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*DIGITAL* How to Read Chinese Poetry (If You Can’t Read Chinese): The Case of Ezra Pound
January 13
7:00 pm
Ilsley Public Library
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Please note: this talk has been postponed until January 13. Due to the Covid-19 crisis, the 2020-2021 First Wednesdays talks will only be offered online, via Zoom. Advance registration is required for these events. Register for this free talk.
In 1915, Ezra Pound published a collection of early “translations” of Chinese poetry that took the poetic world by storm. However, Pound didn’t know a word of Chinese. Middlebury professor Timothy Billings was the first scholar to decipher the manuscripts that Pound used as “cheat sheets” to compose adaptations of Tang Dynasty poetry. Here he shares his discoveries.
Timothy Billings is Professor of English and American Literatures at Middlebury College.
Register for this free talkPartner: Middlebury College and the Mellon Foundation
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Riders on horseback; from a wall painting in the tomb of Lou Rui at Taiyuan; Shanxi province; China; dated to the Northern Qi Dynasty (550–577 AD)