Lu Xun’s White Light
We have another spooky story for Halloween, this time a story from Lu Xun. This story, “White Light,” is not as discussed as it ought to be, but it has a skull, a suicide and a question of China’s future direction.
Posts Tagged: Lu Xun
The May 4th Movement
Modern Chinese Literature begins with the May 4th Movement. Well, that’s according to the orthodox understanding of Chinese literature promoted by the CCP in China. Either way, May 4th, 1919 was a turning point both in Chinese society and in Chinese literature. It was during and after this date that Lu Xun wrote some of […]
50th Podcast Anniversary
50th Podcast Anniversary We Made it to 50! No one expected it, least of all us, but this is our 50th episode with the podcast. Today, Rob and Lee are going to celebrate just like the ancients used to….with a Top 5 Countdown! The pair will share what the top five works of Chinese literature […]
Lu Xun’s Diary of a Madman
Recorded just after Halloween, this podcasts feels a little like a ghost of podcasts past for two reasons. We have recorded an episode on this story, Lu Xun’s Diary of a Madman, three times. Unfortunately, we lost the first two attempts, so we resurrected this podcast from the grave on All Soul’s Day. The second ghostly […]
Literature for the People, or Without the People? : A Discussion of Zhou Zuoren’s “People’s Literature”
Lee and Rob have an ongoing feud over May 4th Literature, with Rob championing it, and Lee attacking it. Lee’s ire reaches its focal point in this early essay by Zhou Zuoren, Lu Xun’s brother, which he claims eliminates from literature any consideration of what it means to be properly human, while Rob defends the […]
Narration and Revolution: The True Story of Ah Q
How does a low-life moron become one of the great tragic figures in modern Chinese culture? Lu Xun’s 1921 novella The True Story of Ah Q, a masterpiece of the May 4th Movement, presents just such a situation. We discuss the story’s unique narrative choices, and Lu Xun’s varying reception in Taiwan and mainland China. […]