Maung Tun Thu - The Thief of Forgiveness and Mo Pa Sun Short Stories

A message from a Myanmar returnee

This book, titled “The Thief of Forgiveness and Maupassant Short Stories,” contains nine translated short stories. All are works by the French writer Maupassant. Maupassant is a prominent figure in the short story movement, along with Russian writer Chekhov and American writer O. Henry.

Maupassant is the foreign writer who has had the greatest impact on Burmese readers. The first person to introduce Maupassant to Burmese readers was the writer Maung Htin. Maung Htin first translated Maupassant’s short story The Necklace under the title “Sein Pan Kong”. The short story appeared in the January 1938 issue of “Ganthaloka Magazine”. The short story became a very popular and famous short story.

When the short story "Sein Pan Kong" was accepted by readers, Saya Maung thought

He intended to continue translating the best of Maupassant's short stories. However, the outbreak of World War II prevented Saya Maung Htin's intention from being realized. After the war, Saya Dagon Tara's "Tara Magazine" continued to feature Maupassant translations. These Maupassant short stories were all Saya Maung Htin's work.

Then, with the closure of Tara magazine, Maupassant's short stories ceased. However, from the June 1961 issue of "Ngwe Taree Magazine" to the 1962 issue

Maupassant's short stories continued to appear until the October edition. Thus, there were 26 Maupassant's short stories translated by Maung Htin, which were published for the third time by Yapye Bookstore in 1966.

The world-famous French writer Guy de Maupassant was born in 1850 in a village near Rouen, Normandy, France. Maupassant's mother was a literate person, and she not only educated her son herself, but also raised him to enjoy the literature that she herself enjoyed. His mother, who was fascinated by the plays of the world-famous English playwright Shakespeare, trained her son to appreciate Shakespeare's plays from an early age.

Taught by his mother at an early age to read and write, Maupassant continued his education at the village Christian monastery at the age of thirteen. However, due to the strained relationship between the monk and Maupassant, Maupassant had to drop out of school. Maupassant's mother, who always placed great emphasis on her son's education, sent her son to a school in Shuin to continue his education, where he received a good education.

While studying in Switzerland, Maupassant was able to become close to the French writer Flaubert, famous for his novel Madame Bovary. Flaubert was very close to Maupassant's mother and provided Maupassant with valuable advice.

Maupassant's first short story was Boule de Suif. It was a great success, and Maupassant became famous immediately. He continued to write short stories, one after another, and became one of the most successful writers of his time.

He then wrote over 300 short stories, six novels, and numerous articles. His writing career was considered very short, with only ten years. However, all the short stories and novels he wrote in that short period of time became very famous not only in French literature, but also in world literature.

It has been said above that “Mo Pa Sun” is the foreign writer who has the most contact with the Burmese readership. It has also been said that the person who brought Mo Pa Sun to the public was the writer Maung Htin (now Maung Htin).

Master Maung Htin translated Maupassant's short stories from 1938 to 1966 and published them in magazines. Then, he collected the Maupassant's short stories that he had translated during that period and published them for the first time in 1966 under the title "Maupassant's Short Stories" by Bagan Bookstore.

This book is a selection of my favorite short stories by Maupassant. I don't think any other writer has translated these stories yet. That's why I said to my publisher, "I don't think anyone has translated these stories yet." The publisher seems to have taken my word for it. The cover of this book says, "Maupassant's Short Stories Untranslated by Any Translator."

If that statement is absolutely true, it is not particularly important. However, Maupassant's short stories are loved by Burmese writers and readers alike, and it would not be a relief to me, the translator, if I found that one or two of the short stories in this book had been translated by someone else. So, if the statement "Maupassant's short stories that have not been translated by any translator" is correct (if it is), the publisher is to be commended. If it is wrong, I would like to hold the translator responsible for that statement.

However, there are still some of Maupassant's short stories that have not been translated into Burmese for various reasons. I still have a strong desire to translate them when the opportunity arises. If I find short stories that I like among those translated by other people, I still have the desire to translate them again.

If I were to reinterpret what other people have translated, I hope that those interested in the translation profession will be able to learn a lot from the different views and writings of the two individuals.

Maung Tun Thu ( July 4, 2001)

( 1)

" Forgiveness "

She was born and raised in a family that lived in isolation from the world around her, without socializing with anyone. Her family was also not interested in extraordinary political events. They treated them as idle chatter when the family met at the table. Changes in government were also very distant from them, and the death of Louis XIV and the rise to power of Napoleon were viewed as ordinary historical events. They did not pay much attention to these events.

Customs are changing. Dress codes are changing. Clothing and fashion trends are changing one after another. However, for their family, who have always followed the same traditional customs, these changes are not unusual.