Yang Xianyi Obituary

Yang Xianyi, the acclaimed translator died in Beijing on Monday at the age of 95. He was most famous for his English translations of Chinese literature, notably Dream of Red Mansions and the works of Lu Xun. However, he was also the first to translate the Oddyssey into Chinese from the original Greek.
Born to a wealthy family in Tianjin, Yang Xianyi was lucky enough to study at Oxford University where he met his wife, the translator Gladys Yang (born Taylor).
He was also politically active, joining the underground after becoming appalled at the violence of Chiang Kai-shek's (Jiang Jieshi) regime. However, his strong support for Mao's new China did not stop him from becoming a victim of the Cultural Revolution, he was put in prison for four years. When arrested, he once recalled, his only thought was 'why didn't I change into proper shoes?' He was taken from his home still in his slippers.
After this cloud had cleared after the ascension of Deng Xiaoping he began a new project; a series of translations under the Panda label, modelled on Penguin.
After Hu Yaobang's forced retirement in 1987 and the events in Tiananmen Square in 1989 he became a harsh critic of the Chinese Communist Party's hardline faction. He lived abroad until 1994.
His autobiography, 'White Tiger,' was released in 2000.
In 1993 he received an honorary doctorate from the University of Hong Kong and earlier this year he received a lifetime achievement award from the Translators Association of China.
He is survived by his two daughters and four grandchildren.