Chen Wangdao’s son recalls his father: His translation of "Communist Manifesto" is a historical choice

　　China News Service, Yiwu, August 23, title: Chen Wangdao’s son recalls his father: His translation of "Communist Manifesto" is a historical choice

　　Author: Strict Tong Xiaoyu

　　"In the eyes of others, the old age is like a'red-headed match'. But in 28 years of getting along, he has never lost his temper. He is a low-key, kind old man with rigorous scholarship. He will translate the "Communist Manifesto" "I think it is a historical choice."

　　On August 22, the first issuing ceremony of the centenary commemorative stamps of the Chinese translation of the "Communist Manifesto" was held in Fenshuitang Village, Yiwu City, Zhejiang Province, the hometown of Chen Wangdao. At the event, Chen Zhenxin, the son of Chen Wangdao and a professor at Fudan University, commented on his father in an interview.

　　Chen Wangdao is the first translator of the Chinese version of the "Communist Manifesto" and actively promotes the new cultural movement. He was the president of Fudan University. After 1949, he actively supported the writing reform and the promotion of Mandarin.

In front of the former residence of Chen Wangdao, Chen Zhenxin signed the visitors. Photo by Tong Xiaoyu

　　Born in 1938, Chen Zhenxin spent his childhood in Fenshuitang Village. It was not until 1949 that he reunited with his father in Shanghai. "By the time my father died in 1977, I spent 28 years with him." Chen Zhenxin said, "low-key" is the deepest impression Chen Wangdao left on him.

　　As for the translation of the "Communist Manifesto", my father and his family did not mention a word. "Later, I went to the bookstore and saw that my father was mentioned in the "Communist Manifesto", and I realized that he had done such a great thing."

　　Chen Zhenxin's understanding of the ins and outs of the translation of the "Communist Manifesto" mainly came from the various literature studies and historical data excavation he participated in after becoming a member of the Chen Wangdao Research Association.

　　In the spring of 1920, in the humble wood hut of the old house in Fenshuitang Village, Chen Wangdao was working day and night with a kerosene lamp, and the story of "dipping in ink and eating rice dumplings and saying that the taste is very sweet" has been passed down to this day. In August 1920, the first Chinese translation of the Communist Manifesto was published in Shanghai.

　　Looking back now, he said that the heavy task of translating at that time fell on his father, which can be said to be "a historical choice."

　　"Because he met early Japanese socialists during his study in Japan and accepted Marxist doctrine. He has a solid foundation in Japanese and Chinese, so he is naturally the first candidate." Chen Zhenxin said.

　　Chen Wangdao is good at English and Japanese. The first full Chinese translation of the "Communist Manifesto" was lack of materials. Chen Wangdao was extraordinarily serious, careful and meticulous. In contrast to the English version, he also corrected some translation errors in the Japanese translation.

The scene was restored when Chen Wangdao was translating in the Caifang of Yiwu Former Residence. Photo by Tong Xiaoyu

　　Many new terms and special terms, such as "nobleman", "civilian", "religious socialism", etc., Chen Wangdao used the original English text in parentheses. In the end, he "it took five times the effort of translating books to translate the full text."

　　Chen Zhenxin said that rigorous scholarship was the first point he admired his father. The second point is his grasp of words, not only accurate, but also easy to understand.

　　He picked up the "Communist Manifesto" at hand and pointed to the first sentence "There is a monster wandering in Europe, and this monster is communism." He said this sentence after a lapse of 100 years, and he did not find it obscure.

　　Compared with other versions of the "Communist Manifesto", as a linguist, Chen Wangdao’s language is very beautiful, and some wonderful rhetorical sentences can be seen everywhere, such as "The enthusiasm of religion, the bloody nature of the righteous chivalry, and the affectionate affection of children have long been arguing about interests. Drowned in the ice water."

　　In Chen Zhenxin's view, this is also an important factor in why this booklet of more than 10,000 words has been widely spread and has a huge impact. (Finish)