translating “ficlets”
I have yet to be convinced that my device has managed to “learn spelling,” because it just changed “ficlets,” once again, to “fillets.”
To be fair, I would have been equally oblivious without fandom.
My fascination for the various names English language fandoms have for very short stories remains fresh to date. In the context of modern Chinese language and literature, the limited equivalents I was previously aware of are “小小说” (“short-short”) and “微小说” (“micro-fiction”).* Two more terms I have since picked up in Chinese language fandoms are “短打” (“bunt”) and “小甜饼” (“little sweet cookie,” borrowed from the HP fandom associated “cookie” and widely applied to any short and sweet — and usually non-explicit — narrative).
Maybe it’s the versatility of @emungere’s language that keeps me playing with my food, but translating their “fillets” — and the “ficlets” in different titles — has been a joyful ride.
teen hannibal ficlets · 少年汉尼拔断章
Following “少年汉尼拔” (“teen Hannibal”), “断章” is my nod to the poet, 卞之琳 Bian Zhilin (1910–2000), whose poem with this very title depicts the relativity of beholding and bewilderment. While opinions differ when it comes to interpreting key vocabulary in the text, multiple translations agree on the suitability of “fragment” for the title.
Coming upon teen hannibal ficlets 4 years after its final update, I pictured the growth of the story through the author’s summary and notes: initially one of the many Tumblr prompt fills, gradually expanded on and reorganised into a chronological account. I have chosen “断章” to acknowledge the smooth transition across these fragments — threaded with perpetual gaze that turned out to unite and ignite.
tumblr ficlets · 桐花芝豆集
桐者，梧桐子；花者，落花生；芝者，芝麻；豆者，大豆。此四物均可以打油，而本堂主人喜为打油之诗，诗又杂而不一，凡所见闻，几无不可入诗，故遂以四物者名其堂。
In the author’s preface to his anthology of doggerel, linguist 刘半农 Liu Bannong (1891–1934) claimed the title, “桐花芝豆堂主” (“Host of the Hall of Wutong* Seeds, Peanuts, Sesame Seeds and Soybeans”), in a half-joking tone. He found these items comparable to his doggerel, in the sense that they embed richness in triviality (“杂”). The connection is strengthened by the pun, “打油” (“get oil”): all four ingredients are good sources of plant-based fat, whereas the Chinese equivalent of doggerel happens to be called “打油诗” (named after the first known Chinese doggerel author, 张打油, the term literally translates to “oil-fetching verses”).
Thanks to the polysemic nature of the Chinese script system, the imagery “桐花芝豆” evokes in a modern reader may well be one that is not so oily, such as “wutong wood/leaves, flowers, irises and cups.”
To me, @emungere’s tumblr ficlets is both: a collection (“集”) of seeds-nuts-beans as well as one of floras and serveware. It is simultaneously the pantry and the dinner table. The Chinese title therefore conveys my adoration for these compact texts: translating them over time has taught me to appreciate the flair it takes to achieve “simple and clean” deliciousness.
Thank you, Eli, and anyone who has read all the way to this point. I will finish by bringing up one text from the latter work, a point of (re)entry: “color palette drabbles” (“斑斓”).
Enjoy the fillet. I know I always will.
Notes:
In addition, there is the classical subgenre of 笔记小说 (“notebook fiction”) which dates back to the 5th-century compilation, 世说新语 (A New Account of the Tales of the World). A mixture of historical anecdotes and character sketches (typically a few sentences each entry), this canon holds the promise of Bedelia's as it obfuscates the boundary between fiction and non-fiction.
The botanical name for wutong or 梧桐 is Firmiana simplex. It is also known as the Chinese parasol tree. I grew up surrounded by wutong, unknowing its purpose other than existing and greening the space.
Source: I, KENPEI, CC BY-SA 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/, via Wikimedia Commons
Source: Muséum de Toulouse, CC BY-SA 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
I reflect as I translate. Sometimes I’d come out of a project with curiosity weightier and bittersweeter than the high-hanging fruit. Might as well “journal the journey,” as a friend of inquiry once suggested, chipper.
Chipper indeed.
