Dream of the Red Chamber鈥檚 enduring legacy
Print Edition
Chinese VIEWS
AS a pillar of early-modern Chinese fiction, the 鈥淒ream of the Red Chamber鈥 (also sometimes known as 鈥淒ream of the Red Mansion鈥 and 鈥淪tory of the Stone鈥 in English translations, but henceforward referred to as the Red Chamber) by Cao Xueqin (1715-1763) has long been universally acknowledged as a masterpiece in terms of its literary achievement and influence.
One product of its oversized influence is the field of redology, the academic study of Cao鈥檚 life and his seminal work.
At a recent forum held at Fudan University, scholars and experts in the field of redology reflected on the novel鈥檚 place in contemporary society 300 years after the birth of its author.
Hu Deping, a retired official who now chairs the Beijing-based Cao Xueqin Society, said in his opening remarks that redology has existed as a literary discipline for almost a century but now needs to incorporate new perspectives and methodologies.
Many of the difficulties facing redologists stem from a dearth of archival material which might shed new light on the many unknown aspects of Cao鈥檚 life, said Zhan Dan, vice dean of Shanghai Normal University鈥檚 Humanities and Communications College.
In his opinion, although the Red Chamber has been well received inside China, and has been brilliantly translated into different languages, it has yet to be universally regarded as a work of international acclaim.
As an example, Zhan referenced a recent work by French author Pierre Lepape, entitled 鈥淯ne Histoire des Romans D鈥檃mour,鈥 or 鈥淎 History of Romantic Novels.鈥
Glaring omission
In this book, Lepape lists what he believes are the 86 greatest romances of all time. His list represents a rich body of world literature, ranging from ancient greek myths to modern works from Japanese novelist and playwright Yukio Mishima. Red Chamber, however, did not make the cut. This, in Zhan鈥檚 view, is a glaring omission and a sad reminder of the relative obscurity of the Red Chamber abroad.
Meanwhile, Chen Weizhao, a senior researcher with the Department of Chinese Language and Literature at Fudan University, claimed that the novel is in danger of being reduced to the level of kitsch at home.
Chen dismissed popular forms of presenting the Red Chamber, especially televised lectures focused on its more sensational aspects, such as murder, voyeurism and decadence. Chen argued that such sensationalism cheapens the value of the novel, which is essentially a panorama of life and social structures typical among the 18th-century Chinese aristocracy, Chen noted.
In his speech, Wang Defeng, professor of philosophy at Fudan University, pointed out that the Red Chamber owes its fame to timeless themes which are still relevant in modern China. Take the character of Ping鈥檈r, said Wang. As the chief maid and personal confidante of a female aristocrat, she is roughly equivalent to a modern-day government secretary, explained Wang. He added that Ping鈥檈r represents a perennial feudal class which today is composed of petty bureaucrats.
The Red Chamber is also insightful in its portrayal of destiny and social circumstances, Want told the forum, adding that readers today can still draw parallels between the past and present in this respect.
Hu concurred. The chairman of the Cao Xueqin Society has spent more than three decades perusing and studying the novel, convinced that its lasting popularity is a result of its 鈥渃lose connections to reality.鈥
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