Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Line by Line - Verse 20, Line 2

The (ready) 'yes,' and (flattering) 'yea;'-- Small is the difference they display.
~ James Legge translation, from The Sacred Books of the East, 1891 ~

Is there a difference between yes and no?
~ Gia-fu Feng and Jane English translation, published by Vintage Books, 1989 ~

Respectful response and scornful response
How much is the difference?

~ Derek Lin translation, from Tao Te Ching: Annotated & Explained, published by SkyLight Paths, 2006 ~

Why should you care if people agree or disagree with you?
~ Ron Hogan rendition, from Beatrice.com, 2004 ~
In all honesty, I have understood this line to mean that valuations are transitory. What is acceptable/not acceptable in one time period or in a particular society may be altogether different in a future/past time period or in another society.

But in reading the translations of Legge, R.B. Blakney and Jonathan Star, I now understand this line in a different way.

Here's how Blakney explains this line in terms of the first section of this verse.
The first stanza above is a protest against the learning of catechisms required of those who aspire to court life, where the difference between "yes" and "yea" is made to seem as important as the difference between good and evil.
Jonathan Star translates this line very similar to the way Legge does.
The difference between a formal "yes"
and a casual "yea" -- how slight!
To view the Index page for this series to see what you may have missed or would like to read again, go here.

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