Spring 2018 Events

The Challenge of World Literary History

On March 28, 2018, Dr. Zhang Longxi, currently Chair Professor of Comparative Literature and Translation at the City University of Hong Kong, spoke at the UBC Centre for Chinese Research about literary history writ large. Professor Zhang pointed out that in much of its history from the 19th century to the last decade of the 20th, comparative literature remains largely Euro-centered, and the rise of world literature today offers an opportunity to transcend Eurocentrism and introduce many of the yet unknown canonical works from non-Western and “minor” European literatures to a global readership. In introducing his recent and ongoing writing projects, including his recent book, From Comparison to World Literature (SUNY Press, 2015) and his editorship of the Journal of World Literature, Professor Zhang argued that we need a world literary map of important works, and that therefore a world history of literature is the necessary first step towards a better understanding of what is world literature.