A Lute of Jade: Selections from the Classical Poets of China

Cranmer-Byng, L. (Launcelot), 1872-1945Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

Rating 3.8
Word count
97K words
Chapters
10

Tags

English Originals Classical Poetry Fate and FortunePersonal FaithSpiritual PracticeRace and FreedomPoetry AnthologyEighteenth CenturyReligious VerseFemale Perspective

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.A Lute of Jade : Selections from the Classical Poets of China by L. Cranmer-ByngAuthor: Cranmer-Byng, L. (Launcelot), 1872-1945,Language: English, Class: PL: Language and Literatures: Languages and literatures of Eastern Asia, Africa, Oceania, Release Date: Jan 1, 1996

Editor's review

This Lute of Jade is the British sinologist Cranmer-Byng's English selection of classical Chinese poetry, one of the representative early Western translations of Chinese verse. Its value lies not in scholarly precision but in reconstructing the imagery of Tang and other classical poems through the rhythm and diction of late Victorian English poetry, letting readers see how Chinese poetry was understood and recreated within another poetic tradition. The translation bears clear period taste, with elegant diction and careful rhythm, and serves well as a comparative text for comparative literature and translation studies. Read it not by checking word for word against the originals but by attending to how the translator selects and modifies images, handles allusions, and uses rhyme and line breaks to create atmosphere. For those studying East-West literary exchange and the history of Chinese poetry in English translation, it is a usable primary source; for general readers, it is more like a window with the patina of age, showing the Eastern poetic sensibility as Westerners saw it a century ago.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Not a good fit for

Reading tips

  1. Read the translator's preface or introduction first to understand his selection criteria and translation approach, then move to the main text.
  2. Choose several familiar Tang poems and compare the English with the Chinese originals, observing how imagery and rhythm are transformed.
  3. Read it aloud as English poetry, feeling the rhythm and word choice rather than back-translating word for word.
  4. Note how the translator handles allusions and place names; these notes can serve as material for translation research.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

Contents

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
  8. 8
  9. 9
  10. 10

FAQ

Is this book in Chinese or English? The main text is in English: it is Cranmer-Byng's English translation of selected classical Chinese poems, released as an e-book by Project Gutenberg, so English reading ability is required.
Is the translation accurate? Can it serve as a research base text? It is an early, fairly free translation that emphasizes poetic feeling and rhythm rather than literal accuracy; it suits translation history and reception studies but should not be the sole scholarly base text.
Can I read it without any background in classical poetry? Yes, but it is advisable to keep the Chinese originals or a reliable annotated edition at hand, lest the translator's recreation be mistaken for the original.

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

About the author

Cranmer-Byng, L. (Launcelot), 1872-1945 Author · British · 1872–1945

L. Cranmer-Byng (Launcelot Cranmer-Byng, 1872–1945) was a British sinologist and poet known for his translations of classical Chinese poetry. His representative work, A Lute of Jade: Selections from the Classical Poets of China, presented the works of classical Chinese poets to Western readers in English verse, conveying something of their imagery and sensibility. He also edited the Wisdom of the East series, which introduced Eastern thought and literature to the English-speaking world. Public information about the details of his life is limited; his translated works and editorial work remain the principal basis for studying his activity as a translator and promoter of Chinese literature.