Prolific translator of Western works into classical Chinese

Prolific translator of Western works into classical Chinese

Yan Fu (January 8, 1854 - October 27, 1921), male, originally named Zongguang, with the word Youling, later renamed Fu, with the word Jidao, Han nationality, from Houguan County, Fujian Province, is a modern influential bourgeois Enlightenment thinker, famous translator, educator and representative of the new Legalists.

He graduated from Fujian shipping school and British Royal Naval Academy successively. He once served as the general manager of Translation Bureau of Beijing Normal University, the president of Shanghai Fudan University, the president of Anqing Normal University, and the general manager of Ming Ci School of Qing Dynasty. During the period of teaching in Beiyang Naval Academy founded by Li Hongzhang, he cultivated the first batch of naval talents in modern China, translated tianyanlun and founded Guowen Bao, systematically introduced western democracy and science, publicized the thought of reform and reform, and introduced western sociology, political science, political economy, philosophy and natural science to China. He published the complete works of Yan Fu.

On October 27, 1921, he died at langguanxiang residence in Fuzhou, aged 67.

Yan Fu's translation standard of "faithfulness, expressiveness and elegance" has a far-reaching influence on later translation work. He was an influential bourgeois Enlightenment thinker in the late Qing Dynasty and one of the "advanced Chinese" who sought truth from western countries in modern Chinese history.

Life of the characters

Early experience

On January 8, 1854 (December 10, the third year of Xianfeng), Yan Fu was born into a family of traditional Chinese medicine in Yangqi village, Gaishan Town, Houguan County, Fujian Province.

In 1866 (the fifth year of Tongzhi), Yan Fu's father died of illness, and the school dropped out. Yan Fu gave up the imperial examination.

In 1867 (the sixth year of Tongzhi), he went to Fuzhou shipping school to learn how to drive. He changed his name to Zongguang and was named Youling.

In 1871 (the tenth year of Tongzhi), he graduated from Fuzhou shipping school. As the first graduate of the school, he has practiced in Jianwei and Yangwu ships for five years.

In 1872 (the 11th year of Tongzhi), he got the qualification of selecting Taoist officials, and changed his name to Fu, with a few words.

Study in the UK

In March 1877 (February of the third year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu), he went to Britain to study the Navy, and became a good friend with Guo Songtao, the British minister. He graduated from Royal College in May 1879.

Return to China after learning

After returning to China, he was employed as a teacher of Fuzhou shipping school.

In 1880 (the sixth year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu), he went to Tianjin as the "foreign language teacher" of the driving school of Beiyang Naval Academy. Among the students was Li Yuanhong, who was later famous for the revolution of 1911.

In 1889 (the 15th year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu), he donated the title of "Tongzhi" to the governor and appointed it to the Beiyang Naval Academy.

In 1890 (the 16th year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu), he was promoted to the general office of Beiyang Naval Academy. However, because of his disagreement with Li Hongzhang, he intended to withdraw from the Navy and seek another development.

On October 8, 1891 (the 16th year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu), Yan Fu obtained the official title of candidate Dao.

In 1895 (the 21st year of Guangxu), after the Sino Japanese War of 1895, he published articles in Tianjin Zhibao, such as "on the urgency of world change", "yuanqiang", "the establishment of the Republic of Korea" and "the decision to save the nation", advocating reform and reform and armed resistance to foreign aggression.

In 1896 (the 22nd year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu), he founded the Russian language Museum, which was the earliest Russian language school in China. He helped Zhang Yuanji establish the general arts school in Beijing. On September 24, he donated 100 yuan to support the current affairs newspaper founded by Liang Qichao and Wang Kangnian in Shanghai.

In 1897 (the 23rd year of Guangxu), Wang Xiuzhi and Xia Zengyou founded Guowen Bao and Guowen collection in Tianjin to publicize the reform and reform, and published tianyanlun in Guowen Bao continuously.

In 1898 (the 24th year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu), Emperor Guangxu ordered Yan Fu to come to Beijing for an audience to expound his views on the reform; he changed his donation to Tongzhi; he wrote the book of ten thousand words of Emperor Guangxu; in September, Guowen Bao was ordered by the Qing government to stop because it reported the details of the 1898 coup.

In 1900 (the 26th year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu), the Boxer Movement broke out. Yan Fu left Tianjin and lived in Shanghai. He joined the "Chinese parliament" initiated by Wang Kangnian and Tang Caichang and was elected as vice president. He founded a famous society and gave lectures on famous schools.

In 1901 (the 27th year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu), at the invitation of Zhang Ji, the general office of Kaiping Mining Bureau, he went to Tianjin to take charge of the affairs of Kaiping Mining Bureau.

In 1902 (the 28th year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu), he went to Beijing as the general manager of the translation and Book office attached to the school of Beijing Normal University.

In 1904 (the thirtieth year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu), he resigned from the post of general manager of the translation and Book office attached to the Capital University and returned to Shanghai.

In the winter of 1904, Kaiping Mining Bureau sued and was invited to London to negotiate.

In 1905 (the thirty first year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu), Sun Yat Sen arrived in England from America and went to visit Yan Fu. They had a long talk.

He returned to Shanghai to help Ma Xiangbo establish Fudan public school.

