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Mandarin Duck And Butterfly
The Mandarin Ducks and Butterflies school (鴛鴦蝴蝶派) was a popular genre of Chinese fiction in the first half of the 20th century, especially in the 1920s. Mandarin ducks (which are frequently seen in pairs) and butterflies (from ''Butterfly Lovers'') are traditional symbols of romantic love, but the genre encompassed more than romance stories: scandals and "high crimes" were also favorite subjects. Mandarin Ducks and Butterflies stories were disparaged by progressive writers of the May Fourth school for being essentially escapist and showing no social responsibility. The genre gradually fell out of favor following Japanese invasions in the 1930s. Zhang Henshui's 1930 novel ''Fate in Tears and Laughter'' is a representative work of this school. Su Manshu 's 'The Lone Swan' is another representative work for this genre. See also *''Wuxia ( ), which literally means "martial heroes", is a genre of Chinese fiction concerning the adventures of martial artists in anc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mandarin Ducks
The mandarin duck (''Aix galericulata'') is a perching duck species native to the East Palearctic. It is medium-sized, at long with a wingspan. It is closely related to the North American wood duck, the only other member of the genus ''Aix''. is an Ancient Greek word which was used by Aristotle to refer to an unknown diving bird, and is the Latin for a wig, derived from , a cap or bonnet. Outside of its native range, the mandarin duck has a large introduced population in the British Isles and Western Europe, with additional smaller introductions in North America. Description The adult male has a red bill, large white crescent above the eye and reddish face and "whiskers". The male's breast is purple with two vertical white bars, the flanks ruddy, and he has two orange feathers at the back (large feathers that stick up similar to boat sails). The female is similar to the female wood duck, with a white eye-ring and stripe running back from the eye, but is paler below, has a s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Butterfly Lovers
The Butterfly Lovers is a Chinese legend of a tragic love story of a pair of lovers, Liang Shanbo () and Zhu Yingtai (), whose names form the title of the story. The title is often abbreviated to Liang Zhu (). The story was selected as one of China's Four Great Folktales by the "Folklore Movement" in the 1920s—the others being the Legend of the White Snake (''Baishezhuan''), Lady Meng Jiang, and The Cowherd and the Weaving Maid (''Niulang Zhinü''). Six cities in China have collaborated in 2004 on a formal application for the Proclamation of Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity on the legend at UNESCO, submitted in 2006 through the Chinese Ministry of Culture. Legend The legend of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai is set in the Eastern Jin dynasty (266–420 AD). Zhu Yingtai is the ninth child and only daughter of the wealthy Zhu family of Shangyu, Zhejiang. Although women are traditionally discouraged from taking up scholarly pursuits, Zhu manages ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
May Fourth School
The New Culture Movement () was a movement in China in the 1910s and 1920s that criticized classical Chinese ideas and promoted a new Chinese culture based upon progressive, modern and western ideals like democracy and science. Arising out of disillusionment with traditional Chinese culture following the failure of the Republic of China to address China's problems, it featured scholars such as Chen Duxiu, Cai Yuanpei, Chen Hengzhe, Li Dazhao, Lu Xun, Zhou Zuoren, He Dong, Qian Xuantong, Liu Bannong, Bing Xin, and Hu Shih, many classically educated, who led a revolt against Confucianism. The movement was launched by the writers of ''New Youth'' magazine, where these intellectuals promoted a new society based on unconstrained individuals rather than the traditional Confucian system. The movement promoted: * Vernacular literature * An end to the patriarchal family in favor of individual freedom and women's liberation * The view that China is a nation among nations, not a uniqu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Escapism
