the translation of poetry. As it proceeds to reveal the loss of sound qualities of the original in transferring a SL text to a TL text, it also displays some significant gains in the translation. All this is demonstrated and justified with concrete cases in my translation of an anthology of contemporary Australian poetry.'

Source: Abstract.

'This sixth volume in Vagabond’s Asia Pacific Poetry Series brings together a selection of poetry from three key contemporary Chinese poets Hong Ying, Zhai Yongming & Yang Lian edited and introduced by Mabel Lee, translated by Mabel Lee, Naikan Tao & Tony Prince and with cover art by Lin Chunyan.'

Hong Ying was born in Chongqing. Her father worked on the cargo boats plying the Yangtze. She grew up in the lower strata of society. Her poetry career started in 1988. She moved to London where she won the UK Chinese Poetry Price in 1991. She also became an accomplished novelist. 

Zhai Yongming was born in Chengdu. She was sent to work as a peasant in the countryside for two years during the Cultural Revolution. Afterwards, however, she graduated in laser technology and became writing poetry. She became a role model for aspiring women poets, as the field was dominated by men. She would travel to the United States, but returned to China to enjoy celebrity status as an installation artist.

Yang Lian was born in Bern, Switzerland, but grew up in Beijing. He emerged alongside the first wave of poets during the Cultural Revolution, extolling male sexuality. He was banned from publishing for a year, but find himself reprinted and travelled to Australia, finding international fame. He has won two significant literary prizes in Italy, and has been published in many others. 

(Publisher summary) 

An anthology of poems by Yang Lian, Jiang He, Han Dong, Yu Jian, Zhai Yongming, Zhang Zhen, Xi Chuan and Hai Zi. These poets have initiated the trends of elitist poetry, neo-realist poetry, women's poetry and cosmopolitan poetry that dominated Chinese poetry from the mid-1980s for almost two decades and remains a continuing presence today.

'The image of Molly in her dazzling golden dress haunts three generations. Ivy, who helps Molly sew the dress from a scrap of fabric; Frank, whose love is forbidden; and Ray, who loses himself in the memories of his mother.

'When Ray disappears on the streets of Paris, his lover Martine embarks upon a search for him that takes them to unexpected places. Thread by thread, the secrets of his family unravel.

'Weaving together the past and present against a backdrop of seascapes, Sydney and Paris, The Golden Dress is a rich novel of love and secrets, memories and stories.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.