座右の書である『判断力批判』を学兄小田部胤久さんが新たに訳出した。まだ読んでいないのにこういうのもなんだが、この帯の言葉は決して大袈裟ではないと思う。彼の晦渋な本を僕は殆ど読んでいるが、全部理解できるように書かれている。これは驚異だと思う。 さらにこの新訳は原文に忠実でカント特有の長い文章を長いまま訳しているという。その昔彼が女子大でカントを読む授業をしているというので何語で読んでいるのかと聞いたら英語だと言っていた。日本語だとカントらしさが失われてしまうという。それは長い文章のことだった。カントの文章が長いのはラテン語の文章の特徴を継承しているからだと説明してくれたがそのことは本書を読みながら味わってみたいと思う。とにかくこんなお仕事を退任後に世に出されるエネルギーに敬意を表したい。 My learned colleague, Tanehisa Odabe, has newly translated “Critique of Judgment,” a book that I have had by me. I have not read the book yet, but I think the words on the obi are not exaggerated. I have read all of his books, and they are all written in a way that I can understand them. I think this is a marvel. Furthermore, this new translation is said to be faithful to the original and translates Kant's long sentences as they are. I asked him what language he was reading Kant in, when he told me that he had students read in a womens college and he told me English. He said that if he used Japanese, Kant would lose his originality. He was referring to Kant's long sentences. He explained to me that Kant's sentences are long because he inherited the characteristics of Latin sentences, which I would like to taste as I read this book. Anyway, I would like to express my respect for his energy to publish such a work after his retirement.