On July 16, 2023, the thesis proposal conference of the 2022-2023 National Social Science Foundation for a key Chinese academic literature translation project "Chinese Thought in a Multi-cultural World" (by Le Daiyun, Italian version) was held online. This project was jointly applied by Associate Professor Yang Lin, Director of the Italian Department, and Zhonghua Book Company, with Yang Lin as the project leader.
The conference was presided over by Professor Li Min, Vice Dean of the College. Meng Delong, Vice Director of the Humanities and Social Sciences Research Department of Nankai University, Professor Yan Guodong, Dean of the College and project consultant, Jiang Li, the representative of Ms. Le Daiyun (the author of the original work), the supervisor of the Academy of Chinese Culture, and a member of the Intercultural Research Center of Peking University, attended the meeting. Professor Wen Zheng, Director of the Italian Language Teaching and Research Office, Beijing Foreign Studies University, and President of the Italian Language Teaching and Research Center, Professor Ge Guilu, Dean of the College of Foreign Languages of Fujian Normal University and editor-in-chief of Foreign Languages and Literature Studies, Associate Professor Anna di Toro, sinologist and Director of Confucius Institute of the University for Foreigners of Siena formed the defense committee. Members of the project team include: Letizia Vallini, an Italian teacher of the College, Associate Professor Renata Vinci, a sinologist from the University of Palermo, and Dr. Vincenzo Pinello attended the meeting.
Professor Li Min first introduced the participating experts and extended a warm welcome. Vice Director Meng Delong congratulated the College on the approval of key Chinese academic literature translation and publishing projects funded by NSSFC in recent years, and said that the Humanities and Social Sciences Research Department of Nankai University attaches importance to and supports the promotion of the projects. Professor Yan Guodong appreciated the achievements of the Italian major of the College. He pointed out that Ms. Le Daiyun is the founder of the Chinese School in Comparative Literature, and it is of great significance to translate her works into Italian. Researcher Jiang Li affirmed Le's academic status and contributions, believing that she builds a "cross-cultural bridge" connecting China and the West and communicates with the outside world in the modernization process of Chinese culture.
Professor Wen Zheng, convenor of the defense committee, presided over the meeting. Project host Yang Lin made a report on the viewpoints of the original work, its academic value, and the significance of the Italian translation. She introduced the project team members as well as the responsible Chinese and foreign publishing houses. She also presented the translation and publication plan and the follow-up publicity plan. The defense committee approved the project report and made comments and suggestions.
Professor Ge Guilu pointed out that Ms. Le is one of the most important representatives of the contemporary Chinese comparative literature, and her cross-cultural thoughts are in line with the needs of the current East-West dialogue, which is conducive to the implementation of the Global Civilization Initiative and the promotion of mutual learning among human civilizations. Her works embody the top-level design thoughts of the Chinese School in comparative literature.
Associate Professor Di Haibin mentioned that Italy has a long tradition of sinology, but the translation of Chinese works mainly focuses on literature with relatively less emphasis on academic essays. The translation of this book will fill the blank. Professor Wen Zheng reviewed the history of literary and cultural exchanges between China and Italy, concluding that Italian studies and Italian language studies are booming in China. He said that with more and more high-level scholars and translators, the future of Chinese academic-related translation in Italy is promising. In addition, the project team members also discussed and communicated with experts on translation skills, material collection, audience awareness, and language style.
At last, after deliberation, the expert group considered that the project planning and time arrangement were reasonable, the members were strong in ability, the division of labor was clear, and they were competent for translation and publishing work. Therefore, they unanimously approved the project proposal. Yang Lin thanked the leaders and experts, saying that she would further optimize the translation task based on the valuable suggestions of the expert group to ensure the completion of this project.
