Franz Kuhn (Sinologist)

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Franz Walther Kuhn (born March 10, 1884 in Frankenberg , Kingdom of Saxony , † January 22, 1961 in Freiburg im Breisgau ) was a German lawyer , sinologist and literary translator .

Life

Franz Kuhn was the third youngest of eleven children of Max Richard Kuhn, Mayor of Frankenberg. From 1894 to 1897 he attended the Royal High School in Dresden- Neustadt and then the St. Afra School in Meißen until he graduated from high school . From 1903 he studied law at the University of Leipzig , from 1904 to 1907 at the University of Berlin and from 1907 to 1908 again in Leipzig, where he passed his first state examination in 1908 and obtained his doctorate in 1909 . From February 1909 he was a trainee lawyer at the Dresden District Court .

Since Kuhn had already completed a Chinese course during the semester in Berlin at the local seminar for oriental languages , he was seconded to the German embassy in Beijing as an interpreter trainee in August 1909 . His stay in China lasted from 1909 to 1912; At times he held the position of vice consul in Harbin .

In 1912 Kuhn resigned from the foreign and legal services and studied Sinology at the University of Berlin from 1913 to 1919 . During the First World War he worked as a translator for the Federal Foreign Office . Then, in the 1920s, he began translating classical Chinese fiction into German. From 1925 he worked mainly for Insel-Verlag in Leipzig; The translation of Jin Ping Mei (Kin Ping Meh; 金瓶梅, Pinyin: Jīn Píng Méi) published in 1930 was a great sales success - also internationally - and brought Kuhn's breakthrough. However, in the 1930s there were disputes with the director of Insel-Verlag, Anton Kippenberg , about the scope of Kuhn's translations (abbreviations of the original text were contractually agreed), so that Kuhn also published in other publishers.

During the National Socialist era , the erotic content of Jin Ping Mei led to conflicts with the National Socialist rulers; Around 1942 the book was temporarily on a list of harmful and undesirable literature, but was able to appear again a little later and undisturbed. Between 1943 and 1945, Kuhn lost most of his library and manuscripts in three air raids in Berlin , Freiburg im Breisgau and Dresden .

After the end of the Second World War, Kuhn moved to Badenweiler , where he lived during the economically difficult years until 1951. Gradually, his old works were reissued, and after rebuilding his library, he was also able to work on new translations. In 1951 he moved back to Freiburg im Breisgau. During the 1950s, Kuhn's work also received increasing public recognition: in 1955, the cultural department of the Foreign Office and the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Culture provided him with the means for a five-month trip around the world. Kuhn stayed in Hong Kong for four weeks and traveled back via Australia , the United States and Canada . Three other major translations appeared. Kuhn's version of “Jou Pu Tuan” (肉 蒲團 Ròupútuán) was, however, confiscated from the publisher in Switzerland in 1959 because of the allegedly “ lewd ” illustrations, and the printing set was destroyed; in Germany the work was published posthumously in 1964.

In the last years of his life, Kuhn made numerous trips across Europe. He died while going to the cinema in Freiburg im Breisgau and was buried in Bad Reichenhall .

Classification of the animal kingdom

In his essay “The analytical language of John Wilkins”, the Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges attributes an unusual division of the animal kingdom into 14 categories to Franz Kuhn, which he is said to have taken from an apocryphal Chinese encyclopedia:

  1. Animals belonging to the emperor,
  2. embalmed animals,
  3. domesticated animals,
  4. Piglet,
  5. Mermaids,
  6. Mythical animals,
  7. stray dogs,
  8. Animals belonging to this group,
  9. Animals that act like mad
  10. countless animals,
  11. Animals drawn from camel hair with a very fine brush,
  12. and so on,
  13. Animals who broke the water jar
  14. Animals that look like flies from a distance.

Appreciation

Franz Kuhn, possibly in 1932 the Lessing prize and in 1952 the Distinguished Service Cross (cross slot) of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany received was one of the most prolific translator from Chinese into German during the first half of the 20th century, with its work, the Chinese literature a wide Made accessible to the public. In professional circles, his translations are sometimes highly praised, partly as unphilologische adaptations sharply criticized.

Works

Monographs

  • The subject of the melody protection according to § 13 Abs. II law regarding the copyright to works of literature and music from June 19, 1901 , Leipzig 1909
  • The Dschong lun of Tsui Schi , Berlin 1914

