The Lyrical Lu Xun

Fülszöveg

•J. i "i IÍP ! IB'l i n ni lillíwa f. <iVj |í ni: ¦ 1 I : | ; ímmMi : • i >¦ . - ? j:: V ¦ ifi - í í„vív ' "I The influence of Lu Xun (1881-1936) in China's cultural, literary, and artistic life over the last sixty years has been inestimable. Hailed at death as "the Soul of the Nation," he wore in life the laurels of "Father of Modern Chinese Literature," "Leader of the New Culture Movement," and "Founder of the Woodcut-Engraving School." A poet from a backwater town, Lu Xun was propelled by the times into the various careers of educator, writer, publicist, professor, and polemicist. He was, however, first and foremost a classical scholar, writing somé of his best works in classical form. The Lyrical Lu Xun is the most complete treatment of his classicalstyle poetry in any foreign language, containing translations and extensive discussions of sixty-four poems in the highly stylized forms of jueju (quatrains) and lüshi (full-length regulated verse)-forms with detailed, strict rules... Tovább

Fülszöveg

•J. i "i IÍP ! IB'l i n ni lillíwa f. <iVj |í ni: ¦ 1 I : | ; ímmMi : • i >¦ . - ? j:: V ¦ ifi - í í„vív ' "I The influence of Lu Xun (1881-1936) in China's cultural, literary, and artistic life over the last sixty years has been inestimable. Hailed at death as "the Soul of the Nation," he wore in life the laurels of "Father of Modern Chinese Literature," "Leader of the New Culture Movement," and "Founder of the Woodcut-Engraving School." A poet from a backwater town, Lu Xun was propelled by the times into the various careers of educator, writer, publicist, professor, and polemicist. He was, however, first and foremost a classical scholar, writing somé of his best works in classical form. The Lyrical Lu Xun is the most complete treatment of his classicalstyle poetry in any foreign language, containing translations and extensive discussions of sixty-four poems in the highly stylized forms of jueju (quatrains) and lüshi (full-length regulated verse)-forms with detailed, strict rules for rhyme and tonal prosody that evolved according to pronunciations and standards set up more than a thousand years ago. Although best known in the West for his short stories-his novella The True Story of Ah Q (A Q zheng zhuan) won enough recognition at home and abroad to culminate in consideration for the Nobel prize in literature-Lu Xun was alsó a poet of acumen and resource in the old style. He effectively employed mythological and shamanistic imagery to reflect modern feelings of alienation and to comment on and respond emotionally to the injustices and vicissitudes of his own day. Like China's greatest poet, Du Fu (Tu Fu, 712-770), Lu Xun embodies in his lyricism an essentially morál and
(continued from front flap) philosophical temperament. This basic humanistic core has informed Chinese verse since its earliest days and is at the heart of Lu Xun's artistry. In the absence of a contextualizing framework, Lu Xun's poems can be extremely demanding for the reader. Kowallis skillfully bridges the distance between reader and text by providing a rich biography as weil as extensive introductions and notes to each of the poems. This comprehensive volume will enable students and scholars of Chinese and comparative literature to explore the more profound and literary side of China's foremost writer. Vissza