Wang Yu has four translations selected for the "Chinese Translation of World Academic Masterpieces Series". Working at the central bank, she is not only a translator with more than 20 translations, but also a doctoral supervisor at Tsinghua University's School of Finance (formerly known as the Graduate School of the People's Bank of China) and a columnist for two newspapers and periodicals.
Wang Yu's cooperation with the Commercial Press began in the early 1990s, when wang Yu began to write for the "Marxist Sources Research Series" for business due to the recommendation of his mentor. These long papers, which are often tens of thousands of words, have been widely recognized by business. To this end, "After Gary Becker won the Nobel Prize in Economics in 1992, business came to me and hoped that I would undertake the task of translating 'Family Theory'. They said that translating Nobel's works on economics was an important task they were starting, and they were very serious from top to bottom, and they were optimistic about me. Of course, it would be nice if I could give them some more proof that my professionalism and research abilities match those of a 'Translator of a Nobel Prize'. I sent them my academic papers published in journals such as Economic Research and Economic Dynamics, as well as the Wu Yuzhang Award certificate I received at Renmin University. After much research and letting me try to translate some chapters of The Theory of the Family, they finally handed me the original book of The Theory of the Family. ”
At that time, Wang Yu was still studying in the Department of Economics of Renmin University, living in a collective dormitory, eating in a large canteen, no computer, no Jinshan Ciba, carrying a bag full of English originals, English-Chinese dictionaries, lunch boxes and water cups every morning, the first to run to the library to grab a seat, buried his head in translation until the late night closed.
"I'm not translating sentence by sentence, but paragraph by paragraph. First read a chapter, then read a paragraph repeatedly, understand and digest, and then use a pen to write the Chinese on scratch paper. After translating each chapter, I read it through from beginning to end, tearing it up and retranslating it as soon as I felt that there was something unclear or the meaning was not smooth. To this end, she experienced a long period of high-intensity physical and mental expenditure and paper, pen and ink expenditure. After more than two years of time + several large ballpoint refills, Wang Yu finally completed the translation of "Family Theory". When the thick handwritten translation was sent to business, the fingers of her right hand were also ground out of a thick cocoon by the original ballpoint pen.
In the spring of 1995, "Family Theory" was officially published, which received unanimous praise from the academic and translation circles, with a Douban score of 8.6 points. Because of this good start, after Amartya Sen won the Nobel Prize in Economics in 1998, business continued to ask Wang Yu to translate Amartya Sen's masterpieces Ethics and Economics and Poverty and Famine, which were published in 1998 and 1999 respectively. These two books have received more attention from the social and academic circles, won various academic and translation awards for many times, and have been listed as required reading lists for undergraduate and graduate students by many colleges and universities, and have been unanimously praised by the majority of readers, with a Douban score of 8.5 points for Ethics and Economics and 9 points for "Poverty and Famine". "This is a high score that is rare in pure academic works." An editor of the business said.
"Wang Yu works seriously and treats people sincerely, and she has been working at Chinese Min min bank for nearly 20 years. In the course of her work, she devotes herself to and concentrates on it; outside of work, she devotes herself to academic research, pays attention to the international frontier, and introduces many world economic masterpieces to Chinese readers. This is the recommendation of Wang Yu as the translator of the book "Government Functions in Government and Market Change", and Zhu Min, then vice president of the International Monetary Fund, to Wang Yu as the translator of the book. This is also the fourth Chinese translation masterpiece translated by Wang Yu after 20 years.
From the earliest "Family Theory" to "American Agricultural Policy: Historical Change and Economic Analysis" published this year, Wang Yu has published more than 20 academic translations in Commerce, Sanlian, Chinese Min University Press, etc. Most of them are important works that are well known, read and widely cited.
For Wang Yu, the biggest difficulty in his translation career is time constraints. "I use my time every day to the limit, I cherish every minute and second, but I still feel that I don't have enough." Wang Yu's distress is practical, she works at the central bank, needs to sit in shifts, meetings, and travel; she is a doctoral supervisor at Tsinghua University's School of Finance, and needs to lecture and take students; she is a columnist and needs to provide op-eds on time; at the same time, she is also the hostess of the family, and needs to handle trivial matters such as chai rice, oil, salt, sauce, vinegar and tea. More importantly, Wang Yu is an idealist, who will be conscientious and responsible for everything and will always adhere to his faith. Sometimes tired to the limit, she opened her schedule, looked at the next day's full work schedule, meeting and consultation, she immediately realized that she did not even have time to hesitate, so she would immediately sit under the lamp in the early morning, open the original book and pick up the pen.
