前言 Preface: Chinese Literature Going Global – The Significance of Mo Yan’s Prize to the History of Literature On 11 October 2012, the Swedish Academy awarded the annual Nobel Prize in Literature to Chinese writer Mo Yan. The impact of this event on the development of Chinese literature was immense. Mo Yan’s success demonstrated that Chinese literature is slowly finding a global audience, and is gaining recognition within world literature from a unique angle. The prize was not only a dream come true within Chinese literary circles, but also made Chinese people treat the Nobel Prize calmly. It also provided the opportunity for Chinese literature to reflect on its own development. According to the Nobel Committee’s prize announcement, Mo Yan’s novels “merge hallucinatory realism with folk tales, history and the contemporary;” his reflections on history and analysis of human nature strike a chord not only in China, but around the world. This demonstrates that for literature to transcend time and national boundaries, it should focus on real life and reflect the human soul, rather than express political views or cater to the mass market and consumer culture. As well as Mo Yan, there are a number of unique contemporary Chinese writers who show great creative potential, such as Jia Pingwa, Chen Zhongshi, Wang Anyi, Yu Hua, Su Tong, Liu Zhenyun, Bi Feiyu and Chi Zijian. Their work reflects a wide range of views and perspectives, and they have gained a large overseas audience. In terms of its origins, Chinese literature can be traced back more than 3,000 years. From then until the early twentieth century, its development was unbroken; it has nurtured the souls of Chinese people across the generations, and has played a large part in establishing the nation’s cultural identity. In the early twentieth century, a profound transformation of Chinese literature took place that included its concepts, contents and language, and even its relationship with world literature. It thus entered a new phase. Over the course of the new century, China’s ongoing development and growth in international status have led to it receiving ever greater attention; the nation’s deepening levels of reform and openness have promoted exchange with the wider world, laying the foundations for its literature to reach out yet further. Literature embodies China’s profound history, reflects the complex and evolving reality of today’s society, and expresses the nation’s dreams for a better future. Literature is the most fruitful medium for communication between China and the rest of the world. Exploring global concerns, and expressing human nature and feelings, are responsibilities that it should gladly embrace; indeed, these have been some of its qualities since ancient times.
精彩内容 Gods and Demons Novel: Journey to the West “You carry the burden, I pull the horse. We welcome the sun as it rises, and bid goodbye as it sets. Stomp flat the bumpy road, to become the Great Way. After defeating dangers and obstacles, we set out again, and then again, from spring to summer and back again, through the many bouts of life’s joys and sorrows. If you ask which way to go, the way is under your feet…” This is the theme song of the popular Chinese TV series Journey to the West, which vividly portrays the arduous and heroic journey undertaken by Tang Monk and his disciples to fetch Buddhist ******ures from the Western Heaven. This “gods and demons” novel, one of the greatest accomplishments of Chinese ancient literature, is said to have been written by Wu Cheng’en (c. 1500–1582) in the Ming Dynasty. Its characters fit mainly into one of three categories. First, there are immortals, Buddhist figures and Taoist figures, such as Gautama Buddha, Jade Emperor, Queen Mother of the West, Bodhisattva Guanyin, Most Exalted Lord Lao, God Erlang and Nezha; second are mortals such as Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty, Squire Kou and Marquis Shangguan; third are monsters such as White Bone Spirit, Yellow Robe Monster, Great King of Miraculous Response, Bull Demon King, Red Boy and Scorpion Spirit. Each of the three categories sparkles with unforgettable characters. Tang Monk is one of the most important. As a child, he becomes a pious Buddhist with the monastic title of Xuanzang. To benefit the country and its people, he leaves the Tang Dynasty’s territory in the east to fetch Buddhist ******ures from the Western Heaven, and faces a catalogue of difficulties and obstacles. He takes Sun Wukong, Zhu Bajie and Friar Sand with him as his disciples. Because he strictly follows the Buddhist rule of “having mercy and compassion,” he inadvertently—and repeatedly—falls into monsters’ traps. After enduring eighty-one tribulations, and overcoming many hardships and dangers, he finally obtains the Buddhist ******ures and enters a state of perfect enlightenment, or Buddhahood. Sun Wukong is one of the most successful depictions in the work; he is a stone monkey formed by the coupling of Heaven and Earth. Once he has mastered martial arts, he calls himself “Great Sage Equal to Heaven;” he solicits treasures from the Palace of the Dragon King, erases names in the Register of Life and Death, and creates havoc in Heaven. He thus symbolizes the rebellious spirit: he resists restraint, challenges authority, and pursues equality and freedom of expression in all respects, all of which constitute the greatest source of his charm. Wu Cheng’en also vividly describes Sun Wukong’s courage and resourcefulness in fighting to protect Tang Monk on the road to the Western Heaven, along with other attributes such as penetrating eyesight, the ability to distinguish truth from falsehood, the ability to use the seventy-two methods of transformation and use complicated methods to subdue demons. Zhu Bajie, with the monastic title of Wuneng, is Tang Monk’s second disciple. Originally the Marshal of the Heavenly Canopy, he is banished into the mortal world for getting drunk and flirting with Chang’e; but he ends up in the womb of a female boar due to an incarnation error. He is strong, loyal and capable, but work-shy, lustful, and fond of eating. He also likes to gain petty advantages over others. While Tang Monk and Sun Wukong “have no interest in mundane affairs,” Zhu Bajie is more worldly and comical, and has been much loved over the ages. Journey to the West’s monsters, who rape women, plunder and are generall
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