CHINESE LITERATURE

Chinese literature began more than two thousand years ago, with The Book of Poetry
(Shijing) as its first anthology. This book, compiled sometime after 600 B.C. by
Confucius (551-479 B.C.), is a collection of 305 poems that date back to a period
between approximately 800 and 600 B.C. Among the rhetorical devices employed in
this first poem of The Book of Poetry is the use of metaphor - crying ospreys compared
to the lord and lady, for instance. Following The Book of Poetry, highlights of
traditional Chinese literature include:

• The Songs of the South (Chuci)

• The prose writings in history and philosophy of the Qin and Han dynasties
• Tang poetry
• The Song lyric
• The prose of the Tang and Song dynasties;
• The short stories, novels, and dramas from the Tang to the Qing dynasties.

The modern period of Chinese literature, which began in the 1910s, is even more
multifarious and voluminous. Running the risk of abstraction and oversimplification,
Chinese literature is characterized as the expression of both the heart and the mind,
as concerning the individual and society, as variously sublime and graceful, and as
blending reality and the imagination. Traditional Chinese literature developed under
the intellectual influences of Confucianism, Daoism (Taoism), and Buddhism.
Confucianism preaches benevolence, righteousness, individual effort, commitment to
society, and harmony among people.

Traditional Chinese literature came under the influence of Christianity in the Ming
dynasty (1368-1644), when Western missionaries made their way to China. As music
is related to poetry, traditional Chinese poetry was inevitably influenced by the music
of the non-Chinese ethnic groups who resided mostly on the Chinese borders.

In general, traditional Chinese literature, though mainly a product of Chinese

civilization, has absorbed, in its course of development, certain elements from cultures
other than the Chinese.

Chinese literature in the twentieth century made a dramatic turn to the West This
change affected not just literature but virtually all aspects of Chinese culture.

To be sure, twentieth-century Chinese literature has been receptive the literary works
of such Eastern countries as India and Japan, but the presence of the West is quite
overwhelming.
In Modern times, Chinese writers have remained prolific. Though the social impact of
literature may be as monumental as it was in the past, the Chinese literary tradition is
nevertheless prosperous. Notable names include

• Mo Yan, a fictionist who won the 2012 Nobel Prize for Literature.
• The novels of Yu Hua, Wang Shuo and Shi Tiesheng,
• the stories of Gao Xiaosheng, Wang Zenggi, and Zhang Chenzhi

As religion, war, and politics shaped Asian societies, literature prospered to mirror
these developments. As children of this continent, we need to appreciate the literary
outputs of our Asian neighbors.

Now, be ready to read one of Arthur Waley's works. Arthur Waley was a 20th century
scholar who translated numerous Chinese and Japanese classics.

• Battle – Arthur Waley

• On the threshing floor, I chase chickens away – Yu Xiuhua

SINGAPOREAN LITERATURE

The literature of Singapore comprises a collection of literary works by Singaporeans in

any of the country's four main languages: English, Chinese, Malay and Tamil. A number
of Singaporean writers such as Tan Swie Hian and Kuo Pao Kun have contributed work
in more than one language.

There were varying levels of activity in succeeding decades, with poets in the late
1980s and early 1990s including:

• Simon Tay • Heng Siok Tian

• Leong Liew Geok. • Ho Poh Fun
• Koh Buck Song.

In the late 1990s poetry in English in Singapore found a new momentum with a whole
new generation of poets born around or after 1965 now actively writing and
publishing, not only in Singapore but also internationally. The poetry of this younger
generation is often politically aware, transnational and cosmopolitan, yet frequently
presents their intensely focused, self-questioning and highly individualised
perspectives of Singaporean life, society and culture. Some poets have been labelled
Confessional for their personalised writing, often dealing with intimate issues such as
sexuality

With the independence of Singapore in 1965, a new wave of Singapore writing

emerged, led by
 • Edwin Thumboo.
• Arthur Yap.
• Robert Yeo.
• Goh Poh Seng.
• Lee Tzu Pheng.
• Chandran Nair.

Poetry is the predominant mode of expression; it has a small but respectable following
since independence, and most published works of Singapore writing in English have
been in poetry.

