Foreword to the Special Issue on Contemporary Poetry from Taiwan
Kuo-ch’ing Tu
Taiwan Literature: English Translation Series, launched in 1996 as a biannual journal, is devoted presenting works in English translation reflective of significant literary developments and prominent writers in Taiwan, with a primary focus on fiction. For more than two decades, it has been our intention to introduce contemporary poetry as well, to introduce another important dimension in the history of Taiwan literature. Now, with the publication of this special issue, we have finally made some progress towards this goal.
The historical development of Taiwan’s poetry before the imposition of Japanese rule in 1895 was closely related to trends in Chinese classical poetry during the late Qing period (1662–1911), be it shi (verse) or ci (lyrics). This is evident in a series of collections of verse from that period published by the National Taiwan Literature Museum, including Quan Tai shi [Complete Collection of Taiwanese Verse, 12 volumes, 2004], Quan Tai fu [Complete Collection of Taiwanese Rhyme-prose, 2 volumes, 2006], and Quan Tai ci [Complete Collection of Taiwanese Lyrics, 3 volumes, 2017]. As for the emergence of new poetry in colloquial languages, this was clearly due to the combined influence of Hu Shi (1891–1962), who advocated a new poetry in colloquial Chinese, as well as to Japanese literary trends during the Meiji period (1868–1912), with the genbun ichi yundō (unification of writing and speech movement) and the publication of Shintai shishō [Collection of New-Style Poems] in 1882. Hu Shi’s Changshi ji [The Experiments], published in 1920, was the first collection of new poems in colloquial Chinese, while Zhang Wojun’s Luandu zhilian [Love Poems in a Chaotic Capital], published in December of 1925, just five years later, was the first collection of new poems in Taiwan, and there are correspondences between the two. However, the first Taiwanese poet who attempted to write new poems, even though in Japanese, was Hsieh Chun-mu (1902–1969, penname Zhui Feng), who published four short poems under the title “Shi no mane suru” [Poems in Imitation] in April, 1924, more than a year earlier than Zhang Wojun’s collection. Thus, Hsieh can be regarded as the originator of new poetry in Taiwan.
For this special issue, we asked Professor Horng Shuling of the Department of Chinese Literature, National Taiwan University, to serve as guest editor. Professor Horng’s expertise is folk literature in classical Chinese and modern poetry. The purpose of this issue is not to present a systematic historical trajectory, nor to trace all the literary trends in vogue during given eras of the past. Rather, we hope simply to highlight the diverse and multiple features of contemporary poetry from Taiwan and to advance the case for considering that the special characteristics of this verse warrant placing it in a unique position among world literatures in the Chinese language.
Professor Horng’s introduction provides a concise summary of her intention to focus on two main issues: the characteristics of modern poetry from Taiwan, and the major themes that concern contemporary Taiwanese poets. Regarding the characteristics of modern poetry from Taiwan, her views are brief and to the point, as we can observe from the following remarks:
1) With regard to its historical development, we may invoke the words of the poet, Chen Chien-wu, who asserts that Taiwan’s new poetry has two sources: one sprouted from Taiwan’s new literature carried on from the period of Japanese rule. The other is the spark of China’s new poetry in the vernacular brought to Taiwan by the poets who moved there from the mainland after World War II.
2) As far as the path forged by new poetry in Taiwan is concerned, from the 1920s under Japanese rule, through until 1945 and after the war, the basic dynamic is a confrontation between two main literary trends that rise and fall in relation to each other: realism aimed at reflecting nativist consciousness and social realities, and modernism, which pursued odernity and innovative artistic expression.
3) In terms of the actual developments and transformations that occurred in the context of poetic circles, the greatest feature was that poets of like mind, devoted to a common cause, gathered in groups to form poetry societies and publish coterie magazines in which they issued their creative works and poetic views. Through such media, various contentions and literary “isms” gained currency for varying lengths of time, displaying the diversity and vitality of poetic styles among contemporary poets in Taiwan.
