The Plum in the Golden Vase or, Chin P'ing Mei: Volume Five: The Dissolution

by David Tod Roy (Translator)

Overview

The fifth and final volume of a celebrated translation of the classic Chinese novel

This is the fifth and final volume in David Roy's celebrated translation of one of the most famous and important novels in Chinese literature. The Plum in the Golden Vase or, Chin P’ing Mei is an anonymous sixteenth-century work that focuses on the domestic life of Hsi-men Ch’ing, a corrupt, upwardly mobile merchant in a provincial town, who maintains a harem of six wives and concubines. The novel, known primarily for its erotic realism, is also a landmark in the development of the narrative art form—not only from a specifically Chinese perspective but in a world-historical context.

This complete and annotated translation aims to faithfully represent and elucidate all the rhetorical features of the original in its most authentic form and thereby enable the Western reader to appreciate this Chinese masterpiece at its true worth.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781400848157
Publisher:	Princeton University Press
Publication date:	09/29/2013
Series:	Princeton Library of Asian Translations , #116
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	624
File size:	13 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

David Tod Roy (1933–2016) was professor emeritus of Chinese literature at the University of Chicago. His monumental five-volume translation of the Chin P'ing Mei was completed in 2013.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations ix
Acknowledgments xi
Cast of Characters xiii
CHAPTER 81
Han Tao-kuo Takes Advantage of a Chance to Appropriate the Goods;
T'ang Lai-pao Defrauds His Master and Disregards His Benevolence 1
CHAPTER 82
P'an Chin-lien Makes an Assignation on a Moonlit Night;
Ch'en Ching-chi Enjoys Two Beauties in a Painted Bower 17
CHAPTER 83
Ch'iu-chü, Harboring Resentment, Reveals a Clandestine Affair;
Ch'un-mei Transmits a Note to Facilitate a Lovers' Rendezvous 35
CHAPTER 84
Wu Yüeh-niang Creates a Stir in the Temple of Iridescent Clouds;
Sung Chiang Uprightly Frees Her from the Ch'ing-feng Stronghold 54
CHAPTER 85
Wu Yüeh-niang Surprises Chin-lien in the Act of Adultery;
Auntie Hsüeh Agrees to Sell Ch'un-mei on a Moonlit Night 72
CHAPTER 86
Sun Hsüeh-o Instigates the Beating of Ch'en Ching-chi;
Dame Wang Marries Off Chin-lien to the Highest Bidder 90
CHAPTER 87
Dame Wang Hungers after Wealth and Receives Her Just Reward;
Wu Sung Kills His Sister-in-law and Propitiates His Brother 113
CHAPTER 88
P'an Chin-lien Appears in a Dream in Commandant Chou Hsiu's Home;
Wu Yüeh-niang Contributes a Gift to a Subscription-Seeking Monk 131
CHAPTER 89
On the Ch'ing-ming Festival the Widow Visits the New Grave;
Wu Yüeh-niang Blunders into the Temple of Eternal Felicity 151
CHAPTER 90
Lai-wang Absconds Together with Sun Hsüeh-o;
Sun Hsüeh-o Is Sold to Chou Hsiu's Household 174
CHAPTER 91
Meng Yü-lou Is Happy to Marry Li Kung-pi;
Li Kung-pi in a Fit of Rage Beats Yü-tsan 194
CHAPTER 92
Ch'en Ching-chi Is Entrapped in Yen-chou Prefecture;
Wu Yüeh-Niang Creates a Stir in the District Yamen 218
CHAPTER 93
Wang Hsüan Relies on Righteousness to Help the Poor;
Abbot Jen in the Desire for Profit Invites Disaster 244
CHAPTER 94
Liu the Second Drunkenly Beats Ch'en Ching-chi;
Sun Hsüeh-o Becomes a Trollop in My Own Tavern 269
CHAPTER 95
P'ing-an Absconds with Jewelry from the Pawnshop;
Auntie Hsüeh Cleverly Proposes a Personal Appeal 289
CHAPTER 96
Ch'un-mei Enjoys Visiting the Pools and Pavilions of Her Old Home;
Commandant Chou Hsiu Sends Chang Sheng to Look for Ch'en Ching-chi 309
CHAPTER 97
Ch'en Ching-chi Plays a Role in the Commandant's Household;
Auntie Hsüeh Peddles Trinkets and Proposes a Marriage Match 330
CHAPTER 98
Ch'en Ching-chi Opens a Tavern in Lin-ch'ing;
Han Ai-chieh Encounters a Lover in a Bordello 349
CHAPTER 99
Liu the Second Drunkenly Curses Wang Liu-erh;
Chang Sheng Wrathfully Kills Ch'en Ching-chi 370
CHAPTER 100
Han Ai-chieh Seeks Her Father and Mother in Hu-chou;
Ch'an Master P'u-ching Rescues Souls from Perdition 391
Notes 421
Bibliography 501
Index 525

Editorial Reviews

"Roy's complete translation makes it possible for English readers everywhere to read and appreciate this work, one of the great, sophisticated masterpieces of world literature."

Choice

One of Choice's Outstanding Academic Titles for 2014

One of The Wall Street Journal Bookshelf Best Books of 2013, chosen by Tash Aw

From the Publisher

Praise for the previous edition: Clearly David Roy is the greatest scholar-translator in the field of premodern vernacular Chinese fiction. . . . The puns and various other kinds of word plays that abound in the Chin P'ing Mei are so difficult to translate that I can't help 'slapping the table in amazement' each time I see evidence of Roy's masterful rendition of them. . . . I recommend this book, in the strongest possible terms, to anyone interested in the novel form in general, in Chinese literature in particular, or in the translation of Chinese literature.

Chinese Literature: Essays, Articles, Reviews - Shuhui Yang

Praise for the previous edition: Reading Roy's translation is a remarkable experience.

Chicago Tribune Review of Books - Robert Chatain

Praise for the previous edition: Roy's translation provides a window onto the fall of a far bleaker house than anything contrived by Dickens.

Translation and Literature - Andrew Radford

Praise for the previous edition: Roy has made a major contribution to our overall understanding of the novel by so structuring every page of his translation that the numerous levels of narration are clearly differentiated. . . . In addition, [he] has annotated the text with a precision, thoroughness, and passion for detail that makes even a veteran reader of monographs smile with a kind of quiet disbelief.

New York Review of Books - Jonathan Spence