Hometown
Tags
Summary
Lu Xun and the many characters he created—Runtu, Ah Q, Kong Yiji, Xianglin Sao, and others—lived within and beyond the gates of the traditional mansions. The pieces set against a Shaoxing backdrop are gathered in one volume, presenting together the image of the hometown in Lu Xun's fiction.
Editor's review
Who it's for
A good fit for
- Literature lovers who wish to systematically read Lu Xun's classic fiction
- Readers who want to go beyond the impressions left by middle school textbooks and reunderstand the depth of Lu Xun's thought
- Researchers interested in modern and contemporary Chinese literature and social change
- Thoughtful readers seeking incisive social insight and analysis of human nature
Not a good fit for
- Readers seeking light entertainment and completely avoiding heavy themes
- Readers lacking basic patience for a semi-classical vernacular style and specific historical contexts
Reading tips
- Begin with famous pieces such as "Hometown" and "Kong Yiji" to get into the rhythm, then take on symbolically denser works such as "A Madman's Diary"
- While reading, consult materials on Lu Xun's life and the May Fourth Movement to deepen understanding
- Pay close attention to Lu Xun's depictions of characters' expressions, dialogue, and social environment, and appreciate the immense tension of his plain, descriptive style
About the publisher
Hunan Literature and Art Publishing House is a publisher known for its literary titles, with a catalogue spanning foreign literature, world classics, classical Chinese literature, essays and miscellaneous writings, and mystery and detective fiction. Judging from the more than 1,100 books in the database, the press publishes foreign classics such as Crime and Punishment, Snow Country, The Complete Sherlock Holmes and Letter from an Unknown Woman, as well as Chinese classical and modern literary works including Lu Xun's Wandering and A Madman's Diary and Wu Jingzi's The Scholars. In terms of translators and authors, translations by Cao Guowei and Tan Jinghua appear in its foreign literature titles, and the authors involved include Dostoevsky, Kawabata Yasunari, Conan Doyle and Zweig. Its publishing character lies in introducing Chinese and foreign literary classics side by side, balancing popular and serious works and attending to both readability and literary value. Public information is limited; the above is a brief overview based solely on the books in the database.
Contents
- 版权信息
- 故乡
- 社戏
- 孔乙己
- 阿Q正传
- 明天
- 祝福
- 在酒楼上
- 孤独者
- 风波
- 长明灯
- 离婚
FAQ
Is this edition complete or abridged?
Is Lu Xun's writing difficult for modern readers to understand?
Besides fiction, does this edition include Lu Xun's essays or prose?
Comments
Find this book
This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.
About the author
Lu Xun, originally named Zhou Shuren and styled Yucai, was a native of Shaoxing, Zhejiang, and a leading modern Chinese writer and thinker as well as a representative figure of the New Culture Movement. With works such as "A Madman's Diary" and "The True Story of Ah Q," he laid the foundation of modern Chinese fiction. His writing often focuses on the spiritual condition of ordinary people and on social reality, in a cold, concise style rich in critique and self-reflection. His story collections "Call to Arms" and "Wandering" and his prose collection "Dawn Blossoms Plucked at Dusk" are widely read, and his works are often classified as classics, social fiction, and documentary literature. The library holds as many as 499 editions of his works, showing that they continue to be read, anthologized, and circulated. Public information is limited, so this is only a brief account of his life's key points and creative character.