In order to translate an academic work well, Wang Yu believes that translators need to have at least the following conditions: first, a good Foundation in English; second, solid and profound professional theory; third, strong comprehension and logical analysis ability; and fourth, good Chinese expression ability. These require translators to have a deeper theoretical accomplishment, a more solid professional foundation, and a more comprehensive knowledge reserve. For example, Amartya Sen's Ethics and Economics is both an economic and a philosophical work. Translating this book, Wang Yu, who majored in economics, was confident that she had read Karl Marx's Capital repeatedly as an undergraduate, Adam Smith's "Research on the Nature and Causes of National Wealth" and David Ricardo's "Political Economy and Principles of Taxation". In contrast, there is a lack of systematic reading and study of philosophical originals. In order to be able to translate this book well, Wang Yuxian supplemented the relevant philosophical works, carefully read Adam Smith's "Theory of Moral Sentiments", Schopenhauer's "Two Basic Problems of Ethics", Fichte's "Ethical System", Pigou's "Welfare Economics" and Little's "Review of Welfare Economics". Before translating Poverty and Famine, she read almost all the literature on institutional economic theory, public choice theory, and new political economy in China, and published several papers on institutional change and economic development in academic journals before she began to translate.
"For more than 20 years, academic translation has been an important part of my life experience, career and academic research. It enriched my life experience, expanded my theoretical foundation, and broadened my academic horizons. For my central banking work, for my colleagues, for my students, for my readers, there is something new and valuable. For example, when studying how to further improve China's monetary policy framework, financial market system and RMB exchange rate system, Government and Market: Government Functions in Change, Institutional Research on Exchange Rate Undervaluation Policy, and Origin of Value provide more analytical methods and broader thinking space. When studying how to effectively manage financial risks and ensure financial stability and financial security, Risk, Uncertainty and Profit, Game Theory and Human Economic Behavior, and Bank Liquidity Creation and Financial Crisis Forecast have brought us useful references and enlightenment. Commodity Price Volatility and Inclusive Growth in Low-Income Countries enables us to better understand the major global realities of international commodity market volatility, the natural resource curse, and inclusive economic growth. In my completed research report on the reform of China's health care system, the Economic Analysis of Health Care Reform provides a valuable analytical framework. In recent discussions on Agricultural Development and Food Security in China, Ethics and Economics, Poverty and Famine, and U.S. Agricultural Policy: Historical Change and Economic Analysis have also been used as theoretical references. ”
"I have never known that you are the god of translating these classic works, and compared with many very blunt translations now, your professionalism and economic skills are too worthy of our study." Douban reading score can exceed 8 points is very remarkable, each of your translations can have such a high score, it is really admirable. You are the one who has truly contributed to the development of Chinese economics, and these masterpieces are our eternal spiritual food. A reader of Wang Yu said. For more than 20 years, Wang Yu has devoted almost all of his rest time to academic translators. Is this sentiment or instinct? Wang Yu said: "I love my job, as a civil servant in the government department to serve the country and serve the society is my active choice. Working in the office for more than ten hours a day and never taking holidays is also my active choice. Working hard to make the people rich and the country rich and strong is the wish of my youth, the ideal of my life, the driving force of my work, and the compass of my actions. ”
"Late at night, when I am exhausted from working in the unit to the limit, I will walk home, calm my mood through the translation, and rest my body. The next day, when I am physically and mentally recovered, I will devote myself to the work of the central bank with all my strength and full attention. Wang Yu said, "After all, in my heart, I still think that the work of the central bank is the most important, and my academic translation is a bit like others drinking coffee and listening to music, which is a kind of rest and enjoyment." Translation is the most relaxing time for me, like talking to the author, like talking to a colleague. Thanks to the academic translators for bringing me physical rest, spiritual enrichment and spiritual peace. When he said these words, Wang Yu's face was clear, his eyes were soft, there was no trace of shadow, and there was no officialness.
For most people, no matter how busy they are at work, there is always something deep inside them, such as how should life be spent? What is the meaning of life? "I was fortunate to choose the central bank job I love, and at the same time I chose the academic translation I love. In my mind, business is the best publishing house, where there are the best editors and scholars in the country. My first Xinhua dictionary when I was in elementary school, my first English-Chinese dictionary in middle school, and my first economics textbook in college were all published in business, and it was my honor to cooperate with them for a long time. ”
The original article is transferred from: China Reading News
Source: China Fortune Network
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