Translations

  • 《中國 狀況》 (Zhōngguó Zhuàngkuàng): Chinese state wisdom , Darmstadt 1923
  • 《中國 小說家》 (Zhōngguó Xiǎoshuōjiā): Chinese master novels , Leipzig 1926
  • 《好逑 傳》 (Hǎoqiúzhuàn): Eisherz und Edeljaspis or The story of a happy husband's choice , Insel Verlag, Leipzig 1926.
    • New edition with 26 Chinese woodcuts, Insel TB near Suhrkamp, ​​Frankfurt am Main 1975, ISBN 3-458-01823-9 .
  • 《二度 梅 全 傳》 (Èrdù Méi Quánzhuàn): The Revenge of Young Meh or The Miracle of the Second Plum Blossom , Leipzig 1927.
  • 《珍珠衫》 (Zhēnzhūshān): Das Perlenhemd , Leipzig 1928.
  • 《金瓶梅》 (Jīn Píng Méi): Jin Ping Mei or The adventurous story of Hsi Men and his six wives , Leipzig 1930.
  • 《張小姐》 (Zhāng Xiǎojie): Fräulein Tschang , Berlin [u. a.] 1931.
  • 《紅樓夢》 (Hónglóumèng): The dream of the red chamber , Leipzig 1932.
  • 《水滸傳》 (Shuǐhǔzhuàn): The robbers from Liang-Schan-Moor , Leipzig 1934.
  • 《玉 蜻蜓》 (Yù Qīngtíng): The Jadelibelle , Berlin 1936.
  • 《杜十娘 怒 沉 百寶箱》 (Dù Shíniáng Nùchēn Bǎibǎoxiāng): The jewel box , Dresden 1937.
  • 《子夜》 (Zǐyè): Mao Dun : Shanghai in Twilight , Dresden 1938.
  • 《覺 世 名言 十二樓》 (Juéshì míngyán Shí'èr Lóu): The thirteen- story pagoda , Berlin 1939.
  • 《隔 簾 花影 • 嫦娥 與 銀瓶》 (Gélián Huāyǐng Cháng'é yǔ Yínpíng): Moon woman and silver vase , Berlin 1939.
  • 《三國 演義》 (Sānguó Yǎnyì): The Three Realms , Berlin 1940.
  • 《薔薇 露》 (Qiángwēilù): Das Rosenaquarell , Zurich 1947.
  • 《東華門》 (Dōnghuāmén): The gate of the eastern blossom , August Bagel Verlag, Düsseldorf 1949.
  • 《佛 笑》 (Fó Xiào): And Buddha laughs , Baden-Baden 1950.
  • 《雲彩 塔》 (Yúncaitǎ): The tower of sweeping clouds , Freiburg i. Br. 1951.
  • 《今古奇觀》 (Jīngǔ Qíguān): Kin Ku Ki Kwan , Zurich 1952.
  • 《柳浪聞鶯》 (Liǔlàng Wén Yīng): Goldamsel flutes at the Westsee , Freiburg i. Br. 1953.
  • 《兒女 英雄 傳》 (Érnǚ Yīngxióng Zhuàn): Wén Kāng (文 康): The black rider , Zurich 1954.
  • 《隔 帘 花影》 (Gélián Huāyǐng): flower shadows behind the curtain , Freiburg i. Br. 1956.
  • 《中國 古代 愛情 故事 集》 (Zhōngguó Gǔdài Àiqíng Gùshijí): Old Chinese love stories , Wiesbaden 1958.
  • 《李娃 傳》 (Lǐ Wá Zhuàn): The beautiful Li. From the death shirt to the wedding dress , Wiesbaden 1959.
  • 《肉 蒲團》 (Ròupútuán): Li Yü : Jou pu tuan, an erotic novel from the Ming period , with 60 Chinese woodcuts, Die Waage Verlag, Zurich, 1959.
  • 《肉 蒲團》 (Ròupútuán): Li Yü: Jou pu tuan, an erotic novel from the Ming period , with 60 Chinese woodcuts, Frankfurt am Main 1986, ISBN 3-596-22451-9 .
  • 《宋金郎 團圓 破 氈 笠》 (Sòng Jīnláng Tuányuán Pò Zhānlì): Goldjunker Sung and other short stories from Kin Ku Ki Kwan , Zurich 1960.

Editing

  • The small goldfish pond , Leipzig 1935

literature

  • James R. Hightower: Franz Kuhn and his Translation of the Jou P'u t'uan. In: Oriens Extremus. Volume 8, 1961, pp. 252-257.
  • Hatto Kuhn: Dr. Franz Kuhn (1884–1961) biography and bibliography of his works. With an appendix of unpublished writings. With the collaboration of Martin Gimm , preface by Herbert Franke . Steiner, Wiesbaden 1980.
  • Hartmut Walravens : Franz Kuhn. Supplement and index to the bibliography by Hatto Kuhn (Wiesbaden 1980). Bell, Hamburg 1982.
  • Gert Naundorf:  Kuhn, Franz. In: New German Biography (NDB). Volume 13, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1982, ISBN 3-428-00194-X , p. 257 f. ( Digitized version ).
  • Peng Chang: Modernization and Europeanization of the classical Chinese prose poetry. Investigations into the translation work of Franz Kuhn (1884–1961). Lang, Frankfurt am Main 1991.
  • Wolfgang Bauer : alienation, transfiguration, decryption. Basic lines of German translation literature from Chinese in our century. For the opening of the Richard Wilhelm Translation Center of the Ruhr University Bochum on April 22, 1993. Ruhr University, Bochum 1993

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Kuhn, Franz
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Kuhn, Franz Walther (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German lawyer, sinologist and literary translator
DATE OF BIRTH March 10, 1884
PLACE OF BIRTH Frankenberg , Kingdom of Saxony
DATE OF DEATH January 22, 1961
Place of death Freiburg in Breisgau