On the afternoon of November 9, Associate Professor Xu Shiyan paid a visit to the College of Foreign Studies where she delivered a wonderful lecture entitled “Approaching Translation - Between Source Language and Target Language”. The lecture was hosted by the vice-dean of the College of Foreign Studies, Cao Xinyu.

In the first part of the lecture, Xu briefly introduced the four steps of translating: translating by translators; proofreading by editors; revising by both translator and editor, and examining and approving by the chief editor.

She noted that translating is the “Dream Team” of both the West and the East, and emphasized the duty of translators to communicate, for which she took Howard Goldblatt, a famous translator, and his communicating with writers, as an example.

Then, relating with her own experiences of study and translating, Xu pointed out what we need to pay attention to in the process of translating, including translation of words, context construction, how to express the writing style. She indicated that it would be necessary to deal with the target text according to the period of the original text. At the same time, she emphasized that students should learn to integrate materials, be adept at finding new problems and new ways of thinking. She hoped that we can make an effort in pushing Chinese culture abroad.

In the last part of the lecture, Xu patiently answered the questions raised by the audience. This lecture was profound, clear and also brilliant, which won the applause of the audience. From this lecture, teachers and students gained a more profound knowledge of translation. Also, the graduate students broadened their view and became more enthusiastic and confident in translation.