Fall 2012 Yunzhong Shu Office: King 213 Office hours: WF 9:45-10:45 718-997-5570 [email protected] East Asian Studies 250: Modern Chinese Fiction in Translation General Description: As a PLAS course that satisfies the Reading Literature (RL) requirement, EAST 250 will teach students to employ the analytical tools in literary criticism to study the styles, structures and thematic concerns of a wide range of modern Chinese short stories and novellas. We will discuss the different approaches to modern Chinese fiction employed by Chinese and Western critics from different ideological and aesthetic perspectives. In addition, we will pay special attention to the historical circumstances that gave rise to and changed modern Chinese fiction in the twentieth century. With the stories and novellas as specific examples of social engagement through literary means, the course will enhance students’ understanding of the interaction between modern Chinese fiction and Chinese society. As they study works of fiction produced in historical environments drastically different from their own, students will also be asked to reflect on the influence of their own cultural values on their experience as readers and to relate the course to their own lives as students. Texts: The primary textbook is Modern Chinese Short Stories and Novellas compiled by Joseph Lau, C. T. Hsia and Leo Lee (available at Queens College Bookstore). A package of photocopied materials, available at Queens Copy Center (65-01 Kissena Boulevard, (718)-886-7635), is also required. Requirements: Careful preparation before class; participation in classroom discussion; presentation on individual works; one 5-page midterm paper; one 8-page final paper; and one short written reflection on the course. (All writing assignments should be double- spaced, typed and printed. I will NOT accept handwritten or emailed assignments. Note: If your writing skills are not particularly strong, you should try to find a tutor from College Writing Programs for your writing assignments. You should put in your request at the beginning of the semester, because it will be difficult to find a tutor later.) Grading: First paper 30%; second paper 40%; attendance 10%; participation 10%; presentation 10%. 1 Warning: If you do not plan to read the assignments carefully before class or to participate in discussions, do not take this course. Plagiarism (copying, representing or closely imitating someone else’s published or unpublished statements without clear attribution) will receive a severe penalty, including failure of the course. You can go to http://www.qc.cuny.edu/Academics/ Documents/115980.pdf for more information on Queens College’s policies on plagiarism. ************************************************* August 29 Introduction 31 C.T. Hsia: “Obsession With China: The Moral Burden of Modern Chinese Literature”; W.J.F. Jenner: “Insuperable Barriers? Some Thoughts on the Reception of Chinese Writing in English Translation” September 5 Bonnie McDougall: “Modern Chinese Literature and Its Critics”; Kirk Denton: “Teaching Modern Chinese Literature in the Post-Modern Era” 7 Lu Xun: “Preface to Call to Arms”; “A Madman’s Diary”; "K'ung I-chi"; "Medicine” 12 Lu Xun: "In the Wine Shop"; "My Old Home"; "The New Year's Sacrifice"; "Soap" 14 Xu Dishan: "The Merchant's Wife"; "Yu-kuan"; Yu Dafu: "Sinking" 19 Ye Shaojun: "Rice"; "Solitude"; "Horse-bell Melon"; "Autumn"; Mao Dun: "Spring Silkworms" 21 Lao She: "An Old and Established Name"; Ling Shuhua: "Embroidered Pillows"; "The Night of Midautumn Festival" 28 Feng Yuanjun: “Separation”; Lu Yin: “After Victory”; Lu Xun: “Regret for the Past”; Rou Shi: "A Slave-Mother" October 3 Ding Ling: “Day”; Mu Shiying: “Five in a Nightclub”; Shi Zhicun: “One Evening in the Rainy Season”; “Seagulls” 5 Shen Congwen: "Hsiao-hsiao"; "Pai-tzu"; "Quiet"; "The Lamp" 12 Shen Congwen: "Three Men and One Woman"; Zhang Tianyi: "The Bulwark"; "Midautumn Festival"; Xiao Jun: "Goats" 17 Ba Jin: "Nanny Yang"; "The General"; "Sinking Low"; "Piglet and Chickens" 19 Ding Ling: "When I Was in Hsia Village"; "In the Hospital"; Mao Zedong: “Talks at the Yan’an Forum on Literature and Art”; Zhao Shuli: "Lucky" 24 Wu Zuxiang: "Young Master Gets His Tonic"; "Let There Be Peace"; "Fan Village" 2 26 Xiao Hong: "Hands"; "The Family Outsider"; Duanmu Hongliang: "The Faraway Wind and Sand"; "The Rapid Current of the Muddy River" 31 Qian Zhongshu: "The Inspiration"; "Souvenir" November 2 Eileen Chang: ”The Golden Cangue”; Shi Tuo: “A Kiss”; Lu Ling: "The Coffins" 7 Li Chun: “Can’t Take That Road”; Wang Wenshih: “The New Production Brigade Leader”; Yang Hsingwang: “Carry On” 9 Lu Xinhua: "The Wounded"; Liu Xinwu: "Class Counsellor"; Lin Jinlan: “The Transcript” 14 Gao Xiaosheng: "Li Shunda Builds a House"; Wang Meng: "The Eye of Night" 16 Qiao Dianyun: "A Wordless Monument"; Mo Yan: "White Dog and the