Based on the selected works of twenty-four poets, Professor Horng further explains the common themes that most concern contemporary poets in Taiwan. From those themes she summarizes three main viewpoints and then goes on to discuss the inner world explored by those poets based on those viewpoints:
A poet reveals his or her inner world through written expression, which the reader savors through reading the works. Professor Horng deduces the following three themes through which we may explore the inner world of the contemporary poets of Taiwan:
1) A merging of life experience and historical memories;
2) Hometowns and cities in Taiwan seen from a “local” perspective;
3) The consciousness of daily life realities intersecting with poetic imagination.
Viewed from the above three perspectives, we can see that after the baptism of modernism during the 1960s, and the reflections on nativist literature debated during the 1970s, modern poetry in Taiwan after the 1980s evolved as a combination of realism and modernism, and displays both the local sense of the nativist consciousness and the artistic awareness of the modernist school. We find these characteristics fully represented in the poems selected for this special issue.
This issue contains the verse of twenty-four poets. The oldest, Chen Chien-wu (1922–2012), belongs to the generation who crossed the language barrier from Japanese to Chinese. In the history of new poetry as it developed in Taiwan, Chen Chien-wu and Lin Hengtai represent the bulb of a flower carried over from the Japanese rule, while Xiang Ming, who migrated to Taiwan with the Nationalist government, represents the mainlander poets who, as claimed by Ji Xian, brought with them the spark of the new poetry from China. This latter group maintained that blood is thicker than water, and the attachment to Chinese culture can be found in the works of many poets of the 1940s and 1950s. The Taiwanese consciousness of most of the other poets, has become more and more conspicuous with the passing of the generations.
Ethnic consciousness also appears among non-mainland Taiwanese. In addition to the ethnic consciousness of Hoklo Taiwanese, whose ancestors came to the island from Fujian province, there are works that express the ethnic consciousness of Hakka, Indigenous peoples, and new immigrants. For Hakka poets, we have selected Chang Fang Ci and Li Yu-Fang. As to the voices of the Indigenous peoples and new immigrants from Southeast Asia, we selected Atayal writer Walis Nokan and Chan Tah Wei from Malaysia as representatives. In other words, as far as ethnic consciousness is concerned, the selected poems from the twenty-four poets in this volume embody the mindset and cultural proclivities of the broad spectrum of the Taiwanese populace, from mainland Chinese, to Hoklo, Hakka, Indigenous, and new immigrants. From the works selected, Taiwan’s open society, and its diverse, globalized cultural phenomena are revealed.
In short, as Professor Horng has pointed out in her introduction, starting from 1924, when Hsieh Chun-mu first published four “Poems in Imitation,” the development of new poetry in Taiwan has a history of almost one hundred years. The roots of new poetry in Taiwan with its “twin flower bulbs,” to use the phrase coined by Chen Chien-wu, has now bloomed and borne fruit. It manifests diversified themes, and places great stress on both artistic expression and social concern. It recognizes globalization as the major trend of the times, and maintains a dynamic balance between nativist consciousness and the sensibilities of the Chinese cultural diaspora. Taiwan literature and its new poetry written in Chinese should have a place in the Chinese world community, as well as in the history of world literature. Limited by the space allowed for the journal, we could only select works related to “local” and “quotidian” writing. Yet we hope to observe through these works the manner in which the unique charm and gracefulness of contemporary poetry from Taiwan has blossomed in the garden of world literature.
For this special issue, we are very grateful to Professor Horng’s well-conceived planning in the selection of twentyfour poets, while recognizing that incompleteness is hardly avoidable and that, regrettably, many excellent works are left out. For translation, Professor John Balcom and Yingtsih Hwang’s continued assistance and unfailing support as professional translators is particularly appreciated. Professor Brian Skerratt, from the Graduate Institute of Taiwan Literature and Cross- Cultural Studies at National Chung Hsing University, has joined us, and the contribution of his expertise in modern poetry and Chinese-English translation has greatly enriched our translation team. My co-editor, Terence Russell, copy editor Fred Edwards, and office assistants at the UCSB Center for Taiwan Studies, Angela Borda and Raelynn Moy, have provided essential assistance and their devoted efforts deserve my special gratitude. In this issue, the authors and selected titles have far outnumbered those of previous issues, and that has necessitated considerable extra work throughout the editing process. Since last March, due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, and under the state order to shelter in place, communication between those involved in the editing work had to be shifted entirely online. This is inefficient and inconvenient and forced us to delay the publication date. But thanks to the understanding and cooperation of National Taiwan University Press, this issue can now finally go to press, and I herewith express my sincere appreciation to everyone who has contributed to achieving that goal.
