Henrietta Harrison

Henrietta Harrison, an expert in China's relations with the West, discusses her book about the fascinating lives of two translators between Qing China and the British Empire. The podcast explores the role of interpreters in the 1793 British embassy to China, challenges the dominant narrative of the encounter, and highlights the repression faced by cultural go-betweens. It delves into the educational backgrounds of the translators, their different translation styles, and their impact on China-Britain relations.

Explore the fascinating history of China's relations with the West through the lives of two eighteenth-century translators. Learn about the roles and experiences of the interpreters at the 1793 British embassy to China and how tensions between cultures culminated in the Opium Wars. Discover how the Qing court manufactured ignorance about the British by repressing cultural go-betweens. Delve into the unique translation styles and philosophies of the interpreters and their connections to the East India Company. Listen to the extraordinary stories of these translators and their future projects.