Swings"; “The Cure”; Yu Hua: “1986” 21 Can Xue: "The Hut on the Hill"; Ge Fei: “Remembering Mr. Wu You”; A Cheng: “Festival” 28 Su Tong: “Flying Over Maple Village”; Sun Ganlu: “I Am a Young Drunkard”; Yang Lian: “Ghost Talk” 30 Cao Naiqian: “When I Think of You Late at Night, There’s Nothing I Can Do”; Li Rui: “Electing a Thief”; “The Brake-Stone”; “Sham Marriage” December 5 Bei Dao: “13 Happiness Street”; Hong Feng: “The Stream of Life” 7 Chi Li: "Hot or Cold, It's Good to Be Alive"; Ma Yuan: "Fabrication" 12 Final review 3 Questions for EAST 250 Reading Assignments and Class Discussions August 31 What does C. T. Hsia mean when he talks about the moral burden of modern Chinese literature? In what way has this moral burden affected the canon of modern Chinese fiction? And in what way does it make modern Chinese fiction unappealing to readers familiar with the canon of Western literature, as Jenner argues in his essay? September 5 What do you think of the approaches that McDougall and Denton argue we should adopt in our reading of modern Chinese fiction? Do they have anything to do with the way we have been influenced by the canon of Western literature? 7 Can you relate Lu Xun’s preface to Call to Arms to the moral burden mentioned by C. T. Hsia? Analyze the madman’s reading of Chinese history and society in “A Madman’s Diary”. Characterize the perspective from which the story in "K'ung I-chi" is told. What is the political message in "Medicine"? In what way do Lu Xun’s stories set the direction for the canon of modern Chinese fiction? 12 Analyze the portrayal of Lu Weifu in "In the Wine Shop". Analyze the “I” narrator in "My Old Home". What are the similarities between the “I” narrator in “My Old Home” and that in "The New Year's Sacrifice"? What is the author's attitude towards traditional manners and morals in "Soap"? What possible influence could this attitude exert on the canon of modern Chinese fiction? 14 What is Xu Dishan’s view on human life in “The Merchant’s Wife”? What is Xu Dishan’s view on salvation in “Yu-kuan”? Analyze the portrayal of the main character in "Sinking". 19 What is the author's attitude towards the teacher in "Rice"? How would you explain the misery suffered by the old man in "Solitude"? How is the criticism of the civil service examination conveyed in "Horse-bell Melon"? What are the social changes reflected in "Autumn"? In what way could Mao Dun’s approach in "Spring Silkworms" influence the view on rural China in the canon of modern Chinese fiction? 21 Analyze the social changes reflected in “An Old and Established Name”. Analyze the central symbol in "Embroidered Pillows". How is the young couple’s marriage ruined in "The Night of Midautumn Festival"? 28 Describe the format of “Separation” and its significance. Discuss the view on marriage in “After Victory”. What does Lu Xun emphasize with regard to women’s liberation? In what way can "A Slave-Mother" be seen as a typical portrayal of women’s suffering in the canon of modern Chinese fiction? October 3 How does Ding Ling view the female main character in “Day”? In what way does it mark a transition in the portrayal of the intellectual in modern Chinese fiction? Characterize the image of Shanghai in “Five in a Nightclub”. Analyze the psychological activities described in “One Evening in the Rainy Season” and in “Seagulls”. 4 5 What distinguishes "Hsiao-hsiao" and "Pai-tzu" from the leftist writers’ portrayals of lower class men and women? What is the significance of the ending in "Quiet"? What does Shen Congwen tell us in "The Lamp" about his fiction? 12 What does Shen Congwen want to achieve in "Three Men and One Woman"? What does Zhang Tianyi inherit from Lu Xun? Compare the narrator in "Goats" with other intellectual characters in modern Chinese fiction. 17 What is the central issue in "Nanny Yang"? Describe the characterization of “The General”. Compare the two kinds of intellectuals in "Sinking Low". What is the difference between “Sinking Low” and “Piglet and Chickens” in terms of their subjects, moral stances and emotional tones? 19 In what way does Ding Ling continue the tradition of critical realism in “When I Was in the Hsia Village” and “In the Hospital”? Name some of the main goals Mao Zedong asks Yan’an writers and artists to achieve. In what way could these goals affect or even determine the direction of future literary works? How are Mao’s directives implemented in "Lucky"? 24 Critique the narrative point of view in "Young Master Gets His Tonic". What does Wu Zuxiang inherit from Mao Dun in “Let There Be Peace” and “Fan Village”? 26 Can you see Lu Xun's influence in "Hands" and "The Family Outsider"? Do the resistance fighters in "The Faraway Wind and Sand" and "The Rapid Current of the Muddy River" fit the tradition of critical realism? If not, why? 31 Discuss Qian Zhongshu’s view on modern Chinese fiction in "The Inspiration".