Week Four: Modern Chinese Literature Fylde Building, Room 412 Wednesday, 1-1:50 pm Instructor: Gang Sui

Shu Qingchun (simplified Chinese: ; traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: Shū Qìngchūn, Manchu: Sumuru, February 3, 1899 – August 24, 1966), better known by his pen name Lao She (Chinese: ; pinyin: Lǎo Shĕ) was a notable Chinese writer. A novelist and dramatist, he was one of the most significant figures of 20th century Chinese literature, and is perhaps best known for his novel Rickshaw Boy and the play Teahouse ( ). He was of Manchu ethnicity. His works are known especially for their vivid use of the Beijing dialect.simplified Chinesetraditional ChinesepinyinChinesepinyinChinesewriternovelist dramatistChinese literatureRickshaw BoyManchuBeijing dialect

He went on to serve as lecturer in the Chinese section of the (then) School of Oriental Studies (now the School of Oriental and African Studies) at the University of London from 1924 to During his time in London, he absorbed a great deal of English literature (especially Dickens, whom he adored) and began his own writing. His later novel (Ma and Son) drew on these experiences.School of Oriental Studies School of Oriental and African Studies University of LondonLondonEnglish literatureDickens

Beijing dialect typically uses many words that are considered slang, and therefore occur much less or not at all in Standard Chinese. Speakers not native to Beijing may have trouble understanding many or most of these. Many of such slang words employ the rhotic suffix - r. Examples include:suffix bèir – very, especially (referring to manner or attribute) biéjie – do not; usually followed by if used as an imperative (Usually used when rejecting a favor or politeness from close friends)imperative cuōhuǒr – to be angry diārle – to leave; to run away èrbǎdāo – a person with limited abilities, klutz

Several of his stories have been made into films, including This Life of Mine (1950, dir. by Shi Hui), Dragon Beard Ditch (1952, dir. by Xian Qun), Rickshaw Boy (1982, dir. by Ling Zifeng), The Teahouse (1982, dir. by Xie Tian), The Crescent Moon (1986, dir. by Huo Zhuang), The Drum Singers (1987, dir. by Tian Zhuangzhuang), and The Divorce. The Lao She Literary Award (zh: ) has been given every two to three years starting in the year It is sponsored by the Lao She Literature Fund and can only be bestowed on Beijing writers.This Life of MineShi HuiXian QunLing ZifengXie TianHuo ZhuangTian Zhuangzhuangzh:

An Old and Established Name Lao She For the purposes of comparison and/or contrast, discuss irony, rootlessness/homelessness, credit, honesty, gentlemanliness, honour, decency, dignity, grace under the pressure and sense of loss as manifested in Hemingways A Clean and Well-lighted Place. -- protagonist: Xin Dezhi (senior apprentice) -- narrative point of view: third-person central/partial omniscient -- conflicts: Xin Dezhi vs. other characters (vs. society, vs. himself, vs. his fate) Is the conflict between the old and the new resolvable? Can he take the middle ground (the Golden Mean)? -- local colour (humour): Beijing dialect

-- setting (a microcosm of the competitive modern business world ): the Fortune Silk Store, the Village Silk Shop, and the Heaven Silk Store -- gentlemanly style vs. dirty tricks/deceptions -- social milieu: the 1930s (boycotting Japanese goods) -- linear plot-development rising actions, climax, denouement (falling action), resolution -- A tragic end (understatement and structural irony): Yet after a year, the Fortune Silk Store was bought out by the Heaven. -- the general orientation of the modern society? -- Plato: the World of Becoming vs. the World of Being? Change vs. Changelessness?