0000000000146197
AUTHOR
Renata Vinci
Sino-Italian Encounters in the Late Qing Press (1872–1911)
Through the analysis of the portrait of Italy in late Imperial Chinese press, this paper intends to adopts “a more reflective use of the contact zone as a thinking device”, as malleable conceptual space that allows to analyze the interaction between the two countries in a precarious historical moment, and to explore the scale of power undergoing such dynamics. In order to do so, three aspects of the Sino-Italian encounter and national representation will be explored: Balance of power. At the beginning of the 90’s Marie Louise Pratt’s studies on the asymmetrical encounter among different sociocultural entities resulted in the spatial idea of “contact zone”. Although, Since historians agreed …
The Descriptions of Sicily in Chinese Travel Diaries and Geographic Works until Qing Dynasty
Chinese traditional culture is full of ancient travellers’ accounts and geographical treatises: Chinese merchants and diplomats reached Western countries reporting their experiences, while Christian missionaries wished to describe their words to Chinese people. In this literary context, I conducted a strict research focused on the descriptions of Sicily circulating in China from the first descriptions up to the Qing period. The first description is also the first description ever found of an Italian region appeared in the Middle Kingdom. It was written by the Inspector of Foreign Sea-Trade of Fujian Zhao Rugua in his pilot’s book, the Zhufan zhi (1225). Since then a considerable number of a…
La Sicilia in Cina. Una raccolta di testi cinesi sull’isola (1225-1911)
Pochi sanno che la Sicilia è stata la prima regione italiana a essere descritta in un testo cinese. Questo avvenne nel 1225 e l’autore di tale descrizione fu un doganiere che raccolse notizie sulle nazioni e le genti straniere dai mercanti che sbarcavano sulle coste cinesi. Da quel momento in poi numerosi sono stati gli autori che hanno descritto la Sicilia in Cina, studiosi cinesi e missionari occidentali desiderosi di far conoscere il mondo occidentale. Le conoscenze sulla Sicilia sono andate ampliandosi e arricchendosi di dettagli, rivelando un sincero interesse per questa terra, centro del Mediterraneo e culla della cultura classica. Attraverso un’antologia di testi che spaziano dal 120…
三門湾事件時期『申報』所見対意大利的公衆情緒
我们都知道意大利与中国在文化、经济、政治等领域交流非常丰富。这是罗马智慧大学传统研 究领域，而且很多意大利的研究人员通过分析各类文学作品(特别是耶稣会传教士与中国学者的 科学、地理学作品与旅游日记)来研究这些交流的不同方面及其结构。可是迄今为止，还没有任何 一部论著从中国近代报刊来研究意大利。正是因此，我选择了晚清时期《申报》中对意大利形象的 分析作为我博士论文的选题，即《晚清报刊中的意大利形象分析——案例分析(1872-1912)》。 而本文所讨论的主题便是我的博士论文研究的一部分。 在西方社会中报纸具有一种重要的任务，而从 19 世纪起，西方商人与传教士在中国推进了新 闻传播的发展，所以清末时期的外文与中文报刊很多，然而很少有报刊具有《申报》那样长的历史， 也很少有报刊产生了如同《申报》般重要的影响。
The Advent of duanpian xiaoshuo: A Combination of Western Discourse and Chinese Legacy in the Early Definitions of the Modern Short Story
During the late Qing, a thriving transcultural interaction across China and the West determined a burgeoning cultural environment in which new forms of appreciation and critique contributed to the development of a new sense of literary modernity and new ways of conceiving and classifying literature (wen) distant from the “canon”. From the mid of XX century, in Chinese newspapers and magazines literature and leisure reading became a regular section. Shenbao was also one of the first papers which recognized the attractive power of literature and of the so called duanpian xiaoshuo 短篇小說 (Chen 2009, p. 117). In those years, Shenbao introduced new contents and form of reception that were already …
La narrativa cinese in Italia a cavallo tra fine Ottocento e inizio Novecento: il contributo di Giuseppe Barone (1861-1924)
Between the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century, several Italian early sinologists and translators contributed to introduce numerous works of Chinese literature to the Italian readers. Among them, the Neapol- itan polyglot Giuseppe Barone (1861-1924) was a prolific author and trans- lator, not just in Italian, but also in French, Spanish, Latin and Greek. As a matter of fact, his Chinese-related production amounts to more than 30 writings, including essays and short studies on Chinese culture, economy and society, as well as translations of poems, plays and short stories. However, an exhaustive investigation on his contribution to the early translations of Chinese literatu…
A Telegraph for China: The Attempted Application of Caselli’s Pantelegraph to Transmit Chinese Characters, 1856−87
