ABSTRACT
As Zhang's commentary epitomises the tradition of the Chinese literary criticism, Roy's translation is a blessing both to English researchers of JPM and to the wider intellectual community in the west who are interested in Chinese literary tradition. The source notes, as Roy explicitly contends, are intended for the use of researchers and specialists; and the informative notes are more beneficial to the general readers. The translation enterprise took Roy a long time to complete – so long that rumour had it that the translator had passed away before finishing the rendition. Informative notes or source notes all represent the translator's effort to create and compose after a likely process of research, selection and adaptation. Nevertheless, under closer examination, the apparent ambivalence is understandable: if the translation is supposed to be read by English readers, it should, first and foremost, be accessible to them.
