“The Tradition of the Chinese Classics and the Idea of World Literature Today”

Keynote Speech at International Academic Symposium: “The Orient vs. The Occident: Cultural Exchanges and Influences,”  Foreign Language Department of Capital University of Economics and Business, Beijing, November 27-29, 2015

会议议程安排CUEB conference programme(1) with keynote speech: “The Tradition of Chinese Classics and the Idea of World Literature Today”

Post-Conference News Release

东方与西方：文化的交流与影响

国际学术研

The International Symposium on

The Orient vs. The Occident: Cultural Exchanges and Influences

会议日程

Post-conference Press Release:

International Symposium: “The Orient vs. The Occident: Cultural Exchanges and Influences”

Author:Translated By Zhang Qiaoyan Editor:Zhang Qiaoyan Publish:2015-12-10 Size：TTT

On November 28th and 29th, CUEB held the International Symposium on “The Orient vs. The Occident: Cultural Exchanges and Influences”. The symposium involved more than 150 experts and scholars from over 60 universities and research institutes in 8 countries (England, America, France, Germany, etc.), as well as over 50 postgraduates from CUEB foreign language department. Vice President Xu Fang attended the symposium.

The two-day symposium consisted of two half-day keynote speeches and three parallel sessions, namely, sessions on linguistics and applied linguistics, foreign literature and comparative literature, as well as on translation and cross-cultural communication.

On the morning of November 28^th, four specialists delivered keynote speeches in the symposium, which was chaired by Professor Zhang Hua, vice director of Capital International Culture Research Base, and Zhu Anbo, director of CUEB Foreign Language Department.

Wang Ning, a Yangtze River Scholar Professor of English and Comparative Literature and the director of Comparative Literature and Culture Research Center of Tsinghua University, gave a keynote speech on ecological literature. He recognized the rapid development of China’s ecological literature, and he said countries should not ignore the importance of ecological civilization development during economic growth. Human beings should fully understand the relationship between ecological civilization and social development so as to strike a balance between the two.

Professor Wolfgang Kubin, a famous sinologist, translator and writer, put forward some unique advice on Chinese culture “going out” strategy in his speech “Chinese Literature Going Out”.

Professor Fang Hanwen, director of Comparative Literature Research Center of Soochow University, made a keynote speech, “The Chinese Characteristic Research System of World Literature: the Independent Entity Between the Orient and the Occident”. He argued that literature is multi-dimensional and complex, rather than humdrum and one dimensional. Mutual exchanges between the orient and the occident are the product of industrial society. The appearance of world literature is inevitable. In the end of his speech, Professor Fang presented his book, A History of World Literature, to CUEB foreign language department.

Professor William Paul Franke from American Vanderbilt University and University of Macau delivered a speech, titled by ‘The Tradition of the Chinese Classics and the Idea of World Literature Today’. He pointed out that to be acknowledged by the world literary circle was the prerequisite for Chinese literature tradition to exert the subjective initiative and to reflect the world. He also put forward ‘Dao’ as a typical Chinese image, which has a far-reaching influence on the process of exchange between the orient and the occident.

On the afternoon of November 28^th, three parallel sessions with six sub-forums were held. Language specialists from the language of the US Embassy participated in the session on linguistics and applied linguistics.

On November 29^th, Professor Nicolas Froeliger, director of Professional Translation Post Graduate Division, Applied Linguistics Department, Paris Diderot University, made a keynote speech, titled by ‘Reopening Cold Cases – On Translation and Treason’. Professor Douglas L. Epperson, dean of California Polytechnic State University Liberal Arts, elaborated on ‘U.S. Liberal Arts Education in the New Millenium’. Britain Open University Professor Fiona Joy Doloughan shared her work titled “Narratives of Translation: Representations of China in the Work of Xiaolu Guo”. Then, Professor Li Weimin, famous Shakespeare research specialist and director of Shakespeare Research Institute Center of Sichuan International Studies University delivered his speech “Narration of Shakespeare in Chinese Drama Language — the Cantonese Opera Tian Zhi Jiao Nv Rewritten by The Merchant of Venice”.

On the sidelines, CUEB foreign language department organized five foreign specialists’ lectures, three cooperation program conferences between CUEB and related parties as well as one exclusive interview.