In 1872 the Shanghai-based newspaper Shenbao described an invention by Giovanni Caselli that allowed the production of telegraphic messages containing Chinese characters, the ‘pantelegraph’, an ancestor of the fax, reproducing manu- scripts, images and symbols, and, as such, totally suitable for Chinese telegraphy. In 1863, the Italian inventor had shown his invention to a legation of Chinese diplomats in France, producing some impressive Chinese transmissions, the caselligrammi. The envoys reported this information back home, but for some reasons a commercial contact was only set twenty years later. Although in many ways this seemed to be a perfectly suitable solution for the telegraphic c…
Chinese Public Sentiments about Italy during the Sanmen Bay Affair in the Pages of the Shenbao
This paper introduces which was the public sentiment and opinion of the Chinese journalists of the Shenbao in a very relevant period of the history of the relations between Italy and China. We know that China had had a very high opinion of Italy thanks to the magnificent portrait of ancient Italian society, art and culture made by the Jesuit missionaries. But in the selected historical moment, there was a strong change in the way Chinese people felt about the Italian presence in China. Apart from some previous failures of the Italian diplomatic action in China, the Sanmen Bay affairs represents the climax of the inability of Italian diplomacy, so that Chinese people were clearly aware of th…
Teorie e pratiche per un'educazione moderna dei giovani nella stampa per ragazzi da XIX e XX secolo
That images could support texts to reach all sorts of readers, including children, was a key topic of Chinese public discourse in the modern press. In 1897 Liang Qichao also emphasized how entertaining pedagogical methods (such as songs and games) were essential to the reform of the Chinese education system and development of a modern nation. Presenting some early Chinese children’s magazines, this paper illustrates how they combined modern printing techniques and expressive modes to perform theories and practices on education circulating in China at the turn of the century
Letteratura
L’idea di un volume dedicato alle “lezioni milanesi” di Yu Hua nasce dal tour letterario che tra l’ottobre e il novembre 2018 ha portato l’autore cinese in numerose città italiane. Partendo da Milano, Yu Hua ha incontrato studenti e lettori a Torino, Enna, Napoli, Roma, Macerata, Siena, Bologna e Venezia, per tornare poi nella città mene- ghina con tre lezioni aperte, tenute al Polo di Mediazione Intercultu- rale e Comunicazione dell’Università degli Studi di Milano, in cui ha parlato di letteratura (wenxue 文学), cultura (wenhua 文化) e civiltà (wenming 文明). In cinese queste tre parole sono formate a partire dal carattere wen 文, “segno scritto”, un concetto fondamentale nel passato così come n…
Iniziative per la diffusione della lingua e della cultura italiana nella Cina pre-1949
Until recently scholars who have examined the diffusion of the Italian language in China have focussed on the People’s Republic of China. However, we have proof of early teaching and cultural activities by Italian schools in China since the late 19th century. Most of them though were run by Catholic missions receiving financial support from the Italian government and initially they did not include language teaching, due to the locals’ lack of interest. The reason for this was to be found in the weak diplomatic, political and economic role played – particularly when compared with other foreign powers. This was clear to Italian diplomats – yet a real breakthrough for the popularization of Ita…
Translating Sardinia into Chinese: How Indirect Translation Affected the Reception of Geographic and Culture-bounds Words in Deledda’s Short Fiction
As in the case of many literary traditions originating from minor countries, in Late Imperial and Early Republican China several Italian literary works reached the Chinese readership through the mediation of foreign translations, mostly composed in English and French, as well as Japanese. Such languages, which Chinese literati and intellectuals had started to master, served as a catalyst and contributed to the diffusion of promising works which were starting to approach the international literary landscape, but were hardly able to reach China in their original form. In this context, also Grazia Deledda’s literary production has been introduced by the early 20th century Chinese translators t…
La cultura italiana nella stampa cinese alle soglie del nuovo secolo (1872-1911): fonti e dinamiche della rappresentazione di una nazione
Per diversi secoli il lettore cinese poté formarsi un’immagine dell’Italia solo attraverso informazioni di seconda mano. Aggiornamenti più frequenti e maggiore obiettività si ebbero solo con i primi viaggi degli inviati cinesi in Europa e soprattutto con lo sviluppo della moderna stampa periodica. Lo Shenbao (1872-1949) è ritenuto, tra le testate dell’epoca, una fonte di analisi privilegiata per il suo enorme contributo allo sviluppo di una sfera pubblica cinese e per il suo costante bilanciamento tra rispetto della tradizione e spinte moderniste. Nel corpus di oltre 2000 articoli di epoca era tardo-imperiale che trattano dell’Italia si trattano i contenuti più vari. Tuttavia le tendenze su…