In 1906 (the 32nd year of Guangxu), he was the president of Fudan public school, the second president of Fudan public school. He was employed by Enming, governor of Anhui Province, to serve as the supervisor of Anhui Normal School.

In 1907 (the 33rd year of Guangxu), Enming was assassinated and Yan Fu left Anhui Normal School.

In 1908 (the 34th year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu), he was appointed as the general editor of the noun library approved by the Ministry of education in Beijing.

In May 1909 (April of the first year of Xuantong), he was appointed as the second-class counsellor of the constitutional compilation and inspection hall and the consultant of Fujian Province.

On January 17, 1910 (December 7, the first year of Xuantong), the Qing government granted the birth of Jinshi in liberal arts.

In 1910 (the second year of Xuantong), the Navy ministry was granted the title of Xie Du Tong, and later served as a member of the senior Council.

In 1911 (the third year of Xuantong), Gong jin'ou, the National Anthem of the Qing Dynasty, was created.

In 1912, Peking University changed its name to Peking University and became its first president.

In 1913, he was the foreign affairs legal adviser of the presidential palace.

On January 26, 1914, he was elected as a member of the treaty conference and later served as a member of the Senate. Member of the constitution Drafting Committee.

In May 1915, Yan Fu was employed by Yuan Shikai as the drafter of the constitution; on August 23, the preparatory Security Council was established, and Yan Fu was named as the initiator of the preparatory Security Council, supporting Yuan Shikai's restoration of the monarchy.

After Yuan Shikai's death in 1916, the Congress demanded that the culprit and the Six Gentlemen of the preparatory security association be punished, and Yan Fu avoided the disaster in Tianjin.

In 1920, he returned to Fuzhou to recuperate because of the long treatment of asthma.

The death of a character

On October 27, 1921, he died at langguanxiang residence in Fuzhou, aged 67.

Main achievements

Naval thought

Yan Fu's arrival brought modern western naval management thoughts and teaching theories to Beiyang Naval Academy. Due to his conscientious and responsible attitude towards work, good management of education and teaching, and Yan Fu's expression to Li Hongzhang, he has been promoted from the chief Tutor (Dean) and the Association Office (vice president) to the General Office (president). In his letter to his fourth brother Guanlan, Yan Fu said: "since he came to Tianjin, although everything has not been bad, it has not been very good. There are still some people who can not carry out official affairs freely. As for the boss, to be an official nowadays, you have to have a family member inside, make friends outside, and have money to socialize with. You have to be well-informed. Brother (Yan Fu calls himself) has none of them. Why is it that officials are not so good? It's not enough. " It can be seen that Yan Fu was very dissatisfied with the officialdom at that time. In view of this, the fourth younger brother Guanlan told him that in any case, Li Hongzhang always had to walk around because he was both powerful and direct superior. So Yan Fu went to have a try occasionally, but he didn't expect it to be useful. In this regard, Yan Fu's letter to his fourth younger brother once said humorously: "in my younger brother's words, it's good to see this old man more often. It's very strange." But Yan Fu's worship of Li Hongzhang is nothing more than that.

personnel training

Yan Fu's Beiyang Naval Academy was once praised as "the first to open up the northern atmosphere and the foundation of Chinese warships". As a new naval school, the school has trained many talents for the society in the past 20 years, such as Li Yuanhong, President of the Republic of China, Zhang Boling, President of Nankai University, Wang Shaolian, Dean of the Academic Affairs Office of Beiyang University, and Wu Guangjian, a famous translator. However, Yan Fu himself was a little harsh in his evaluation of his disciples: "he has been in charge of Beiyang school for more than ten years. In fact, none of his disciples is satisfied. Wu Zhaoji (Guangjian) is knowledgeable and perverse; Wang Shaoquan (Shaolian) is practical and too formal. Besides the two, although Yu is famous, he is mediocre. " In 1900, the Allied forces of the eight powers invaded Tianjin, and the Beiyang Naval Academy, which Yan Fu had devoted 20 years of painstaking efforts to, was destroyed by gunfire. Yan Fu was forced to leave Tianjin and move to Shanghai.

Educational thought

In the restoration movement, Yan Fu was a reformist thinker who opposed stubborn conservatism and advocated restoration. He not only wrote articles on the necessity, importance and urgency of the reform, but also translated Huxley's the theory of evolution. He took "natural selection, survival of the fittest" as the theoretical basis of saving the nation from subjugation, which had a great influence at that time. After the reform movement of 1898, he devoted himself to translating western bourgeois philosophy, social theory and natural science works. He was a bourgeois Enlightenment thinker. Yan Fu believed in Darwin's evolutionism and Spencer's vulgar evolutionism. This is the theoretical basis of his political thought and his educational thought. In Yuan Qiang, Yan Fu pointed out that the survival of a country depends on three basic conditions: "one is the strength of blood and physical strength, two is the strength of intelligence and wisdom, and three is the strength of virtue, righteousness and benevolence." He dreamed of strengthening the national prestige through bourgeois physical, intellectual and moral education. "Today, we need to unify the government in three aspects: one is to drum up the people's strength, the other is to open up the people's wisdom, and the third is to develop new people's morality.". The so-called encouragement of people's strength means that the people of the whole country should have a healthy physique, ban opium and the bad habit of foot binding, and the so-called enlightenment of people's wisdom mainly lies in the following aspects

Chinese PinYin : Yan Fu