Fortress Besieged

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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Famous Chinese novel and a lot of similes.

A review by a Chinese reader

That's totally briliant

Fortress Besieged
Zhongshu Qian , Jeanne Kelly , and Nathan K. Mao
Manufacturer: New Directions Publishing Corporation
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Fortress Besieged

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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.......2007-01-02

Fortress Besieged (Simplified Chinese: Î§³Ç; Traditional Chinese: ú³Ç; Pinyin: w¨¦i ch¨¦ng) is a comedy of manners written by Qian Zhongshu, published in 1947, and is widely considered as one of the masterpieces of twentieth century Chinese literature. The novel is a humorous tale about middle-class Chinese society in the 1940s. It is also one of the most well-known contemporary Chinese novels in China, and has been made into a popular television series during the early 1990s.

Origin and History
The book was begun while Qian Zhongshu and wife Yang Jiang were living in Shanghai during the Japanese occupation. According to Yang Jiang, the successful production of several of her plays inspired Qian to write a full length novel.
The novel was begun in 1944, and completed in 1946. Much of the characters and plot are taken from the experiences of Qian and Yang abroad and in China. For example, the opening scene at sea reflects their journey from France to China onboard the ship Athos II.
The title is based on a French proverb:
Marriage is like a fortress besieged: those who are outside want to get in, and those who are inside want to get out.
The novel is known for its acerbic asides, such as describing one young lady in the following way:
At first, they called her "truth" because "the truth is naked". But then, she's not actually completely naked. So they amended it to "partial-truth".
The novel was published in Shanghai in 1947. The second edition was published 1948. The third edition in 1949. After the Communist Revolution, the book was not printed again in mainland China until 1980. In the mean time, it was also banned in Taiwan because of its satire of the Nationalist government.
The novel has been translated into many languages. These include the Russian version which appeared in 1979, the American English version in 1979; and the German version in 1982.

Plot Summary
Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.
Set in the 1930s it follows the misadventures of Fang Hung-chien (Fang Hongjian), a bumbling everyman who wastes his time studying abroad, and secures a fake degree when learning he has run out of money and must return home to China. The first part of the novel is set on the boat home, where Fang courts two young ladies.
Fang was the son of a country gentleman. A marriage had been arranged for him while at university, but the intended wife died before he could see her. After completing a degree in Chinese literature, he went to Europe where he studied at several universities without pursuing a degree. After being pressured by his family, he bought a fake degree from an American Irishman.
The year was 1937, and Fang was returning to China from Europe along with other graduating Chinese students. One fellow traveller was Miss Su, in her late 20s. She is quite pretty in a thin and pallid style, but her choosy attitude towards men means she is still unattached and getting slightly desperate. Another young lady on board was Miss Bao, who tended towards the tanned and voluptuous. Fang pursued Miss Bao with some success during the voyage. However, when the boat reached Hong Kong, Miss Bao disembarked into the embrace of her fiancee, a middle-aged, balding doctor, and Fang realised he had been used.
Fang then became more intimate with Miss Su. However, after they disembarked at Shanghai, Fang became occupied with finding a job, and attending matchmaking sessions arranged by his parents and former in-laws. After one failed attempt, Fang decided to contact Miss Su. While visiting her he also met her cousin, Miss Tang, and Miss Su's suitor, Zhao Xinmei.
The second section follows his securing a teaching post at a new university - where his fake credentials are used to keep him in line, and in the third part, it centers on his disastrous marriage. The novel ends with his wife leaving him, while he listens to a clock chiming.

Famous Chinese novel and a lot of similes........2005-12-18

Fortress Besieged
by Zhongshu Qian
Facing a precarious looking rattan footbridge without railings & "afraid he'd only make a mess out of it if he tried to help her" all Fang Hung-chien "could do was smile ruefully" at the young lady---whom he'd earlier characterized behind her back as "a delicate little Shanghai girl"---and say "that leaves just us two cowards." To which she countered: "Mr. Fang, are you scared? I am not. Would you like me to go in front. If you follow me you won't have to look at the void below and you won't have the feeling that the bridge is endless. This way you would have more confidence." (Aside: try re-reading the above after substituting the word "life" in lieu of "the bridge.") Once the pair were safely across Mr. Fang's pal Chou Hsin-mei smilingly asked of the lady (whom I'm not going to name for your benefit) "were you leading him from the front or was he looking after you from behind?" Good question. And this is what this book is about, such questions on the subject of courtship---but not relating to any and all Chinese. No, this novel by a Chinese intellectual---whose first names can be translated as "book-lover"---primarily concerns & satirizes the foibles and pretensions of other intellectuals; particularly Chinese students who have journeyed abroad seeking foreign degrees.

