Wai-lim Yip est réputé pour sa théorie poétique influente qui relie la poésie moderniste à l'esthétique taoïste, trouvant un écho particulier à Taïwan. Son œuvre explore les liens profonds entre les traditions littéraires et les courants philosophiques, offrant aux lecteurs une perspective unique sur le dialogue littéraire interculturel. Les travaux de Yip sont célébrés pour leur profondeur intellectuelle et leur capacité à synthétiser des systèmes littéraires et philosophiques apparemment disparates.
In this collection of essays, poet and literary critic Wai-Lim Yip calls Western scholarship to account for its misrepresentation of non-Western literature. Using various examples, he exposes the types of distortions that have occurred in the process of translating from one language to another.
Focusing on Ezra Pound's translation of the challenging Cathay poems, Wai-lim Yip explores the broader issues of translating from Chinese. The study connects Pound's translation principles to his late pre-Raphaelite influences, providing an in-depth analysis of his techniques. Yip's examination highlights the complexities and nuances involved in capturing the essence of the original texts, offering valuable insights into both Pound's work and the art of translation itself.