brief introduction

In the late Qing Dynasty, the fiasco of the Sino-Japanese War once again pushed the Chinese nation to a critical juncture. At this time, Yan Fu translated the British biologist "Evolution" and publicized the viewpoint of "natural selection, survival of the fittest", which was published in the February issue of "Evolution" published in Tianjin 1897. The publication of this book has produced a huge social response that Yan Fu did not expect.

Kang Youwei, the leader of the reformists, read this translation and praised Yan Fu for "translating the theory of evolution into the first master of western learning in China".

Who is the author?

The famous British naturalist Huxley is the most outstanding representative of Darwin's theory of evolution. Huxley, who calls himself "Darwin's fighting dog", published 150 scientific papers covering zoology, paleontology, geology, anthropology and botany.

1993, at the age of 68, he gave a lecture on evolution at Oxford University at the invitation of a friend, focusing on the fundamental problems of mutual stimulation, mutual restriction and interdependence between natural forces in the process of the universe and human forces in the process of ethics. This lecture is compiled as Evolution.

Who translated it?

Yan Fu, whose name has been passed down from generation to generation, is also called Ling, and later Fu. He was born in Houguan, Fujian. In the third year of Guangxu, Yan Fu, as the first batch of students sent by the Qing government to study in Britain and France, went to Britain to learn driving.

During my two-and-a-half-year study at the Naval Academy in Greenwich, England, "I was listed as an excellent candidate in the examination course many times" and became the high flyers of the school. It is Yan Fu's most famous translation.

Main point

The creatures in nature are not eternal, but constantly evolving; The reason for evolution lies in "natural selection", which is a competition for survival, and "natural selection" is natural selection. The same applies to human beings, but the more human civilization develops, the more suitable people will be the best ethically.

The basis of the theory of evolution is Darwin's Collection of National Newspapers, which Huxley insisted on and developed.

What's the impact?

Translation 1896 He said: Darwin's books are almost a series in Europe and America, which is well known to women and children. His theory should have two aspects: one is natural selection.

In addition, Yan Fu also showed Liang Qichao and others the translation of The Theory of Evolution. Therefore, although the theory of evolution was officially published in 1898, its theory of natural selection had been circulated in the ideological circle before that.

It took three years from translation to official publication. These three years, from 1895 to 1898, are very unusual in the modern history of China. The Sino-Japanese War was disastrous, the national crisis was unprecedented, and the reform movement continued to rise. At this time, the theory of evolution came out, and natural selection came out, which naturally caused a strong shock in the ideological circle.

Wu Rulun, a tongzhi scholar who is famous for his literature, was full of praise after seeing the translation of Evolution. He thinks that since China translated western books, there has been no such macro system. This 50-year-old teacher, in addition to admiration, actually copied the full text of Evolution with fine handwriting and hid it under the pillow.

After reading the translation of Liang Qichao's Theory of Evolution, it was publicized before it was published, and he made a big fuss according to his ideas. Kang Youwei, who has always been supercilious, read the translated version of the Origin of Species and had to admit that he had never read such a book. This book is "the first western learning in China".

Lu Xun read Evolution when he was young, and he couldn't put it down. An old man with a keen mind objected to Lu Xun reading this new book, but Lu Xun ignored it. "I still don't think there is anything wrong with him. In my spare time, I will eat cakes, peanuts and peppers and watch Evolution as usual. It can be seen that evolution was very popular in society at that time.

After the publication of the theory of natural evolution, new terms such as "natural evolution", "material competition", "natural selection" and "survival of the fittest" quickly flooded newspapers and became the most active vocabulary. some

Hu Shi recalled: On one occasion, he taught our class to buy an abridged version of Wu Rulun's Yan Fu's Evolution as a reader. This is my first time to watch evolution, and I am very happy. The title of his composition is "Natural selection, survival of the fittest, trying to prove its significance". This topic is naturally beyond our teenagers' power, but reading Evolution and writing articles about natural selection can represent the ethos of that era.

After publication, within a few years, it became popular all over the country and even became a reading material for middle school students. Few people who have read this book know Huxley's contribution to science and the history of thought. All they can understand is the meaning of the formula "overcoming failure" in international politics.

After repeated wars and defeats in China, after the great humiliation of boxer and Xin Chou, this formula of "up and down" is indeed a slap in the face, which greatly stimulated countless people. In a few years, this thought burned the hearts and blood of many young people like wildfire.

Terms such as "natural selection", "material competition", "elimination" and "natural selection" have gradually become idioms in newspaper articles and the mantra of a group of patriots. Many people like to use this noun as their own or their children's names.

According to statistics, since 1898, in just over ten years, Evolution has been published in more than 30 different versions, which is unmatched by any other western books at that time. The reason why he is so popular is not only the main reason why his thoughts are enough to warn the world, but also one of the reasons why the translated pen is quaint and easy to read.

Looking back on the backward, poor and isolated motherland, Yan Fu was deeply shocked. Therefore, he paid more attention to the society and politics of western capitalism, tirelessly studied the similarities and differences between China and the West, and sought the way for China to become rich and strong. After returning to China, he began to teach at Fuzhou Majiang Ship Administration School.

In the sixth year of Guangxu, Li Hongzhang founded Beiyang Naval Academy in Tianjin, and Yan Fu was transferred to be the chief teacher of the school and later became the general manager. These academic qualifications and experiences make Yan Fu have the necessary qualities to become a thinker and the conditions to participate in politics.

During the Sino-Japanese War, the national crisis was at stake, and the signing of the theory of evolution aroused great anger. Yan Fu published five political essays in Tianjin from February 4, 1995 to May, 1995, calling for political reform. His shocking comments made him famous.

In the article Evolution, he first introduced Darwin's Theory of Evolution and his theory of biological evolution to the people of China. At the same time, he also introduced Spencer's theory of survival of the fittest, a British positivist philosopher and sociologist, and combined them to expound his own viewpoint of saving the nation from extinction. The in-depth discussion of this idea is reflected in the translation process of Evolution.

Translated from the book Evolution by British biologist Huxley. This is a popular pamphlet promoting Darwin's theory of biological evolution. The first half of this book focuses on evolution, while the second half focuses on ethics. Yan Fu selected and translated part of the introduction and the first half of the lecture.

Yan Fu's translation of this book is not based on the original text, but a selective free translation, even a topic. Therefore, Lu Xun said that Yan Fu "made the theory of evolution after all". The word "Left" vividly depicts Yan Fu's good intentions in translating this book.