The Dream of the Red Chamber - Softcover

Xueqin, Cao

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1533148651 ISBN 13: 9781533148650

Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2016

Synopsis

Dream of the Red Chamber, composed by Cao Xueqin, is one of China's Four Great Classical Novels. It was written sometime in the middle of the 18th century during the Qing Dynasty. It is considered a masterpiece of Chinese literature and is generally acknowledged to be the pinnacle of Chinese fiction. The novel is believed to be semi-autobiographical, mirroring the rise and decay of author Cao Xueqin's own family and, by extension, of the Qing Dynasty. As the author details in the first chapter, it is intended to be a memorial to the women he knew in his youth: friends, relatives and servants. The novel is remarkable not only for its huge cast of characters and psychological scope, but also for its precise and detailed observation of the life and social structures typical of 18th-century Chinese aristocracy.

About this title

Book Description:

The Dream of the Red Chamber is one of the "Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature." it is renowned for its huge scope, large cast of characters and telling observations on the life and social structures of 18th century China and is considered by many to be the pinnacle of the classical Chinese novel.

The "Red Chamber" is an expression used for the sheltered area where the daughters of wealthy Chinese families lived. believed to be based on the author's own life and intended as a memorial to the women that he knew in his youth, The Dream of the Red Chamber is a multilayered story that offers up key insights into Chinese culture.

"Henry bencraft Joly's attention to detail and the faithfulness in his translation of Hong Lou Meng makes this revised edition of The Dream of the Red Chamber an excellent book for the student of modern Chinese." —Edwin H. Lowe, from his introduction

"...this partial version certainly deserves a wider readership, as a brave early skirmish on the outer ramparts of this masterpiece. The re-issuing of Joly's work will undoubtedly provide a rich crop of fascinating raw material for the growing community of Translation Studies scholars." —John Minford, from his foreword

About the Author:

Cao Xueqin was born into a wealthy family whose status diminished, and whose fortune was confiscated, when he was still a child. He spent the remainder of his life in poverty. The Dream of the read Chamber, which he devoted ten years of his life to writing, was not published until thirty years after his death.

H. bencraft Joly was Vice-Consulate of Macao at the time he translated The Dream of the red Chamber in an effort to advance appreciation of Chinese literature among Western scholars.

John Minford is dean of the School of Arts and Social Sciences at the Open University of Hong Kong and has taught Chinese literature and literary translation in China, Hong Kong, and New Zealand. He has published widely on Chinese literature and translated numerous works including Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio by Pu Songling and the Art of War.

Edwin Lowe is Associate Lecturer of Chinese Studies in the Department of Asian Studies at Macquarie University, Sydney. He has previously worked on the Tuttle Classic edition of The Water Margin and on The Chinese Martial Code by A. L. Sadler.

About this edition

• Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
• Publication date: 2016
• ISBN 10: 1533148651
• ISBN 13: 9781533148650
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 824