The ideal of Esperanto and the translation of the literatures of minor nationalities into Chinese

Abstract

Esperanto movement presents a specific language and cultural phenomenon in the history of intercultural communication, which once exerted an extensive influence on modern Chinese culture. As an artificial international auxiliary language with a tinge of idealism, Esperanto has displayed complex cultural functions of translingual practices. In the 20th century, Esperanto was used in China as a medium to translate foreign literatures, mostly those from minor nationalities in central and eastern Europe, in which the contradiction between the cosmopolitism and antagonism of minor nationalities is reflected, and the inherent tension of modernity of the Chinese literature is exposed, which is worth noting for those engaged in the studies of the relations between Chinese and foreign literatures.