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Eileen Chang: Romancing Languages, Cultures and Genres

Online ISBN:
9789882209060
Print ISBN:
9789888083794
Publisher:
Hong Kong University Press
Book

Eileen Chang: Romancing Languages, Cultures and Genres

Published online:
20 September 2012
Published in print:
24 March 2012
Online ISBN:
9789882209060
Print ISBN:
9789888083794
Publisher:
Hong Kong University Press

Abstract

Eileen Chang (1920–1995) is arguably the most perceptive writer in modern Chinese literature. She was one of the most popular writers in 1940s Shanghai, but her insistence on writing about individual human relationships and mundane matters rather than revolutionary and political movements meant that in mainland China, she was neglected until very recently. Outside the mainland, her life and writings never ceased to fascinate Chinese readers. There are hundreds of works about her in the Chinese language but very few in other languages. This is the first work in English to explore her earliest short stories as well as novels that were published posthumously. It discusses the translation of her stories for film and stage presentation, as well as nonliterary aspects of her life that are essential for a more comprehensive understanding of her writings, including her intense concern for privacy and enduring sensitivity to her public image. The thirteen essays examine the fidelity and betrayals that dominate her alter ego's relationships with parents and lovers, informed by theories and methodologies from a range of disciplines including literary, historical, gender, and film studies. These relationships are frequently dramatized in plays and filmic translations of her work.

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