The story thus conveniently commences aboard a steamship making its way back to China, peopled by a number of Chinese students (among them Fang Hung-chien) returning from Europe. The year is 1937 and the characters' lives are set amidst a backdrop of European hegemony and increasing Japanese aggression vis-a-vis China. For the author Chinese students who go abroad to study are more often mere pretenders, hollow intellectuals, trying to surmount some sort of self-perceived Chinese inferiority complex. Needless to say, such folk in this book do not fare well when it comes to having successful relationships. Chou Hsin-mei comes out of it better than most in the end, but only after experiencing much turmoil over a number of years, having presumably married (we aren't actually told) a "simple honest country girl"---his earlier declared goal upon his having been jilted by "a city-girl with a college degree." Likewise, we aren't told much about how other rather prominent characters' choices turn out for them in the end either. Only Fang's degree of happiness enjoyed is elaborated on to the extent that one may draw conclusions on the subject of marriage; and whether it's cracked up to be all that some imagine it to be. P.S & word to the wise: Fang's character writing to a woman in the novel cautiously admits that "I can only use cliches which have been worked to death for thousands of years to express my feelings." For my taste, the author's writing style parallels this comment far too closely. If you are annoyed by an over usage of similes then "Fortress Besieged" (what the author likens a marriage to be akin) is going to grate on your nerves at times. On but several pages I found just these similes utilized by the author: Something was..."like finding a pack of cigarettes when one craves opium;" ..."like rice-flour noodles without elasticity;"..."like a balloon released by a child;"..."like the last few notes that float in the air after the music has ceased;"..."like a phantom of early dawn"... The author, for no apparent purpose, also liberally employs English idioms, scattered words and phrases---not surprising that he himself taught English (and studied in Europe, I might add), but it is more than a touch ironic when juxtaposed with his thesis that "returned students from abroad suffer from enlarged egos." (P.P.S. I came across and read this book while in China myself.) Cheers!

A review by a Chinese reader.......2005-06-22

I read the Chinese (original) version by Qian Zhongshu many times, but not the English translation yet. So I would be more than willing to rate the book a 5 star, it's not a review about the English version of it.

Neither my Chinese nor English language skill could be adaquate to comment on the translation of such a masterpiece in Chinese modern literature though.

So I will just say this: while reading this book, if you suddenly start laughing till tears come out, then, I guess, you really come to understand large part of the Chinese people, as well as the society.

It won't be easy for foreign readers, you need some background, history, etc to reach that stage. But if your interest in Chinese people goes beyond "cheap labour that flood WalMart with competing products", this book opens a path towards the heart of those (our) people and their (our) society. Not a quick and easy path, but a lasting one.

That's totally briliant.......2004-02-13

The first literature work I had read is < >.It took 3 or 4 night to finish it.Actually in that situation the stress of competion did not allowed me to spend extra time on "useless hobbies", what I did was ,waiting for 1 hour on the bed till all people in my family asleepe already.Then,Iturned a flashlight on,covered myself under the comforter,read the small printings hardly;Wasn't it funny?I usually falling sleep during my reading,and waken up at 5:45 in morning,started a normally borning day....... < > had take me into the kingdom of Chinese elite literature,caused by Qian's witty tone, I entered another world in 1930's.It used to be ashamed for all Chinese ruled under Janpanese occupants,Goverment was also moved to safe place to avoid attacks.Certainly,elitists left their good life in big cities,followed the wave of "immigration",in someway ,become refugees.Even for those who newly back to China dreamed to be high class intelligentists were find a job in a brand new university in somewhere far away the city.Therefore,the characters such like Fang Hongjian were met each other, started a paradoxically embarracing journey to San lujian University......His way of life,reflected the most darkness inside a person with WEstern background.Since I opened this book,I couldn't to quit it,especially those fantastic details and WEster nhumors,In addition,the most remarkable part is the conflict between diffirent cultures. However this masterpiece was listed on forbidden books for many years when China ruled by Natioalist,because it scorned the rotteness of the rulers.Surely I enjoyed this book,I'd try to find the best fanciest words to describe the brilliance of Qian's writting.But I am not good at boasting. Instead,I sharing my < >complex with you.This might be helpful for you to judge it in a special view point.My crazy reading started at age 12,and now I am 15,continually taste any flovors of literature, < > seems like an old friend,standed on tne highest level of the bookshelf,very easily to connect with my remeberanceof things past,it mentioned me a theme more complicate than life itself.

