On 13 June 2015, the Irish Literature Workshop of Shanghai Normal University held an academic salon to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the birth of the great Irish poet W. B. Yeats.

At the salon, Jin Hui, vice dean of Shanghai Normal University Foreign Languages College, and Abdi Hassan, representative for Consulate General of Ireland in Shanghai, professor Wang Zhangpeng, director of Irish Studies Center in Beijing Foreign Studies University, and professor Liu Yunhua from Shanghai Normal University, respectively made speeches acknowledging the great talent and literary influence of W. B. Yeats. Professor Pu Durong, director of the Irish Literature Workshop, also remarked on the importance of W. B. Yeats and introduced the projects conducted by the Workshop.

During the opening ceremony, students from the English major of Shanghai Normal University performed a play by Yeats, The Land of Heart’s Desire, and also sang a song, Down by the Salley Gardens, a famous poem by Yeats. The wonderful performance by the students was regarded as the best way to commemorate the great Irish poet.

At the ensuing symposium, Irish studies scholars had a heated discussion from different perspectives about Yeats’ poems and plays. Fu Hao from Chinese Academy of Social Science made a close textual analysis of Yeats’ Poem When You Are Old, and introduced to the audience the evolution of his translations of this poem. Professor Wang Jiaxin from Renmin University of China elaborated on the beauty of the Yeats’ poems and his influence on the development of contemporary Chinese poetry. He also spoke highly of two Chinese poets: Yuan Kejia and Mu Dan, whose translations of Yeats’s works contributed greatly to Yeats’s reception in China. Professor Dai Congrong from Fudan University shared with the audience her understanding of Yeats’ poem The Cold Heaven as well as the problems she encountered in translation. Professor Feng Jianming from Shang University of International Business and Economics, Professor Sun Qi from Tongji University, and Professor Zhan Huayu from Shantou University had all taken part in the discussion. The symposium ended with an insightful concluding remark from professor Pu Durong.