Drama in English found expression in Goh Poh Seng, who was also a notable poet and
novelist, in Robert Yeo, author of 6 plays, and in Kuo Pao Kun, who also wrote in
Chinese. The late Kuo was a vital force in the local threatre rrenaissance in the 1980s
and 1990s.

Fiction writing in English did not start in earnest until after independence. Short stories
flourished as a literary form, the novel arrived much later. Goh Poh Seng remains a
pioneer in writing novels well before many of the later generation, with titles like If
We Dream Too Long (1972) - widely recognised as the first true Singaporean novel -
and A Dance of Moths (1995).

JAPANESE LITERATURE

Japanese literature has been influenced heavily by the Chinese literature from the
ancient period all the way to the Edo Period (1603-1868) which corresponds to the
early modern Japanese literature. Japanese literary works also reveal elements of
Indian and later of Western elements but above all, they reveal a distinct style which
has also greatly influenced both Eastern and Western literatures.

Japanese literature can be divided into four periods: the ancient, classical, medieval,
and modern.

Ancient literature in Japan deals primarily with myths and legends. Tales like the
creation of Japan, wherein the islands came from the gemstones imbued in the swords
of gods are very prominent during this period. The celebrated writers during this
period are Ono Yasumaro, Nihon Shoki, and Man’yoshu who wrote based on real
events in the country.

The classical literature in Japan occurred during the golden age, the Heian period.
During this period, Murasaki Shikibu, one of the greatest Japanese writers, wrote the
seminal text, Tale of Genji. Tale of Genji, considered the world’s first novel, is a very
charming and accurate depiction of the Japanese court during the Heian period under
the reign of Empress Akiko.

History and literature were intertwined during the Medieval period due to the
influence of the civil wars and the emergence of the warrior class. Thus, war tales are
very prominent during this period. Besides war stories and tales, the popular form of
Japanese poetry, the renga, saw its rise.

Modern literature can be further divided into early modern, which happened during
the Edo period, and modern, which started during the Meiji period, when Japan
opened its doors to the West. The early modern gave way to the rise of new genres
like the Japanese drama, kabuki, the poetry form known for its simplicity and subtlety,
haiku, and the yomihon, a type of Japanese book which put little emphasis on
illustration.

The modern period also marked the emergence of new styles of writing. Japanese
writers started to romanticize and tried experimenting with different genres and
subject matters. The Second World War heavily affected Japanese literature but soon,
the distinct Japanese style of writing manage to regain its popularity. Some of the
prominent modern Japanese writers are Yasunari Kawabata, Kobi Abe, Takiji
Kobayashi, and Haruki Murakami to mention a few.

AFRICAN LITERATURE

The development of African literature, from its oral tradition up to the current trends,
reflects the history of its people, the continent’s feelings and the minds of its
population.

Having been denied sharing their unique culture to the rest of the world, African
literature takes pride in their identity as a people along with their rich heritage. The
Dark Continent enjoys a vast collection of masterpieces, both in oral and written
literature, which are highly diverse and at the same time common.

The writings on Africa started in the middle ages when Arabic was introduced to them
and then it moved forward in the 1800s with the coming of the alphabet. With the
birth of the Negritude (which literally means ‘blackness’) movement in 1934, African
writers committed to look into their own culture, traditions, and values that can be
applied in the modern world. The drive of writers to write and excite political freedom
grew and the dignity of African traditions has been asserted. The Negritude movement
opened the avenue for writers to celebrate what is truly African.
Though African writers like Chinua Achebe, Wole Soyinka, Kofi Awoonor, Ngugi wa
Thiong’o, Okot p’Bitek, Dennis Crutus, Es’kia Mphahlele, Nadine Gordimer, and
Jacques Rabemananjara wrote in European language, they nevertheless embodied the
spirit of nationalism. So strong and effective were their works that they gained
worldwide acclaim.

In the aftermath of the colonial experience, African writers have since chronicled new
challenges that have emerged in their respective societies. New, sovereign
governments may have been installed, but their own problems caused writers to react.
This was evident in the case of Ngugi wa Thiong’o, who was imprisoned for a play
considered to have subversive messages against the Kenyan administration of the
time. Corruption in society, a longstanding theme of African writers in postcolonial
times, was reflected in V.Y. Mudimbe’s Before the Birth of the Moon (1989).