Fortress besieged (Chinese literature in translation)

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Comedy in the Highest Form
A must read book for bookworms
A Great Book, Must Read

Fortress besieged (Chinese literature in translation)
Chung-shu Chien
Manufacturer: Indiana University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

General | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0253165180

Customer Reviews:

Comedy in the Highest Form.......1999-09-11

One of the greatest modern Chinese novels. Disguised as a "modern Rulin Waishi (Scholars)," Fortress Besieged is much more than an ingenious satire of the haute intellectual class in 1930's China. Its depictions of Chinese society in a time of great adversity (the Sino-Japanese War rumbles in the background much as the Napoleonic Wars do in the works of Jane Austen) is thorough and penetrating. The sheer wit of Qian Zhongshu, who possesses a stunning erudition in both the Chinese and Western literary traditions, makes the book one of few "random access novels": novels the reader can flip to any page and start reading with equal relish. The central characters, Su Wenwan, Tang Xiaofu, Zhao Xinmei and Sun Roujia are all unforgettable. Above all, it is the portrayal of the hero Fang Hongjian that elevates the novel to the realm of the highest tragicomedy.

A must read book for bookworms.......1999-01-28

Fortress Besieged is one of the set books in the morden Chinese literature course I take. Though I like English literature more than Chinese one, this book gave me a refresh. Chien Chung Shu was so called Scholar writer, his works are full of both Chinese and western idioms. Therefore reading Fortess Besiged you can learn a lot of about Chinese and western world. Though it was written in the 30s, you will not feel it is old fashioned.

A Great Book, Must Read.......1998-12-01

I am astonished to find that this book has not been reviewed by anyone at amozon.com. Fortress Besieged is the immortal work by one of the most talented Chinese modern novelists, Chung-Shu Chien (Qian, Zhong-shu). This book has been translated into all major languages and enjoyed by readers all over the world. It has also been made into a very popular TV series in early 90's in China. Almost every educated Chinese is familiar with the story of this book, while the truth of life told by this book appeals universally to all mankind.

This book is about the life of a young Chinese intellectual in the 30's. His travel, his career, and most importantly, his relation with women. Through the simple, everyday happenings of this young man, the author shrewdly seeks for the motivation that drives us to receiving education, building a career, falling in love, and forming a family. The conclusion is that everything of life, including career, marriage, etc., is like a besieged fortress; the people ouside of it want break into it and the people inside of it want to break out of it.

The language used in this book is very humorous, sarcastic, and intellectual. Preferrably read in Chinese to get the most enjoyment out of it.

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Fortress Besieged
Ch'ien Chung-Shu
Manufacturer: Indiana University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OQDMHI

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Fortress Besieged

Manufacturer: ALLEN LANE (PENG)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000GRJS64

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"Wei cheng" nei wai: Qian Zhongshu di wen xue shi jie = Inside and outside a fortress besieged : a study of Qian Zhongshu's literary world
Wenhu Lu
Manufacturer: Jie fang jun wen yi chu ban she
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

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ASIN: 7503305517

Book Description

The adventures of Vampire Hunter D continue! Vampires: murderous creatures in the shape of humans, they stalk the night feeding on the blood of innocents. Seemingly immortal, they can be destroyed only by the use of a stake through the heart, severing of their heads or exposure to sunlight. By the year 12,090 A.D., vampires have ruled the Earth for almost 300 years, and it is only these weaknesses that have kept these foul monsters from totally overrunning the world.

Customer Reviews:

Moody and thoughtful.......2007-09-22

Raiser of Gales is an interesting, and I think introspective and thoughtful adventure. It more firmly establishes the what and why of D's world. Also, the wording in this novel is well written, far less "All your base-" than ended up getting through in the first translation.

My favorite is that an enemy uses a type of trap that was later incorporated into the second D movie, but I've risked spoiling it enough here.

Vampires rule the night..........2007-08-21

...but when they're victims start moving about and killing people during the day time hours that can be a problem. The people of the village of Tepes are starting to become paranoid, seeing evil in everybody and everything. And they weren't too pure to begin with. Now they have the tall, dark, and handsome Vampire Hunter D in their town. And he is not too sure it is a vampire that is the problem.
Can D solve the mystery before too many people die at the hands of the new type of vampire? Can he solve the mystery before too many people die at the hands of their own protectors?
Great story, great illustrations, great second book to the ongoing Japanese horror series. I will be collecting as many as I can. Get it used or new!

