Skip to content

About Quote by Ken Liu

“There's inherent cultural imbalance whenever you're translating from Chinese to English. Educated Chinese readers are expected not only to know about all the Chinese references - history, language, culture, all this stuff - but to be well-versed in Western references as well.” quote by Ken Liu — Download Open image

“There's inherent cultural imbalance whenever you're translating from Chinese to English. Educated Chinese readers are expected not only to know about all the Chinese references - history, language, culture, all this stuff - but to be well-versed in Western references as well.”

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 2.6 out of 5 (5 ratings)

About Books Culture History Language Only

More by Ken Liu

I don't believe in reducing a style and a voice down to a set of descriptions, so I've never done that.

Image

People who are ambitious - politicians who crave power - think that they're in control of it, but at some point, the movement that…

Image

“My goal is to act as a faithful interpreter, preserving as much of the original's nuances of meaning as possible without embellishment or omission. Yet a translator must also balance fidelity to the source, aptness of expression, and beauty of style. The best translations into English do not, in fact, read as if they were originally written in English. The…

“It’s hard to hear the music behind the words when their meanings get in the way,” she told me once.”

Image

The 'silk' in silkpunk refers not to a source of power, but to an entirely different, expressive technology language.

Image

“A memory is a re-creation, precious because it is both more and less than the original.”

Image

Almost all of my stories can be understood to be elaborations on our drive to remake the world and our adjustments to the result.

Image

“Dad and I went on walking, our shadows touching.”

Image

“I can only wish that someday you’ll also be pestered by a student as persistent to learn what you do not wish to teach.”

Image

I think male authors who want to try to tackle these issues of representation of women can generally do a better job if they…

Image

“Surveillance is surveillance. I can never understand why some people think it matters whether it's the government doing it to you or a company.”

Image

Whenever you talk about Chinese dragons, emperors, palaces, concubines - they conjure up a whole colonial argle-bargle that has nothing to do with historical…

Image

Explore all 114 Ken Liu quotes

More About quotes

If you ask an introvert a question, wait until she thinks about it. Introverts think before speaking, not through speaking. If you want to…

Image

Joking about violence is not funny.

Image

I talk to my mates about our kids, being too tired and being worn out.

Holly Willoughby

Image

With 'Pretty Girls,' I saw the opportunity to talk not just about crime but what crime leaves behind.

Karin Slaughter

Image

I write about presidents. That means I write about guys - so far. I'm interested in the people closest to them, the people they…

Doris Kearns Goodwin

Image

That's something a lot of folks don't know about me - I'm pretty darn funny.

Michael Jai White

Image

I learned a lot about myself at Oakmont.

Image

I don't think about the press or the crowds or the other leaders of the race. The focus is only on myself. As soon…

Magdalena Neuner

Image

Sport is not just about entertainment. It is equally about winning and losing, pooling and galvanising the energy of the youth, upgrading people's physical…

Image

One of the ways that I discovered my confidence and my ability to overpower is becoming a mother. Suddenly, my world wasn't about myself…

Image

I didn't want to do 'Fashion Police' because I thought, 'This is stupid, this is beneath me, who wants to talk about fashion?' It…

Image

I just worried about my weight. Worried about my appearance and thought I wan't pretty enough to be a pop star. It was very very strange.

Browse all 26,122 About quotes