Jiang Xiaoyuan, Liu Bing: South Accent, North Tune——A Dialogue on the Relationship between Science and Culture, Peking University Press, 1st edition, January 2007, 32 yuan—☆
As soon as I arrived in Beijing this semester, I went to the bookstore to look for this book (of course I also bought many other new books). I read it as soon as I bought it, but after reading half of it in one sitting, for some reason I put it aside. Today, when I thought of it, I read the second half in one sitting as well.
An introduction to this book can be found on Teacher Liu Huajie’s blog http://blog.sina.com.cn/u/485ea879010006j1. What I want to emphasize once again is: this really, really is a “dialogue,” a genuine “dialogue.”
The two teachers conducted their dialogue by typing a passage on the computer and sending it to each other; then the other would write a passage in reply. Each exchange was published in the dialogue column of Wenhui Reading Weekly, and this book is a collection of their conversations over the past few years.
If I have the chance, I may write a series of reflections or comments according to the themes of the two teachers’ dialogues. Most of the books they discussed are ones I have either already read or am planning to read, and the themes they talked about are all ones that interest me.
In academia, finding such a “dialogue partner” is really, really difficult—equally senior, similar in taste, sharing the same aspirations, with views that are harmonious yet not identical, with styles of language that can accommodate one another, a decent personal friendship, and the chance and setting that can spark dialogue… it is truly rare and precious! To have one intimate friend in life…
The preface to this book can be found on Teacher Liu Bing’s blog (I have not yet been active there) http://blog.sina.com.cn/u/485df6130100087i; there you can also find a few of the dialogues, such as http://blog.sina.com.cn/u/485df613010008fq.
Perhaps someday I, too, will find a fellow scholar, or a group of them (though not too many), with whom I can carry on a “dialogue.” When that time comes, I must certainly rename my blog, removing the word “self-talk” that contradicts “Suixuan,” so that the character “xuan” may truly convey its meaning as “an airy, open structure” and “a term often used in teahouse names.”
March 15, 2007, 13:44
Translated from the Chinese original with AI assistance. The original text is authoritative.
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