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台灣文學英譯叢刊(No. 46)：台灣當代詩專輯 作者：Kuo-ch'ing Tu（杜國清）、Terence Ru... 出版社：臺灣大學出版中心 |
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圖書名稱：台灣文學英譯叢刊（No. 46）：台灣當代詩專輯
This issue contains the verse of twenty-four poets.
From 1924, when Hsieh Chun-mu first published four “Poems in Imitation,” the development of new poetry in Taiwan has a history of almost one hundred years. The roots of new poetry in Taiwan with its “twin flower bulbs,” to use the phrase coined by Chen Chien-wu, has now bloomed and borne fruit. It manifests diversified themes, and places great stress on both artistic expression and social concern. It recognizes globalization as the major trend of the times, and maintains a dynamic balance between nativist consciousness and the ensibilities of the Chinese cultural diaspora. Taiwan literature and its new poetry written in Chinese should have a place in the Chinese world community,as well as in the history of world literature. Limited by the space allowed for the journal, we could only select works related to “local” and “quotidian” writing. Yet we hope to observe through these works the manner in which the unique charm and gracefulness of contemporary poetry from Taiwan has blossomed in the garden of world literature.
這一專輯精選具有代表性的詩人二十四家。
從1924年謝春木發表「詩的模仿」四首算起，台灣新詩的發展也有將近一百年的歷史。新詩「兩個球根」在台灣已經開花結果，呈現出主題多元，創作藝術與關懷現實並重，面對全球化的時代趨勢，保持本土意識與文化離散互相呼應和抗衡。台灣文學和以華文創作的新詩，不僅在華人世界，甚至在世界文學的大花園裡，都應該占有一席之地。我們出版這一專輯，收到篇幅的限制，只能以「地方與日常」選錄相關詩作，藉以展現台灣當代詩在世界花園裡一枝獨秀的風姿。
作者簡介：
【About the Editors】
Kuo-ch'ing Tu, born in Taichung, Taiwan. His research interests include Chinese literature, Chinese poetics and literary theories, comparative literature East and West, and world literatures of Chinese (Shi-Hua wenxue). He is the author of numerous books of poetry in Chinese, as well as translator of English, Japanese, and French works into Chinese.
Terence Russell is Senior Scholar in the Asian Studies Center at the University of Manitoba. He has an interest in contemporary literature in Chinese, especially the literature of Taiwan's Indigenous people. Dr. Russell has been a regular contributor to Taiwan Literature: English Translation Series, and was the guest editor of Issue 24 on Taiwan Indigenous myths and oral literature.
Horng Shuling was born in 1962 in Taipei City. She has a Ph.D. from the Graduate School of Chinese Literature of National Taiwan University (NTU) and is currently a professor in the Chinese Literature Department of NTU.
【About the Translators】
John Balcom teaches at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey. His most recent translation is My Village: Selected Poems, 1972–2014 by Wu Sheng, published by Zephyr Press.
Chang Fen-ling received her B.A. in English from National Taiwan Normal University. A prolific literary critic and award-winning translator, she has translated into Chinese over thirty volumes of poetry with her husband Chen Li. She has also translated two books of Chen Li's poems into English, Intimate Letters: Selected Poems of Chen Li and The Edge of the Island.
Yingtsih Hwang is an independent scholar and translator based in Monterey.
Brian Skerratt is an assistant professor at the Graduate Institute of Taiwan Literature and International Cultural Studies at National Chung Hsing University, Taiwan. His research and teaching focus on modern and contemporary poetry in Chinese, comparative poetics, and ecopoetics. Before joining Chung Hsing, he taught at the Centre for China Studies at Chinese University of Hong Kong. He was a Fulbright Senior Scholar at National Chengchi University and a postdoctoral researcher at the Institute of Chinese Literature and Philosophy at Academia Sinica. He received his Ph.D. from Harvard University with a specialization in modern and contemporary poetry in Chinese. His publications include articles such as “Born Orphans of the Earth: Pastoral Utopia in Contemporary Taiwanese Poetry,”“Hsia Yü Buys a Computer” and “Zhu Guangqian and the Rhythm of New Poetry.” His translations of Macanese writer Un Sio San's poetry, Naked Picnic, are published by CUHK Press.