Yet Again Wonderful Book.......2007-07-16

I liked this book as much as I love the first one. This time D finds himself a world he just can't get out of. It keep repeating itself over and over again. The girl in this book as quit a charcter and did not annoyed me as much as Doris Lang. She keeps following D where ever he goes. And he always tell her to "Go Home" Which always made me laugh. The girl he meets is very interested in Vampires and D in the novel finds her strange. WOW that something coming from D. The book was fantasic as always. But it's little sad at the end though.

Would make a great movie.......2007-01-24

This book would definitely make a great anime movie. The story is action-packed and full of unexpected twists and turns. However for me it was not as exciting as the second and third novel, may be because of the fact that it was all action and no feelings. I personally like to see a softer side of D. As much as I love reading all Kikuchi's novels I still don't understand why D enjoys hunting Nobles and protecting humans despite of the fact that humans are always trying to kill him one way or the other. Maybe we'll find out by the end of 17th novel...

progress is being made.......2007-01-14

Many have already commented on the translation, so I will just take a moment to note that it has certainly progressed a bit beyond that of the previous novel. Action sequences in particular seem to have taken on a smoother pace, though the rather spartan and abrupt nature of the original text still causes the occasional coltish wobble.

As with all VHD novels there is a haunting quality to the prose that shines moon bright: D is still more or less at war with his soul, and our plucky coquette-du-livre is enjoyable. The odd coyness about Left-hand (the wise cracking sidekick/parasite) remains; though, since the novels are not particularly linear, this may be less noticeable to those who do not read the books in order or back to back.

The golden hamster manual;: A message to raisers and users of Syrian golden hamsters

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The golden hamster manual;: A message to raisers and users of Syrian golden hamsters
Louis Clyde Gale
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Innovation Meets Imagination.......2000-08-19

Double Memory is an eccentric, eclectic collection by a pair of artists renowned for bringing fine art sensibilities to genre illustration. Both Berry and Hale have honed their skills since the publication of this book, so Double Memory should be considered an introduction to their work rather than a statement about their careers. But there are some wonderful pieces included in this book: Berry's paintings for Peter Straub's Mrs. God are real knockouts while Hale's manic Johnny Badhair canvases are simply amazing. Truly a wonderful collection.

Genius (Collective, of course ;)).......1998-11-20

Appreciating these two artistic geniuses requires at least a modicum of a fine artist mentality. However, if you possess the teachings and/or the mere exposure to such passionate art, this collection of outstanding work will ignite and inspire you at the most basic level. So when's Braid coming out, guys? ;) Bout time you updated your website too. ;P

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Double Memory : Art & Collaborations
Rick; Phil Hale, Jacques On-Couer La Berry
Manufacturer: Donald M. Grant Publisher, Incorporated
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000P0VUZY

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Double Memory - Art and Collaborations
Phil and Rick Berry Hale
Manufacturer: Donald M. Grant
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000HK5JI6

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I was able to make sense from my loss...

A universal spiritual guide

Wisdom and comfort for anyone

"I will not let You go until You bless me."

Exceeding the Title's Agenda...

Making Loss Matter : Creating Meaning in Difficult Times
David J. Wolpe , and Mitch Albom
Manufacturer: Riverhead Trade
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1573228206
Release Date: 2000-08-08

Book Description

Some losses are so subtle they go unnoticed, some so overwhelming and cruel they seem unbearable. In painful moments we must make a choice: Will we allow the difficulties we face to become forces of destruction in our lives, or will we find a way to transform our suffering into a source of strength?

A theologian with the heart of a poet, Rabbi David Wolpe explores the meaning of loss, and the way we can use its inevitable appearance in our lives as a source of strength rather than a source of despair. Wolpe creates a remarkably fluid account of how we might find a way out of overwhelming feelings of helplessness and instead create meaning in difficult times.

