From October 17 to 19, the National High-Level Forum on Classical Text Translation Studies was held at the School of Foreign Languages, Soochow University. Dr. Liu Zhaolong, a faculty member of the School of Foreign Languages, was invited to attend the forum and delivered an academic presentation entitled “Focusing on the Text and Going Beyond the Text: A Study of Wang Rongpei as the English Translator of The Peony Pavilion.”

Drawing on the theory of Translator Studies proposed by British scholar Andrew Chesterman, Dr. Liu employed a combination of textual analysis, biographical research, and interviews to examine Wang Rongpei, the translator of the complete English version of The Peony Pavilion. This study presents a multidimensional view of Wang Rongpei’s translation practice, introduces new perspectives to the study of classical text translation, and highlights the importance of giving greater attention to translators within translation studies.

The forum brought together more than 150 experts and scholars from 105 universities across China. Participation in the forum not only enhanced the professional expertise and research capacity of the School’s faculty members and supported the development of translation studies at the School of Foreign Languages, but also strengthened academic exchange and collaboration between Qilu Normal University and other higher education institutions nationwide.