Finding Fong Foo Sec (Kuang Fuzhuo, 1869-1938): An Investigation of the Man and His Transnational and Translational Experiences

Principal Investigator

LEUNG Yuen Sang

Total Fund Awarded

HK$433,000

Funding Source

RGC Competitive Earmarked Research Grant
(2007/2008)

Abstract of Project

        This is a study of Kuang Fuzhuo (1869-1938), a Chinese born and raised in Taishan, Guangdong, educated in the United States where he was known as Fong Foo Sec (pronounced in Taishanese), and built a career as translator-publisher-educator in Shanghai after his return to China in the early twentieth century.

        Kuang was not a well-known figure in modern Chinese history, and so far there has not been a single study on his life and career even though his multi-faceted life story was an extremely interesting one and has significant bearing on China’s modern transformation particularly in the area of cultural change, social reform and in the area of English-Chinese translation and English textbook publishing.Kuang’s fascinating life-story bridges the gulfs between two continents of different languages and cultures, and what makes it more interesting is the fact that the transnational and cross-cultural experiences in his early life was later put into practical challenge and application in his publishing and translation career at the Commercial Press in Shanghai.This study will examine his transnational experience and see how this affected his careers as an editor-translator and social reformer.