Why Chinese Translations are Important to Chaucer Studies
Speaker: Professor Candace Barrington, Central Connecticut State University
Moderator: Zhang Lian, Zhejiang University
Time: April 18, 2026, at 9:00 AM (Beijing Time)
Venue: Zoom 92757028541 Passcode: 2026
Zoom link: https://zoom.us/j/92757028541?pwd=NsZ6FlBvSCyvcO0GMeJiD72KitVcC3.1
Abstract: After a brief description of the origins and goals of the Global Chaucers project, this lecture will explore the multiple contributions that Chinese translations have made—and continue to make in Chaucer Studies. As I discuss, these contributions fall into three categories: (1) Chinese translations reflect often overlooked aspects of the transmission and interpretative history of Chaucer’s oeuvre; (2) the translations themselves provide significant insight into Chaucer’s Middle English text; and, (3) the translations form a valuable, integral voice in the dialogical activity of comparative translation.
Professor Candace Barrington teaches ancient, medieval, and contemporary global literature at Central Connecticut State University. In addition to books and articles on legal and literary discourse in medieval England, she also actively publishes on Chaucer’s global reception and on Chaucer’s translation practices. With Jonathan Hsy, she directs Global Chaucers, an online global community. She belongs to the editorial collective that published the Open Access Companion to The Canterbury Tales in 2018 and is a founding co-editor of New Chaucer Studies: Pedagogy and Profession. She currently serves as the president of the New Chaucer Society.