Terence Russell is Senior Scholar in the Asian Studies Center at the University of Manitoba. His research interest is in contemporary literature in Chinese, especially the literature of Taiwan’s Indigenous people. His publications include studies of Adaw Palaf, Auvini Kadresengan, and Syaman Rapongan. Dr. Russell has a strong interest in translation and translation theory, and has been a regular contributor to Taiwan Literature: English Translation Series. He was the guest editor of Issue 24 on Taiwan Indigenous myths and oral literature, and now serves as co-editor for the journal. His literary translations include novels by award-winning Chinese author Zhang Wei: September’s Fable (2007) and Seven Kinds of Mushrooms (2009); and most recently, The Spirit of Jade Mountain, by Husluman Vava (forthcoming).
章節試閱
Foreword to the Special Issue on Contemporary Poetry from Taiwan
Kuo-ch’ing Tu
Taiwan Literature: English Translation Series, launched in 1996 as a biannual journal, is devoted presenting works in English translation reflective of significant literary developments and prominent writers in Taiwan, with a primary focus on fiction. For more than two decades, it has been our intention to introduce contemporary poetry as well, to introduce another important dimension in the history of Taiwan l...
Kuo-ch’ing Tu
Taiwan Literature: English Translation Series, launched in 1996 as a biannual journal, is devoted presenting works in English translation reflective of significant literary developments and prominent writers in Taiwan, with a primary focus on fiction. For more than two decades, it has been our intention to introduce contemporary poetry as well, to introduce another important dimension in the history of Taiwan l...
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作者序
「台灣當代詩專輯」卷頭語
杜國清
《台灣文學英譯叢刊》自1996年創刊以來，每年兩集譯介的作品，以重要的文學特色和傑出的台灣作家為對象，而且一向以小說為主。二十多年來的耕耘，一直也希望能譯介當代的詩作品，呈現台灣文學發展史上另一重要的面向。這一計劃，終於實現了，我們出版這一專輯。
台灣詩的發展史，在日治時期之前，與中國清末的古典詩詞的發展，息息相關，並無二致。這可以從國立台灣文學舘出版的《全臺詩》（12冊，2004年）、《全臺賦》（二冊，2006年）以及《全臺詞》（三冊，2017）的浩瀚史料中，可以證明。至於...
杜國清
《台灣文學英譯叢刊》自1996年創刊以來，每年兩集譯介的作品，以重要的文學特色和傑出的台灣作家為對象，而且一向以小說為主。二十多年來的耕耘，一直也希望能譯介當代的詩作品，呈現台灣文學發展史上另一重要的面向。這一計劃，終於實現了，我們出版這一專輯。
台灣詩的發展史，在日治時期之前，與中國清末的古典詩詞的發展，息息相關，並無二致。這可以從國立台灣文學舘出版的《全臺詩》（12冊，2004年）、《全臺賦》（二冊，2006年）以及《全臺詞》（三冊，2017）的浩瀚史料中，可以證明。至於...
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目錄
Foreword to the Special Issue on Contemporary Poetry from Taiwan／Kuo-ch’ing Tu
「台灣當代詩專輯」卷頭語／杜國清
Selections of Contemporary Poetry from Taiwan: The Local and the Quotidian—Introduction to the Special Issue on Contemporary Poetry from Taiwan／Horng Shuling
台灣當代詩選：地方與日常「台灣當代詩專輯」導言／洪淑苓
Poetry
I. The Convergence of Life Experience and Historical Memory 生命經驗與歷史記憶的結合
Chen Chien-wu 陳千武(1922–2012)
Poem of Childhood 童年的詩
Car...
「台灣當代詩專輯」卷頭語／杜國清
Selections of Contemporary Poetry from Taiwan: The Local and the Quotidian—Introduction to the Special Issue on Contemporary Poetry from Taiwan／Horng Shuling
台灣當代詩選：地方與日常「台灣當代詩專輯」導言／洪淑苓
Poetry
I. The Convergence of Life Experience and Historical Memory 生命經驗與歷史記憶的結合
Chen Chien-wu 陳千武(1922–2012)
Poem of Childhood 童年的詩
Car...
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