HUMA 1220 Modern Chinese Literature in Translation
Spring, 2014
Professor:
Dr. Jianmei Liu
Office hours: by appointments
Email: hmjmliu@ust.hk
Required Textbooks
Lau, Joseph S.M. & Howard Goldblatt. The Columbia Anthology of Modern Chinese
Literature. New York: Columbia UP, 1995.
Course Description
This course introduces major Chinese writers and literary trends in the twentieth century,
examining the intricate relationship between literature and social change, between
narration and nation as “imagined communities,” between modern intellectuals and their
audience. It focuses on the complex issue of modernity in relation to tradition, gender,
sexuality, and revolution, exploring important literary trends and cultural events while
introducing such key terms as New Culture Movement, May Fourth Movement, Literary
Revolution, Revolutionary Literature, Left-Wing Literature, the School of Sensibility,
Root Literature, Avant-garde Literature, realism, and surrealism.
This course emphasizes detailed textual analysis, content and form. Students are to learn
not just to summarize but to critique, to have an opinion, about characters, structures and
writers, with or without further research. You will practice your skills in your Mid-term
paper and final paper.
This course also accentuates the significant power of literary criticism/interpretation,
which produces certain knowledge about certain writers. At different times of this
semester, students will read different critiques on one author by different critics. Students
are encouraged to think independently and critically about the readings and critiques, and
practice your role as literary critics in the forms of discussion, presentations, and
academic papers.
Grading
Attendance/Participation of class discussion 20%
Presentation
30%
Final Research Paper
50%
Course Requirements
Attendance is mandatory
Attendance is mandatory.
Class participation is expected since talking with fellow students is the best way to learn.
So earn your good grade the fun way—start and keep talking in class! Don’t be afraid to
make mistakes, but you do need to show that you are familiar with the readings and that
you have seriously thought about the texts. Be prepared and read before class.
Presentations (one individual presentation)
Sign-up is on the first day of class.
Your presentations can be based on the questions given to you, or can be the result of
your own independent research. You can select one or more reading, focus on one
character, or compare/contrast different characters. This means that you need to make a
clear argument/present a reasonable opinion, supported by details from the text and/or
your research. On the other hand, it is not a formal paper. So you can use lists, bullets,
tables, etc. to organize your arguments.
Your oral presentation will be about 10 minutes. You are encouraged to do powerpoint
presentation.
You CANNOT just summarize the text(s), except when you are presenting the criticisms.
But you are encouraged to ask thoughtful questions.
Final Research Paper （10-15 pages, double-spaced）:
As for these two important papers, you can choose one paper to do a creative writing,
such as fiction, essay, or play, but its subject must be related to modern or contemporary
China. In other words, you need to contextualize your story in modern China, because
that is also the way to test your understanding of modern Chinese history. You can even
direct and shoot a film if you like. But if you choose to do a creative writing, the other
paper has to be a formal academic paper. Of course, you are welcome to do formal
academic papers for both midterm and final. In your academic paper, you must present
your thesis statement (your main argument), supported by well-organized evidences from
the text(s) or your research. We will talk more about the structure of the formal paper
later. Research papers come naturally for a literature class. You can certainly elaborate
your presentations, or you may find something more interesting as a result of discussions
or research. The academic paper is a critical analysis of the text(s), characters, themes,
narration, etc. Remember critical analysis is NOT:
1. A summary.
2. Broad generalizations without further support and analysis
3. Citing long quotes from the readings without analyzing them or explaining their
importance to you or to us
Late paper: NOT accepted.
Policies:
1. Students with disabilities should contact the instructor at the beginning of the semester
to discuss any accommodation for this course.
2. This class prohibits students from cheating on exams, plagiarizing papers, submitting
the same paper for credit in two courses without authorization, buying papers, submitting
fraudulent documents, and forging signatures. Plagiarism policy: all quotations taken
from other authors, including from the Internet, must be indicated by quotation marks and
referenced. Paraphrasing must be referenced as well.
3. Religious observance: Please inform your instructor of any intended absences for
religious observance in advance.
4. This syllabus may be subject to change. Students will be notified in advance of
important changes that could affect grading, assignments, etc.
5. Unless otherwise directed, students are expected to remain in the classroom for 15
minutes in the unlikely event that the instructor should not arrive on time. After 15
minutes, it may be assumed that class will not be held.
Course Schedule
Subjected to change. It is YOUR responsibility to adjust to it.
Week One
Introduction to the course;
Sign up for Presentations
Film screening: China in Revolution
Week Two
The May-Fourth movement
Lu Xun, “Preface to Call to Arms,” 3-7; “A Madman’s Diary,” 8-16
Lee, “Literary Trends I,” 172-180 (R)
Lu Xun, “Medicine,”
Lu Xun, “A Warning to the People,”
Lu Xun, “Kong Yiji,”17-21
Lu Xun, “Upstairs in a Wineshop,”
Lu Xun, “New Year’s Sacrifice,”
Week Three
Lu Xun, “Story of Ah Q”
Yu Dafu, “Sinking,” 31-55
Shen Congwen, “Xiaoxiao,” 82-94
Week Four
Mao Dun, “Spring Silkworms,” 56-73
Shi Zhecun, “One Evening in the Rain Season,” 116-124
Week Five
Introducing Zhang Ailing
Film screening: The Eighteen Spring
Discussion
Week Six
Film screening: Lust/ Caution
Class Discussion
Zhang Ailing, “Sealed Off,” 174-183
Week Seven
Ding Ling, “When I Was in Xia Village,” 132-146
Film Screening: Lust, Caution
Week Eight
Film screening: Xiao Hong
Xiao Hong, “Hands,” 161-173
Supplementary readings of Xiao Hong
Week Nine
Taiwan Literature and Film
Bai Xianyong, “Winter Nights,” 210-223
Chen Yingzhen, “My Kid Brother Kangxiong,” 204-209
Li Ang, “Curvaceous Dolls,” 262-276
Xi Xi, “A Woman Like Me,” 303-313
Yuan Qiongqiong, “Tales of Taipei,” 314-320
Zhu Tianwen, “Fin De Siecle Splendor,” 388-402
Week Ten
The Representation of Cultural Revolution
Ba Jin: “Remembering Xiao Shan,” 685-696
Wen Jieruo: “Living Hell,” 697-703
Film clips of In the Heat of the Sun, Farewell My Concubine
Film screening: The Mao Years
Week Eleven
Film Screening: To Live
Yu Hua’s novels
Week Twelve
Film Screening: Red Sorghum
Mo Yan’s Novels
Mo Yan, “Iron Child,” 379-387
Week Thirteen
Yu Hua, “On the Road at Eighteen,” 439-444
Can Xue, “Hut on the Mountain,” 325-328
Week Fourteen
Film Screening: Peacock
Week Fifteen
Liu Heng, “Dogshit Food,” 366-378
Su Tong, “Escape,” 445-454
Chinese Poetry
Xu Zhimo
Li Jinfa
Dai Wangshu
Feng Zhi
Bei Dao
Shu Ting
Yang Lian
Gu Cheng
Final Paper Due.