Quote:
Originally Posted by Puddingman
Dream of Red Chamber- Haven't read this yet actually but it's supposed to be a famous piece of Chinese Literature.
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The book is a masterpiece of Chinese literature. From my point of view, it is kind of unfair to group it with the other 3 classical Chinese novels (Romance of 3 kingdoms, Outlaws of the Marsh, and Journey to the west), since it far surpasses the others in all fields: sharp and well-rounded character building, intricacy in its story telling, excellency of its poems, etc.. The height that DoRC was able to achieve is
unprecedented in Chinese history, and it is unlikely to be surpassed ever again.
But it takes a real effort to appreciate such works. The novel is rather long (twice of that War and Peace, I was told), and like Romance of 3 kingdoms, it also has many many characters. The daily life of 18th century aristocratic life is not easily associated by a modern reader. Besides, the many fine points of the novel is lost in translation. But for a serious reader, there is hardly a better challenge, and once you have read it, the words will find their own ways to be carved fever in your mind. It will not be just another novel one has read, but a huge stone in the world that exists.