Another activity of the seminar was a translation contest.

“We let the candidates translate the same excerpt of the book in different languages, including English, French and Janpanese,” Zeng Siwei, the leader of Student’s Management Committee of SISU Library, said, “This was interesting because some students just guessed which book is the most popular one, at first sight, whereas others could not tell until we announced the title. After translating, we gave them an assignment to read the whole book.”

Students translated a total of eight versions of Animal Farm. The SISU Library and student donors provided the original versions, according to Zeng.

Wu wei, a junior postgraduate from SISU’s School of Japanese Studies, was chosen to be the best translator in the contest. He interpreted a Japanese version of Animal Farm into Chinese by integrating some Chinese culture into the writing.

“I wanted to localize the language,” Wu said, “My translation managed to reflect the composition style of the work. I believe that good translation is more than words but a combination of the language and the culture.”

The World Book Day, also known as World Book and Copyright Day, is originally organized by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on April 23rd, the anniversary of the death of William Shakespeare. To encourage lifelong reading, SISU has a tradition of holding activities on that day, yet the offline seminar is a new form.

At the end of the reading seminar, students made paper bookmarks in traditional Chinese style by themselves, using paper, leaves and ink in gold color, which stimulated their passion for reading.

“These activities are really meaningful since we students can exchange our thoughts about reading, translating and about life,” Wu said, “They are so enjoyable that I am looking forward to more offline sharing seminar at SISU Library.”

Original Article From: http://en.shisu.edu.cn/resources/news/

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