<i>The Chinese Classics </i>and Three Chinese Assistants to James Legge—Wang Tao, Hong Rengan and Huang Sheng

Wang Qiaohong

doi:doi:10.11648/j.ijalt.20230903.14

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The Chinese Classics and Three Chinese Assistants to James Legge—Wang Tao, Hong Rengan and Huang Sheng

Wang Qiaohong

Published in International Journal of Applied Linguistics and Translation (Volume 9, Issue 3)

Received: 7 September 2023 Accepted: 21 September 2023 Published: 27 September 2023

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Abstract

The Chinese Classics was not only the culmination of James Legge’s own years of sinological research, but also the result of his collaborative research and translations with Chinese assistants Wang Tao (1828-1897), Hong Rengan (1822-1864), and Huang Sheng (Wong Shing, 1827-1902). The three Chinese assistants differed from each other in terms of their reasons and motives for assisting James in translation, their own mastery of the Confucian classics, and their attitudes toward and needs for Western learning. Wang Tao is James Legge’s most competent assistant, who was familiar with the Chinese canon and who took volumes of translation notes. Wang Tao was a close personal friend of James Legge and they shared similar academic interests and worked well together. Hong Rengan’s knowledge of Christianity and familiarity with the Confucian classics enabled him to perform well in his duties as a missionary assistant and Chinese language teacher well in Hong Kong. He studied Western politics, economics, history and geography etc., in order to develop his career in Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. As for his mastery of the English language and publishing, Huang Sheng made a special contribution to the dissemination of the Chinese Classics. In the nineteenth century, Chinese scholars and Western missionaries jointly undertook the mission of spreading Western learning from the East to the West in the context of the cultural collision between the East and the West. This paper attempts to present the roles of the Chinese assistants who helped James Legge translate the Chinese Classics, so as to provide a reference for presenting the real picture of Sino-foreign cultural exchanges in the mid- and late nineteenth century.

Published in	International Journal of Applied Linguistics and Translation (Volume 9, Issue 3)
DOI	10.11648/j.ijalt.20230903.14
Page(s)	100-105
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

James Legge, The Chinese Classics, Chinese Assistant, Wang Tao, Hong Rengan, Huang Sheng

References

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[2]	Cui Zhiqing, Hu Chenyou, Commentary on Hong Rengan, Nanjing: Nanjing University Press, 2011.
[3]	Duan Huaiqing, The Missionaries and the Literati at the Trading Ports in the Late Qing Dynasty, Guangzhou: Guangdong People’s Publishing House, 2007.
[4]	Gu Changsheng, From Robert Morrison to John Leighton Stuart, Shanghai: Shanghai People's Publishing House, 1985.
[5]	Guo Hanmin, “Wang Tao and Hong Kong”, Modern History of China, 1998 (02), pp. 28-32.
[6]	Helen F. Legge, James Legge: Missionary and Scholar, London: The Religious Tract Society, 1905.
[7]	Hong Rengan, The Selected Works of Hong Rengan, etd. by the Chinese Department of Yangzhou Normal College, Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company, 1978.
[8]	Hu Shih, Yang Lien-Sheng, Correspondence between Hu Shih and Yang Lien-Sheng, Hefei: Anhui Education Publishing House, 2001.
[9]	James Legge, The Chinese Classics, Shanghai: East China Normal University Press, 2011.
[10]	Lindsay Ride, “Biographical Note, The Chinese Classics, Vol. I, Taipei: South Material Center Publishing Incorporation., 1991.
[11]	Li Zhigang, “Hong Rengan’s Encounters with Western Missionaries in Hong Kong”, The Oriental Magazine, No. 3, 1987, pp. 36-44.
[12]	Luo Junfeng, “The Tangible Evidence of Wang Tao’s Interaction with James Legge”, Lanzhou Journal, 2016 (09).
[13]	Paul. A. Cohen, Between Tradition and Modernity: Wang Tao and the Reform of the Late Qing, Beijing: CITIC Press Group, 2016.
[14]	Rong Hong, The Introduction of Western Knowledge to China, Changsha: Yuelu Press, 1985.
[15]	Shi Jinghuan, Wang Lixin, Christianity Education and Chinese Intellectuals, Fuzhou: Fujian Education Press, 1998.
[16]	Wang Tao, Man You Sui Lu, Changsha: Yuelu Press, 1985.
[17]	Wang Tao, Wang Tao’s Diary, Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company, 1987.
[18]	Wang Tao, Tao Yuan Wen Lu Wai Bian, Shanghai: Shanghai Bookstore Publishing House, 2002. Page 270.
[19]	Xia Chuntao, “Hong Rengan’s Travels and Experiences in his Exile”, Studies in Modern History, 1998 (03), pp. 222-244.
[20]	Xia Chuntao, The Landmarks of Hong Rengan: From Teacher in Private School, Christian to Prince, Beijing: Social Sciences Academic Press, 2007.
[21]	Xin Ping, Critical Biography of Wang Tao, Shanghai: East China Normal University Press, 1990.
[22]	Zou Zhenhuan, Translation and Publication in Modern China, Shanghai: Shanghai People’s Publishing House, 2012.

