East Coastsentinel

In the face of critical health challenges such as visual impairment and bipolar disorder, Jin Xiaoyu has remained unfazed, translating 22 foreign-language works into more than 6 million Chinese characters over a decade.

The 50-year-old translator lives with his father Jin Xingyong who is 86 years old. Jin’s heart-wrenching yet inspiring story, which was recently published online by Hangzhou Daily, has touched the hearts of millions of Chinese.

“I felt very lonely and hoped that someone would hear our story,” the father said reacting to the news article that gained widespread attention, adding that he lost his wife recently.

The article captured Jin’s emotional tale in great detail, describing how his parents created a safety net to assure his proper upbringing.

CONQUERING ADVERSITIES

The family has lived in a 60-square-meter apartment since 1988 in Hangzhou, capital of east China’s Zhejiang Province.

Jin’s bedroom is narrow, with books and dictionaries scattered on the shelves. The average-looking man, with black-rimmed glasses and a sparse beard, spends most of his time on the computer, hammering the keyboard incessantly.

Jin’s right eye crystal sustained damage in an accident when he was six. He later dropped out of high school and was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, a mental illness characterized by extreme mood swings.

His mental health deteriorated to the point where he attempted suicide for many times. Almost every year since 1992, Jin has had to go to the hospital for treatment.

Losing an eye severely dented his confidence as a child, and he became reserved, confining himself to reading books at home. He even refrained from taking the national college entrance examinations.

With the advent of adult life, Jin took up work at a factory and used to work part-time at bookstores. He avoided speaking with people and would bury himself in books to learn foreign languages on his own.

In 2017, Jin’s mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and after a prolonged illness she passed away recently.

TRANSLATION AS A PROFESSION

Bipolar disorder can trigger bouts of extreme anger in Jin to the extent that he would go around smashing things in the house. Surprisingly, even during such frantic moments, he won’t harm his computer — for he understands its significance.

Early this year, when Jin was undergoing treatment in the mental hospital his father gave him a Chinese-version sample copy of the book “The Correspondence of Walter Benjamin.” He spent two years translating the German book, writing with 530,000 Chinese characters.

Jin taught himself German and Japanese and he believes that the experience of learning languages is the same. He read German language textbooks first, then professional books related to translation, and finally, original novels. “I read at least 20 original novels to learn a foreign language,” Jin said.

One of his most frequently visited places is the library of Zhejiang University. He has read almost all the textbooks on German and Japanese learning available in the library.

Jin takes translation seriously. During the translation work of “Andrei Tarkovsky: Elements of Cinema,” he watched every film of the director at least twice and would compare repeatedly the details of the film mentioned in the book.

He can work some eight hours a day, swinging into action straight away after breakfast. To maintain good physical strength, he walks for an hour every day as his daily exercise.

Complimenting Jin’s work one of his readers said, these words are “accurate and delicate, even better than the original text.” Jin’s father is always the first reader of his manuscripts. And he has only discovered one error to date.

The 22 books that Jin translated cover different genres including novels, movies, music and philosophy, among others.

The translation fee is not high — usually 50 or 60 yuan (about 8 or 9.5 U.S. dollars) for 1,000 words. “If I was not sick, I might waste my time. I will do translation job well, so don’t feel sorry for me,” Jin told his father, assuring him that he enjoys his work.

MOTHER — THE “WHEELBARROW” OF LIFE

“My mother played a big role in my translation career,” said Jin, adding that it was she who first found him a translation opportunity on a trial basis.

Jin’s elder brother graduated from Shanghai’s Fudan University and currently lives in Australia. So, naturally, Jin became the reason for concern of his parents owing to his health condition.

Jin said his mother was strict with him and, like most Chinese parents, always kept a close eye on his studies.

Jin’s translated books are stacked on a sewing machine that belonged to his mother in the living room.

Reminiscing about the bygone days, Jin deems the clothes made by his mother as the coziest and likens her stepping on the sewing machine pedal to a lullaby.

Neither the sewing machine nor the clothes were touched by Jin when he was “out of control.”

During the three years of his mother’s battle with Alzheimer’s disease, Jin never lost his temper with her. He would bring her food, wash her face and help his bedridden mom use the toilet.

“Keep pushing a wheelbarrow as long as it does not turn over,” Jin always bears this Chinese adage in his mind and deems his mom the wheelbarrow in his life.

FATHER — THE GUIDING FORCE

Jin’s father gave the editor his own suggestions on the sample of “The Correspondence of Walter Benjamin” — in terms of wording, binding design and the size of the format.

“My father is a very patient man and has played a significant role in my life. He helped me contact the editor of the publishing house and proofread my manuscripts very carefully,” Jin said.

His father, a former pharmaceutical researcher, is also a bibliophile who loves the works of the legendary Russian novelist Ivan Turgenev.

The news article has suddenly brought the father and son under huge public attention. A motorcade volunteered to provide free rides for the elderly, but the father declined the offer, expressing his gratitude and saying that he was used to taking the bus.

“I have enough to eat and drink, and I’m satisfied. I’m not in a difficult state so I won’t ask others for help. I feel comfortable this way,” he said.

Jin values his bond with his dad. He hopes to complete the translation of Walter Benjamin’s “The Arcades Project” before his father reaches 88. Following that, he intends to take a break from work and devote himself to learning Spanish.

“I’m not a genius, and I have to work hard,” Jin said, while his father chimes in to say “Love is the most precious thing.”

Media Contact
Company Name: The Information Office of Hangzhou Municipal Government
Contact Person: Cai Jingwen
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Phone: 0510-68559077
Country: China
Website: http://www.ehangzhou.gov.cn/