Overview

This comprehensive dictionary of defined and connected idioms, proverbs and sayings contains well over 2000 in-depth translations spanning more than 1000-year Chinese language journey to modern times. The book is introduced and translated by the well-known Sinologist and Classical Chinese researcher, William Dolby, former professor and lecturer at the University of Edinburgh. A great abundance of vivid idioms flourishes in the Chinese language.The principal and most typical form of them is the Ready-made Sayings (ch'eng-y ), mainly four-syllable set expressions, including both proverbial and descriptive ones. The idioms derive from a vast variety of sources, including literature, historiography and folk traditions. Higher level Chinese writing typically makes copious use of them, with a considerable amount of recycling of ancient idioms in recent decades: the widespread assumption in modern Chinese, is that vividness and pithy ingenuity contribute favourably to meaningful expression and stimulation of ideas, and that the concise encapsulation of such things as conditional wisdom and memorable description has an indispensable contribution to dense, lucid and striking language, often aiding the memory by the combination of vivacity and brevity. In contrast to the overwhelmingly analytical and idiom-sparse fashions of present-day Western intellectual and quasi-intellectual writings, higher level Chinese writing typically makes copious, and increasing, use of idioms, with a considerable amount of recycling of ancient idioms to be found in recent decades. The widespread assumption in modern Chinese, rightly for sure, is that vividness and pithy ingenuity contribute favourably to meaningful expression and stimulation of ideas, and that the concise encapsulation of such things as conditional wisdoms and memorable descriptions has an indispensable contribution to dense, lucid and lively language, often, for instance, aiding the memory by combining vivacity and brevity, with the concomitant avoidance of relatively forgettable dullness and long-windedness.

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9781541212152

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One of the foremost experts on the Chinese language, culture and history, a highly respected and renowned lecturer in Mandarin and father of five, William (Bill) Dolby spent his life surpassing academic excellence. Throughout his active career and until the last, Bill freely shared his deep love of Chinese drama and Classical Chinese and in so doing created a truly inspirational and sound foundation in those who took the time to listen. As a true master the respect that he gained from his peers and from students, friends and colleagues is indisputably a priceless rarity. Over his lifetime he had various works published, all of which remain the foremost works in the area. These include 'A History of Chinese Drama' published by Elek Books in 1976 (ISBN 0 236 30903) and Lao She, Mr Ma and Son, published by Penguin in 2013 (ISBN NO: 978-0-14-320811-2) however, his greatest works are contained within his self-titled 'The Chinese Culture Series' 33 individual works; poetry, translation, insight and drama which only today are being made available for others.

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