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APA Style

Qiaohong, W. (2023). The Chinese Classics and Three Chinese Assistants to James Legge—Wang Tao, Hong Rengan and Huang Sheng. International Journal of Applied Linguistics and Translation, 9(3), 100-105. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijalt.20230903.14

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ACS Style

Qiaohong, W. The Chinese Classics and Three Chinese Assistants to James Legge—Wang Tao, Hong Rengan and Huang Sheng. Int. J. Appl. Linguist. Transl. 2023, 9(3), 100-105. doi: 10.11648/j.ijalt.20230903.14

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AMA Style

Qiaohong W. The Chinese Classics and Three Chinese Assistants to James Legge—Wang Tao, Hong Rengan and Huang Sheng. Int J Appl Linguist Transl. 2023;9(3):100-105. doi: 10.11648/j.ijalt.20230903.14

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@article{10.11648/j.ijalt.20230903.14,
  author = {Wang Qiaohong},
  title = {The Chinese Classics and Three Chinese Assistants to James Legge—Wang Tao, Hong Rengan and Huang Sheng},
  journal = {International Journal of Applied Linguistics and Translation},
  volume = {9},
  number = {3},
  pages = {100-105},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ijalt.20230903.14},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijalt.20230903.14},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijalt.20230903.14},
  abstract = {The Chinese Classics was not only the culmination of James Legge’s own years of sinological research, but also the result of his collaborative research and translations with Chinese assistants Wang Tao (1828-1897), Hong Rengan (1822-1864), and Huang Sheng (Wong Shing, 1827-1902). The three Chinese assistants differed from each other in terms of their reasons and motives for assisting James in translation, their own mastery of the Confucian classics, and their attitudes toward and needs for Western learning. Wang Tao is James Legge’s most competent assistant, who was familiar with the Chinese canon and who took volumes of translation notes. Wang Tao was a close personal friend of James Legge and they shared similar academic interests and worked well together. Hong Rengan’s knowledge of Christianity and familiarity with the Confucian classics enabled him to perform well in his duties as a missionary assistant and Chinese language teacher well in Hong Kong. He studied Western politics, economics, history and geography etc., in order to develop his career in Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. As for his mastery of the English language and publishing, Huang Sheng made a special contribution to the dissemination of the Chinese Classics. In the nineteenth century, Chinese scholars and Western missionaries jointly undertook the mission of spreading Western learning from the East to the West in the context of the cultural collision between the East and the West. This paper attempts to present the roles of the Chinese assistants who helped James Legge translate the Chinese Classics, so as to provide a reference for presenting the real picture of Sino-foreign cultural exchanges in the mid- and late nineteenth century.},
 year = {2023}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - The Chinese Classics and Three Chinese Assistants to James Legge—Wang Tao, Hong Rengan and Huang Sheng
AU  - Wang Qiaohong
Y1  - 2023/09/27
PY  - 2023
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijalt.20230903.14
DO  - 10.11648/j.ijalt.20230903.14
T2  - International Journal of Applied Linguistics and Translation
JF  - International Journal of Applied Linguistics and Translation
JO  - International Journal of Applied Linguistics and Translation
SP  - 100
EP  - 105
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2472-1271
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijalt.20230903.14
AB  - The Chinese Classics was not only the culmination of James Legge’s own years of sinological research, but also the result of his collaborative research and translations with Chinese assistants Wang Tao (1828-1897), Hong Rengan (1822-1864), and Huang Sheng (Wong Shing, 1827-1902). The three Chinese assistants differed from each other in terms of their reasons and motives for assisting James in translation, their own mastery of the Confucian classics, and their attitudes toward and needs for Western learning. Wang Tao is James Legge’s most competent assistant, who was familiar with the Chinese canon and who took volumes of translation notes. Wang Tao was a close personal friend of James Legge and they shared similar academic interests and worked well together. Hong Rengan’s knowledge of Christianity and familiarity with the Confucian classics enabled him to perform well in his duties as a missionary assistant and Chinese language teacher well in Hong Kong. He studied Western politics, economics, history and geography etc., in order to develop his career in Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. As for his mastery of the English language and publishing, Huang Sheng made a special contribution to the dissemination of the Chinese Classics. In the nineteenth century, Chinese scholars and Western missionaries jointly undertook the mission of spreading Western learning from the East to the West in the context of the cultural collision between the East and the West. This paper attempts to present the roles of the Chinese assistants who helped James Legge translate the Chinese Classics, so as to provide a reference for presenting the real picture of Sino-foreign cultural exchanges in the mid- and late nineteenth century.
VL  - 9
IS  - 3
ER  -

