驾鹤西游，独与圣哲话思辨；乘风归去，但留薪火传后人

苗力田先生

逝世二周年纪念专辑

生平 著述 手迹 弟子 追忆 留言
An Brief Biography of Professor Miao Litian
(1999)
◎◎Mr. Miao Litian, born in Tongjiang County in Heilongjiang Province of China, 23rd May 1917, is one of the most famous experts in the history of western philosophy in China, especially in Ancient Greek Philosophy and Classical German Philosophy. Now he is the Professor in Department of philosophy of Renmin University of China, also the adviser of National Society of History of Western Philosophy Society and member of International Plato Society. His major publications include Philosophy of Russian Revolutionary Democrats, 1962; 100 Correspondence of Hegel, 1982; Virtue is Power, 1986; Greek Philosophy (ed. & trans.), 1989; The Complete Works of Aristotle (in 10 vols. ed. & trans.), 1986-97. He was honored with Advanced Worker on Education, Beijing, 1962; Wuyuzhang Prize, 1986; Capital May 1st Labor Medal, 1986; National Specialist with Prominent Contribution, 1991. [Unfortunately, he died in 28th, May 2000 because of disease, which is a enormous loss to the studies of western philosophy in China.]
◎◎In 1939, Mr. Miao Litian entered Central University in Chongqing studying philosophy. During the time of study, he published many academic treatises as well as many proses and essays. When the War Against Japan fought fiercely in 1942, he took part in Expeditionary Army in Burma, as the translator for Team of Flying Tiger from the United States. After graduated in 1944, he continued with his study in Philosophy Institute of the Academe of Central University as a postgraduate following to Mr. Chen Kang, the famous philosopher in Ancient Greek Philosophy, and succeeded in M.A. Then he was appointed to be the lecturer by the same university, teaching introduction to philosophy, ethics and so on. In 1949, Central University changed its name to Nanjing University. In 1952, Mr. Miao Litian was transferred to be lecturer in Peking University and then to Renmin University of China in 1956 as the associate professor and the director of the staff room of the history of western philosophy. He kept teaching in that university up to now.
◎◎During the time more than 60 years of teaching, besides the course of history of western philosophy, Mr. Miao also taught the selected reading in western philosophy, modern western philosophy, existentialism, Kant's ethics, ancient Greek and introduction to ancient Greek philosophy, as well as Aristotle's Metaphysics, Spinoza's Ethics, Hegel's Logic, etc. In the classroom, he paid attention to the appearance and demeanor which should be worthy of the name of the teacher. Though his waist kept suffering for a long time, he never seated himself while teaching. As to the content, he was so conscientious and serious that sometimes he would rather spend the whole week preparing for one period.
◎◎Mr. Miao Litian masters several foreign languages, such as the Ancient Greek, English, German, Russian and roughly the Latin. Thus through a comprehensive grasp of western philosophy, he is good at analyzing the terminologies of philosophers, dissecting their roots, discussing original meanings and evolutions, and illustrating the whole arguments from notions to propositions and the relations underlying the latter, which was favorably received by the students.
◎◎Begining from 1980s, Mr. Miao decided to turn his orientation from Classical German Philosophy back to Ancient Greek Philosophy in order to cultivate the successors in that field. At that time, he was already more than 60 years old. From then on, while cultivating his disciples, teaching them ancient Greek language and Greek philosophy, he began to lead them to translate ancient Greek classics into Chinese. The first fruit is an anthology of Greek philosophy, which provided faithful reading materials for the study of that subject. When the disciples grown up in the academic capability, the translation of the complete works of Aristotle became his ambition.
◎◎Aristotle was the most comprehensive figure in ancient Greek philosophy and his influences on western philosophy, science and civilization are nearly immeasurable. It is impossible to understand western culture without reading and studying his works. Also, it is one of symbols of the standard of a nation's academic level to edit and translate his opera. After 10 years hard working, in 1997, the end of 20th century, the Complete Works of Aristotle, composed of more than 4 million characters, was fulfilled. As the first Chinese version opera of foreign philosopher, this achievement is so successful that it won many highest national prizes in China and was highly praised by international circles of philosophy. Besides general editing and collating, Mr. Miao translated two most difficult works such as Metaphysics and Nicomachean Ethics by himself at the age of more than 70.
◎◎Greatly inspired by this success, and deeply regretting for the lack of Chinese version of Kant's Critique of Pure Reason translated from German adequately for so many years, Mr. Miao cast his eyes to the translation of the Complete Works of Kant in 1999.
◎◎Despite the age more than 80, Mr. Miao Litian is still diligent in thinking and writing. In addition to directing a number of candidates for Ph.D., he creatively follows the examples of ancient Chinese's hermeneutics, writing notes and commentaries on the thoughts of western philosophers. The Preface and Annotation to Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics, Metaphysics and Kant's Foundations of the Metaphysics of Morals have already finished.
◎◎As an expert in the history of philosophy, Mr. Miao Litian has his own perspective on that realm. He disagrees to the inclination of simplifying the history of philosophy and views the history as both the aggregate of philosophical theories and exhibition of the activities of thinking. In his point of view, the history of philosophy composed of two sections, one of which is the theoretical propositions and formulas, the other is the course of thinking and argument of theses propositions. Therefore, the examining of philosophy must be through not only the theoretical view but also the historical one. Philosophy has already became a chain of mountain accumulated through the history of thousands of years by the strata of wisdom or sophia, and every type of philosophical thinking must be viewed as a distinctive peak among the continuous mountain. For all who love of wisdom, it is a watchtower, a observatory, showing great foresight, and on which we can stand high and see far. But it is wrong to take them as one's toolbox from which one may abstract some aspects to support one's own opinions.
◎◎As an interpreter, Mr. Miao Litian poses his own principle of translation which is the crystallization of his translation practice for 60 years. First, Adequate. Second, Concise. Third, Elegant. Particularly to Greek, he suggests our own spelling scheme according to Chinese phoneticization to translate the terminologies of Greek philosophers as many European countries do such as England, German, France and so on.
◎◎As a scholar, Mr. Miao devotes all his life to philosophy, particularly in deep love with ancient Greek philosophy. In his opinion, the spirit of it lies in "Love of Wisdom, Emphasis on Speculation and Learn for Knowledge", which is also regarded as his own motto. He quoted a dictum from Aristotle as the subject of his Annotation to Nicomachean Ethics: "Speculation is the Ultimate Blessedness". Throughout the endless journey of our explorer, Mr. Miao Litian, in the mountains of philosophy, the blessedness he has acquired may be not the maximum, but certainly the ultimate.
　
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