A Legendary Female Writer response

Eileen Chang (1920-1995)
Photo source: Wikimedia

Please respond to "Sealed Off" and "Love in a Fallen City" by Eileen Chang. Chang is among the leading female writers of modern China. Both her fictions and her legendary life story have been the focal point of numerous TV soap operas, films, and other popular cultural representations. Read with the following questions in mind and feel free to raise your own questions and address issues that interest you most.

1. For you as a reader, what are the memorable characters in the stories? Why do you think they are important?
2. How is love intricately connected with the wartime historical condition in the stories? What are the metaphorical “wars” been fought in these stories?
3. Do you like Chang’s writing style? Among the many writers we’ve read since the beginning of the semester, who might be comparable to Chang in terms of writing style?

Enjoy reading! I look forward to reading your responses on Wednesday April 2 by 8 pm. Comments to two other responses due by 10 pm.

Woman Soldier response

Please respond to XIE Bingying's piece “War” in A Woman Soldier’s Own Story with the following questions in mind:

1. Xie became known as a "woman soldier" because she was first and foremost a writer. Discuss the significance of writing in constructing gender politics in Xie's case.

2. Xie's writing was highly promoted by male editors and translators both inside China and internationally. Discuss the implication of promoting a "woman solider of China" to the international audience.

3. Discuss the romanticism of Xie's piece. How is it different from/similar to the romanticism in the May Fourth women writers such as Ding Ling's Miss Sophia's Diary?

Feel free to address these questions and/or raise your own question. Due Wednesday March 26 by 8 pm. Comments to two responses due by 10 pm.