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Author Information

Wang Qiaohong

Institute of Literary Studies, Shanghai International Studies University, Shanghai, China

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Plain Text BibTeX RIS

APA Style

Qiaohong, W. (2023). The Chinese Classics and Three Chinese Assistants to James Legge—Wang Tao, Hong Rengan and Huang Sheng. International Journal of Applied Linguistics and Translation, 9(3), 100-105. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijalt.20230903.14

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ACS Style

Qiaohong, W. The Chinese Classics and Three Chinese Assistants to James Legge—Wang Tao, Hong Rengan and Huang Sheng. Int. J. Appl. Linguist. Transl. 2023, 9(3), 100-105. doi: 10.11648/j.ijalt.20230903.14

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AMA Style

Qiaohong W. The Chinese Classics and Three Chinese Assistants to James Legge—Wang Tao, Hong Rengan and Huang Sheng. Int J Appl Linguist Transl. 2023;9(3):100-105. doi: 10.11648/j.ijalt.20230903.14

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@article{10.11648/j.ijalt.20230903.14,
  author = {Wang Qiaohong},
  title = {The Chinese Classics and Three Chinese Assistants to James Legge—Wang Tao, Hong Rengan and Huang Sheng},
  journal = {International Journal of Applied Linguistics and Translation},
  volume = {9},
  number = {3},
  pages = {100-105},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ijalt.20230903.14},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijalt.20230903.14},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijalt.20230903.14},
  abstract = {The Chinese Classics was not only the culmination of James Legge’s own years of sinological research, but also the result of his collaborative research and translations with Chinese assistants Wang Tao (1828-1897), Hong Rengan (1822-1864), and Huang Sheng (Wong Shing, 1827-1902). The three Chinese assistants differed from each other in terms of their reasons and motives for assisting James in translation, their own mastery of the Confucian classics, and their attitudes toward and needs for Western learning. Wang Tao is James Legge’s most competent assistant, who was familiar with the Chinese canon and who took volumes of translation notes. Wang Tao was a close personal friend of James Legge and they shared similar academic interests and worked well together. Hong Rengan’s knowledge of Christianity and familiarity with the Confucian classics enabled him to perform well in his duties as a missionary assistant and Chinese language teacher well in Hong Kong. He studied Western politics, economics, history and geography etc., in order to develop his career in Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. As for his mastery of the English language and publishing, Huang Sheng made a special contribution to the dissemination of the Chinese Classics. In the nineteenth century, Chinese scholars and Western missionaries jointly undertook the mission of spreading Western learning from the East to the West in the context of the cultural collision between the East and the West. This paper attempts to present the roles of the Chinese assistants who helped James Legge translate the Chinese Classics, so as to provide a reference for presenting the real picture of Sino-foreign cultural exchanges in the mid- and late nineteenth century.},
 year = {2023}
}

Copy | Download

TY  - JOUR
T1  - The Chinese Classics and Three Chinese Assistants to James Legge—Wang Tao, Hong Rengan and Huang Sheng
AU  - Wang Qiaohong
Y1  - 2023/09/27
PY  - 2023
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijalt.20230903.14
DO  - 10.11648/j.ijalt.20230903.14
T2  - International Journal of Applied Linguistics and Translation
JF  - International Journal of Applied Linguistics and Translation
JO  - International Journal of Applied Linguistics and Translation
SP  - 100
EP  - 105
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2472-1271
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijalt.20230903.14
AB  - The Chinese Classics was not only the culmination of James Legge’s own years of sinological research, but also the result of his collaborative research and translations with Chinese assistants Wang Tao (1828-1897), Hong Rengan (1822-1864), and Huang Sheng (Wong Shing, 1827-1902). The three Chinese assistants differed from each other in terms of their reasons and motives for assisting James in translation, their own mastery of the Confucian classics, and their attitudes toward and needs for Western learning. Wang Tao is James Legge’s most competent assistant, who was familiar with the Chinese canon and who took volumes of translation notes. Wang Tao was a close personal friend of James Legge and they shared similar academic interests and worked well together. Hong Rengan’s knowledge of Christianity and familiarity with the Confucian classics enabled him to perform well in his duties as a missionary assistant and Chinese language teacher well in Hong Kong. He studied Western politics, economics, history and geography etc., in order to develop his career in Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. As for his mastery of the English language and publishing, Huang Sheng made a special contribution to the dissemination of the Chinese Classics. In the nineteenth century, Chinese scholars and Western missionaries jointly undertook the mission of spreading Western learning from the East to the West in the context of the cultural collision between the East and the West. This paper attempts to present the roles of the Chinese assistants who helped James Legge translate the Chinese Classics, so as to provide a reference for presenting the real picture of Sino-foreign cultural exchanges in the mid- and late nineteenth century.
VL  - 9
IS  - 3
ER  -

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