Even before the colonizers arrived in Africa and indelibly shaped the continent’s
identity, local traditions were already flourishing in terms of cultural wealth. The
following selections, both belonging to the myth genre, attest to the power of the
motherland’s literary tradition that had its roots in ancient times.

EUROPEAN LITERATURE

The history and catalogue of the European literature is so rich that it is quite close to
impossible to describe it and give justice to its entire list of great works and even
greater writers in an introduction. European literature refers to the literature in many
languages; among the most important of the modern written works are those in
English, Spanish, French, Dutch, Polish, German, Italian, Modern Greek, Czech,
Russian, Bosnian and works by the Scandinavians and Irish. Important classical and
medieval traditions are those in Latin, Ancient Greek, Old Norse, Medieval French and
the Italian Tuscan dialect of the renaissance are also part of its collection.

The Medieval Period (500-1500) of European literature already saw masterful works
like Beowulf, The Song of Roland, The Nibelungenlied, and seminal work of Geoffrey
Chaucer, The Canterbury Tales. The mentioned works of art was followed by even
more popular titles, because during the Renaissance Period, writers like Edmun
Spencer (The Faerie Queen), John Milton (Paradise Lost), and William Shakespeare
(Romeo and Juliet ;Macbeth) took the level of its literary standard into a whole new
high.

Age of Enlightenment (1700-1800) and at its center was a celebration of ideas – ideas
about what the human mind was capable of, and what could be achieved through
deliberate action and scientific methodology. Many of the new, enlightened ideas
were political in nature. Writers like Voltaire and Jean-Jacques Rousseau were the
torchbearers of Enlightenment literature and philosophy.

No other period in English literature displays more variety in style, theme, and content
than the Romantic Movement (1798-1870) of the 18th and 19th centuries.
Romanticism is concerned with the masses and not with the middle class, the
individual more than with society. With writers like Mary Shelley and her masterpiece,
Frankenstein and Lord Byron’s Don Juan, the focus of literature shifted from the
scientific to the mysterious.

Then came the Victorian Period. The name given to the period is borrowed from the
royal matriarch of England, Queen Victoria. The Victorian writers exhibited some well-
established habits from previous eras, while at the same time pushing arts and letters
in new and interesting directions. Victorian novelists and poets like Charlotte and Emily
Bronte, Lord Tennyson, Robert Browning, Gustave Flaubert, George Eliot, Fyodor
Dosteyevsky, and Thomas Hardy wrote with simplicity, truth and tempered emotion.

Realism (1820-1920), the next period in European literature, is precisely what it sounds
like. It is attention to detail, and an effort to replicate the true nature of reality in a
way that novelists had never attempted. Famous writers during this period were Franz
Kafka, William Butler Yeats, T.S. Eliot, and Vicente Biasco Ibanez, among others.

Naturalism (1870-1920) sought to go further and be more explanatory than Realism

by identifying the underlying causes for a person’s actions or beliefs. In Naturalism,
the environment played a large part in the narrative structure. Emile Zola, one of the
most influential writers in this period of literature, provided inspiration and model in
writing during this period.

Crime and punishment is a profound example of how some of the principles of

existentialist (1850-today), the next literary period. Doytoyevsky’s story shows that
thinking can be perverted, leading to ethical decay and personal destruction. Another
writer, Franz Kafka, has also been associated with 20th century existentialism. But the
name most related to existential literature is Albert Camus.

The Modernist Period (1910-1965) in literature presented a new way of living and
seeing the world. Writers are now free to try new concepts in writing like the use of
the unreliable narrator, among others. Modernism was set in motion, in one sense,
through a series of cultural shocks where the poets took fullest advantage of the new
spirit of the times, and stretched the possibilities of their craft to lengths not previously
imagined.
All these period in literature influenced and led to what is now seen in the works of
21st century European writers.

King Arthur is a key figure in all of European literature. The legendary king and the
episodes of his life have been echoed in literary texts for several centuries. The
following selection presents the pivotal movement in which a precocious young man
began his transformation into ruler of England.