The national bestseller by "a rabbi who is as gifted with words as he is with wisdom."--Chaim Potok

"This is a book to pass on to people who are grieving--i.e., every single person we know." --Kirkus Reviews

"An exceptional book. Through a mix of scholarship, pathos, anecdote and personal experience, David Wolpe takes on this most crucial subject with the healing hands of a teacher. I gaze with awe at his completed task."--Mitch Albom, author of Tuesdays with Morrie

"In this wonderful volume, Rabbi David Wolpe combines wisdom and compassion; it is also highly readable."--Elie Wiesel

"Wolpe is a gifted writer...melodic and lyrical."--Los Angeles Times

Customer Reviews:

I was able to make sense from my loss..........2003-05-31

When the adoption of two foster children fell through and they left our home, I was heartbroken. I said kaddish even though the children were still alive. I sat shiva by myself. Family and friends were sad with us but most found it too uncomfortable to discuss. My rabbi suggested that I read this book, and I'm so glad I did. Rabbi Wolpe soothed my broken heart and helped me to accept what I could not control. His words gave me the courage to have faith in G-d again, because he made me see that I had an important role in the children's lives.

We suffer losses more often than we like to admit. Rabbi Wolpe enables us to embrace them and use them to make ours and others lives better.

A universal spiritual guide.......2000-07-28

From the viewpoint of forty years as a liberal Christian minister, reading Rabbi David Wolpe's MAKNG LOSS MATTER was a pleasant journey. Generally speaking, Christians believe in a future existence beyond death, while Jews do not. Wolpe leaves a door open when he writes, "The soft insistent voice of something more whispers in our ear. Can this be all?" Wolpe's open heart and lucid prose touched me time and time again. I have underlined many of his thoughs such as, "I am a rabbi because there is in me, as there is in you, a child, a child that knows that somewhere we not alone, that this world is bathed in miracles, and that for every pain there is beauty, for every loss there is love, and for every waste there is wonder." All members of the human race can be lifted by his beautiful lines such as, "Refusing to succumb to despair is the greatest act of faith. We may despair for a moment. Darkness seems ascendant. We cry out. But stirring is the certainty that the pain of a particuar loss is a sign of having loved. Where the capacity to love has been, it can be again." Not just for Jews, his book speaks to all who suffer or rejoice.

Wisdom and comfort for anyone.......2000-02-09

First I checked it out of the library serendipitously; then I had to own it and purchased my own copy from Amazon. Within a week I had referred it to a number of people whose lives it touched. There is no one who doesn't need this book. It is 21st century wisdom with the depth of ancient sages and vast scope of religous tradition behind it. Wolpe understands life. He crafts sentences that go to the core of the matter of loss and life and difficulty and human nature. Though I am not Jewish, I relished getting out my Old Testament and re-reading the stories of Abraham, Jacob, Job and others after reading Making Loss Matter. As one who has an interest in things spiritual and God-based all her life, I find this book among the best I have ever read and cannot recommend it highly enough--to ANYONE who is human.

"I will not let You go until You bless me.".......2000-01-04

Like Jacob, who wrestled with G_d and refused to let Him go until he extracted a blessing from Him, and thus earned the name "Israel" (he who struggles strongly with G_d), David Wolpe tackles one of the oldest and hardest questions, "Does my suffering matter or is it just meaningless chance?" Poignantly, after throwing away his first attempts which were drawn from his extensive scholarship and erudition, and making the scary decision to write instead from his own heart, he found out that his young wife, a new mother, has cancer. No easy answers here, but a lot of deep thought and honest feelings, plus a way of at least approaching life's inevitable losses with real courage born not of bravado and forced stoicism, but of a struggling faith that will not let go until it has received a blessing---the gift of knowing that the struggle is not in vain.

Exceeding the Title's Agenda..........1999-12-16

I made two assumptions about this book before reading it: a) that it would be a book about spirituality (since a Rabbi wrote it) and b) that it would be about death and mourning. While there is certainly allusion to both of these, I found it much more compelling as a work of psychology, an archaeology of "loss" as an existential proposition rather than some vacuous "how to cope" cheer. For those that eschew the popular self-help canon, this book is a compelling resource as it grounds its propositions in the wisdom of historical, secular literary figures as well the usual roll call from the Torah and Talmud, and tempers the admixture with sensitivity and common sense. The book's uplifting quality results not just from the reiteration of the sages, but from its baseline humanity, the degree to which it addresses the decent human being coming to terms with mediocrity, foolishness, defects of character, and/or miscarried hopes that drain the optimism from the average life. The reconciliation it ultimately espouses, the "making loss matter" aspect, reinvests the individual with the perspective necessary to manage not just the "big deaths," but the more subtle demises, the death-by-papercut drainage of our happiness, individuality, and sense of connection to something greater than ourselves.

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