Escapism is mental diversion from unpleasant or boring aspects of daily life, typically through activities involving imagination or entertainment. Escapism may be used to occupy one's self away from persistent feelings of depression or general sadness. Perceptions Entire industries have sprung up to foster a growing tendency of people to remove themselves from the rigors of daily life – especially into the digital world. Many activities that are normal parts of a healthy existence (e.g., eating, sleeping, exercise, sexual activity) can also become avenues of escapism when taken to extremes or out of proper context; and as a result the word "escapism" often carries a negative connotation, suggesting that escapists are unhappy, with an inability or unwillingness to connect meaningfully with the world and to take necessary action. Indeed, the ''Oxford English Dictionary'' defined escapism as "The tendency to seek, or the practice of seeking, distraction from what normally has ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zhang Henshui
Zhang Henshui (; May 18, 1895 – February 15, 1967) was the pen name of Zhang Xinyuan (张心远), a popular and prolific Chinese novelist. He published more than 100 novels in his 50 years of fiction writing. Early life On May 18, 1895, Zhang was born in Nanchang, Jiangxi province, China. Zhang was educated until age 16 in Suzhou, China. At age 16, Zhang's father died. Zhang moved to Qianshan, Anhui, his ancestral home. Career Keen in classical vernacular ('' baihua'') literature since youth, he began composing in the vein of ''zhanghui xiaoshuo'' (章回小说), novels written in vernacular style using classical Chinese poetry as chapter headings. Zhang started his career as a member of a theatre troupe. Zhang joined the press in 1918 as an editor. Zhang became a journalist in Wuhan. In 1919, Zhang became a newspaper editor in Beijing, China. Zhang took up novel-writing as a hobby. The first of his novels serialized was ''A Pining Song for the Southern Country'' ( ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fate In Tears And Laughter
''Fate in Tears and Laughter'' () is a 1930 Chinese novel by Zhang Henshui, set in 1920s Beiping (modern Beijing). A few chapters (Chapters 1, 2, 18, 19) were translated into English by Sally Borthwick for the anthology ''Chinese Middlebrow Fiction: From the Ch'ing and Early Republican Eras'' (1984). The novel has been adapted into many films and TV series, as well as a number of local Chinese operas. Adaptations Films *''Fate in Tears and Laughter'' (啼笑因緣), a 1932 Chinese silent film directed by Zhang Shichuan, starring Zheng Xiaoqiu, Hu Die and Yan Yuexian. *''Fate in Tears and Laughter'' (啼笑因緣), a 1941 Chinese film directed by Sun Jing, starring Mei Xi and Li Li-hua. *''A Tale of Laughter and Tears'' (啼笑因緣), a 1952 Hong Kong film directed by Yeung Kung-leung and Wan Hoi-ching, starring Cheung Wood-Yau and Pak Yin. *''Between Tears and Laughters'' (啼笑因緣), a 1957 Hong Kong film directed by Lee Sun-fung, starring Cheung Ying, Law Yim-hing and Kon ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Su Manshu
Su Manshu (, 1884–1918) was a Chinese writer, poet, painter, revolutionist, and translator. His original name was Su Xuanying (), Su had been named as a writer of poetry and romantic love stories in the history of early modern Chinese literature. But he was most commonly known as a Buddhist monk, a poetry monk, "the monk of sentiment” (pinyin: qing seng; simplified Chinese: 情僧), and “the revolutionary monk” (pinyin: gem-ing seng; simplified Chinese: 革命僧). Su was born out of wedlock in Yokohama, Japan in 1884. His father was a Cantonese merchant, and his mother was his father's Japanese maid. His ancestral home was in Zhongshan city, Guangdong Province, China. He died at the age of 34 due to a stomach disease in Shanghai. Life and career Education Su had a good master of painting and language. He mastered many languages — English, French, Japanese and Sanskrit. In 1896, he went to Shanghai with his uncle and aunt to study in the British con-cess ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wuxia
( ), which literally means "martial heroes", is a genre of Chinese fiction concerning the adventures of martial artists in ancient China. Although is traditionally a form of historical fiction, its popularity has caused it to be adapted for such diverse art forms as Chinese opera, manhua, television dramas, films, and video games. It forms part of popular culture in many Chinese-speaking communities around the world. The word "" is a compound composed of the elements (, literally "martial", "military", or "armed") and (, literally "chivalrous", " vigilante" or "hero"). A martial artist who follows the code of is often referred to as a (, literally "follower of ") or (, literally "wandering "). In some translations, the martial artist is referred to as a "swordsman" or "swordswoman" even though they may not necessarily wield a sword. The heroes in wuxia fiction typically do not serve a lord, wield military power, or belong to the aristocratic class. They often orig ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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