Description: This is the first comprehensive study and translation into English of Chinese literary works dealing with insects.
Brief description: Wilt L. Idema is Professor Emeritus of Chinese Literature at Harvard University. A recipient of the prestigious Special Book Award of China, Dr. Idema's many publications include The Red Brush: Writing Women of Imperial China; Personal Salvation and Filial Piety: Two Precious Scroll Narratives of Guanyin and Her Acolytes; Meng Jiangnü Brings Down the Great Wall: Ten Versions of a Chinese Legend; Heroines of Jiangyong: Chinese Narrative Ballads in Women's Script; The White Snake and her Son; Judge Bao and the Rule of Law: Eight Ballad-Stories from the Period 1250-1450; Monks, Bandits, Lovers and Immortals: Eleven Early Chinese Plays; The Butterfly Lovers: The Legend of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai; Escape from Blood Pond Hell: The Tales of Mulian and Woman Huang; Battles, Betrayals, and Brotherhood: Early Chinese Plays on the Three Kingdoms; The Generals of the Yang Family: Four Early Plays; The Resurrected Skeleton: From Zhuangzi to Lu Xun; and "The Immortal Maiden Equal to Heaven" and Other Precious Scrolls from Western Gansu.
Review Quotes:
"Entertaining and erudite, and covering a mind-boggling range of genres, serious and parodic, the extraordinary range of Chinese writing on this subject--from culturally venerated insects like silkworms, cicadas, and crickets to universal scourges like fleas, mosquitos, and lice--over millennia is here made available for the first time." --Judith T. Zeitlin, William R. Kenan, Jr. Professor, East Asian Languages & Civilizations, The University of Chicago
"This is a work of enormous scope and erudition. It is the first comprehensive study and translation into English of Chinese literary works dealing with insects. The linguistic demands of this sort of work are very considerable as one needs to be able to translate classical writings from antiquity as well as ballads in regional languages. There is no comparable work available, and this book opens up a fascinating insect world as imagined by countless scholars, singers and storytellers who have used insects as a motif to relate to vital concerns in the human world. The translations deal with a huge number of social and cultural topics, both philosophical and prosaic. The book is written in an accessible fashion that will attract a wide range of readerships. This would include those with a scholarly interest in Chinese culture, college teachers seeking engaging material on the Chinese natural world and the general reader with an interest in representations of nature and animals across different cultures. This work complements similar works in European and classical studies." --Anne McLaren, Professor in Chinese Studies, University of Melbourne
"Written in a refreshingly accessible manner, this book would be of particular interest to anyone who wants to know about Chinese popular literature." --Olivia Milburn, Professor of Chinese Language and Literature, Seoul National University
"From the elite classical idiom to the popular, Professor Idema pursues the signifying bugs of the Chinese tradition. Beginning with a discussion of Lu Xun's collaborative Chinese translation of a German translation of Dutch insect fables, Idema shows how anthropomorphic fabulation has indeed a rich tradition in Chinese popular literature. As always, Idema provides a wide range of delightful and readable translations that demonstrate a hitherto unknown side of Chinese literature." --Stephen Owen, James Bryant Conant University Professor, Emeritus, Harvard University
"Insects in Chinese Literature offers valuable insights into Chinese tradition and society through cultural entomology. From classical poetry and rhapsodies to popular ballads and drama, from canonical literary figures to modern performers, the representation of various insects opens up a rich array of imaginative possibilities. Wilt Idema's wonderful translations introduce the reader to many original and thought-provoking works. The materials also throw light on cultural connections and comparative literature; through them the author traces the arc of Indian insect tales traveling to Europe and China and examines Lu Xun's fascination with and translation of insect stories from the West." --Wai-yee Li, Professor of Chinese Literature, Harvard University