The contribution of Shenbao 申報 to the perception of Italian cultural traditions in late Qing China (1872–1911). A Preliminary Survey
The interaction between China and Europe during the late Qing period was ac- companied by a prosperous cross-cultural exchange. One of the most outstanding results of such contact was the formation of a modern Chinese press from the combination of Western journalism and Chinese gazettes. The Shenbao was one of the most representative newspapers of this cultural phenomenon. For nearly forty years of the Imperial period, Italy appeared in over two thousand articles, with a significant selection focused on Italian cultural production and historic tradition. This article aims to propose a multifaceted portrait of Italian cultural heritage of- fered to Chinese readership by the Shenbao. Topics o…
A New Extraordinary Dream: A Study of Late-Qing Foreign Fiction Translations from the Perspective of Titology
In the early stage of the introduction of foreign fiction to Chinese readers, newspapers and magazines played a pioneering role in the development of the discourse on the social role of fiction in modern Chinese society. This is particularly true for Shanghai newspaper Shenbao, which introduced a large number of Western novels, trying to fuel readers’ curiosity while avoiding any possible discomfort caused by foreignising or destabilising content. As a privileged type of paratext and the first element with whom readers came into contact, titles and their translations were key elements for promoting the new literary section and increasing daily sales. By adopting the theoretical framework of…
Meeting the West in a Conference Hall: Gilbert Reid’s Lectures at the International Institute in Shanghai
During the late Qing dynasty, a profound social and cultural transformation was promoted in China by an élite group of intellectuals, inspired by the works of for- eign thinkers and scholars. In this context, the contribution of the Protestant Gil- bert Reid (1857-1927) – and his Mission among the Higher Classes in China, which later become the International Institute of Shanghai – went far beyond mere proselytism, promoting the intercultural dialogue as a basis for China’s progress. Such an innovative enterprise, accomplished through an original exploitation of the catalyst power of the newborn Chinese press, deserves a closer look. To do so, this paper focuses on Reid’s series of lectures…
Lo Ouzhan shibao (1915-1918): legami tra stampa cinese e voci estere tra le pagine della cronaca di guerra
The Shanghai weekly magazine Ouzhan shibao was the longest-running and most suc- cessful Chinese war magazine reporting the latest circumstances of First World War. Its rich rep- ertoire of war reports and battlefield photographs provided the Chinese readership with vivid and exhaustive accounts, but being a French ruled magazine it did not conceal its bias toward the Allied powers and against Germany. In this perspective, Chinese interests were discussed as part of a global strategy, but never defended per se, as demonstrated by the positive depiction of Japan, an Allied country but still a fierce antagonist of Chinese sovereignty.
Grazia Deledda e i moderni circoli letterari cinesi: traduzioni e studi critici nella stampa periodica degli anni Venti e Trenta
Grazia Deledda's literary work has been introduced by the early 20th century Chinese translators mostly through indirect translations. Such process compromised sometimes the integrity of the original linguistic choices, but the selection of contributions from the Chinese periodical press included in this study shows a genuine enthusiasm toward her narrative style and the life of Deledda's Sardinian characters, portrayed as symbolic representation of the universal human psychology.
Giovani virtuosi e dove trovarli: Percorsi formativi e rappresentazioni dell’età giovanile nella tradizione pedagogica e letteraria cinese
Infanzia ed educazione sono tematiche in cui è presente una forte dicotomia: hanno per natura una componente universale, in quanto presenti nell’organizzazione sociale fin dai tempi più antichi, ma allo stesso tempo sono fortemente caratterizzate e influenzate dall’ambiente culturale in cui si evolvono In Cina, testi classici e pratiche sociali sono solo due degli elementi che hanno contribuito a modellare il carattere originale del bambino, la cui formazione, nel corso della storia del pensiero cinese, fu influenzata dalle grandi dottrine – buddhismo, daoismo e confucianesimo – e successivamente dall’incontro con l’Occidente. Attraverso un variegato corpus di fonti primarie – trattati filo…