Giray Fidan speaks at the sixth International Sinologists Conference on Translating Chinese Literature held in Nanjing, capital of east China's Jiangsu Province, in September 2023.

Chinese literature has a rich history spanning thousands of years and is incredibly diverse and profoundly symbolic. It's a multifaceted ideological system that carries forward a rich heritage of history, culture and philosophy, combining the Confucian way of human ethics, the Taoist concept of nature, and the Buddhist idea of moksa to become a shared spiritual wealth for mankind. Chinese literature, with its uninterrupted cultural legacy, not only contributes to the advancement of human civilization but also, through a unique lens, helps us see ourselves and the world more clearly. It helps us think more deeply about life and the relationships between humans and nature, as well as infuse enduring vitality into the human spiritual realm.

Poems, lyric songs, novels, legends, operas, and other works of Chinese literature are among the priceless treasures that capture the essence of the Chinese people's lives, emotions and ideals. Chinese literature has been transmitting the common human emotions and life experiences from generation to generation, starting with the odes in the Classic of Poetry, the first anthology of ancient Chinese poetry, continuing through the dramatic expressions of operas of the Yuan Dynasty (1206–1368), and finally to the cornucopian stories found in novels of the Ming and Qing Dynasties (1368–1911). Literary works contain insights into human nature and life lessons embedded in their characters, stories and language. These insights enable us to better understand and explore human emotions, morality and social changes.