The Translated Chinese Fiction Podcast

Every person's heart is an island, trapped by water, sequestered from the worldIn the forty fourth episode of The Translated Chinese Fiction Podcast we are going in search of Peach Blossom Paradise (人面桃花 - Rénmiàn Táohuā) by Ge Fei. Rowing me through the lingering mists and dark waters is craftmaster Canaan Morse, its translator.Ge Fei has been covered once before on this show. We did his Flock of Brown Birds in Episode 30. This time we are dealing with something less surreal. On the surface, it's a typical 'important Chinese novelist writes historical saga' affair. But beneath...-// NEWS ITEMS //There and Back Again: Tracking Down Transliterations in Stories of the Sahara - a blog from translator Mike FuPaper Republic's 2020 Roll Call of Published Translations from ChineseUnderstanding Chinese Fantasy Genres - a guide from translator Jeremy Bai AKA Deathblade-// WORD OF THE DAY //(徒 - Tú - in vain)-// MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE //the 100 Days' ReformThe Invisibility Cloak also by Ge FeiIn the Heat of the Sun (1994, dir. Jiang Wen)The Tradition of Telling and the Desire of Showing in Ge Fei’s ‘Fictional Minds’-// Handy TrChFic Links //Episode Transcripts // Help Support TrChFicINSTAGRAM 🌸 TWITTER 🌸 DISCORD

'Underneath the hole is another hole. Do you dare go down?'In the forty third episode of The Translated Chinese Fiction Podcast we are grappling with the experimental literature of Can Xue, as embodied in I Live in the Slums. Helping me train for the performance of a lifetime is Chinese-to-Bulgarian translator & friend of the pod, Stefan Rusinov.-// NEWS ITEMS //Yan Ge's White Horse shortlisted for the Warwick Women in Translation prizeLovecraftian stories from the Chinese internet: The Flock of Ba Hui- // WORD OF THE DAY //(审丑 - shěn chǒu - examining ugliness AND/OR the abject, if you like)-// MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE //Stefan's podcast (it's in Bulgarian!)High Culture Fever by Jing WangStubborn Dirty Snow - Can Xue at the Asian American Writers' WorkshopKafka and the struggles of an absurd existenceCan Xue interview - The Aesthetic Activity in Modern FictionThe Aesthetics of the Transposition of Reality, Dream, and Mirror: A Comparative Perspective on Can XueAmbiguous Subjectivity - Reading Can Xue-// Handy TrChFic Links //Episode Transcripts // Help Support TrChFicINSTAGRAM ⬛ TWITTER ⬛ DISCORD

In this discussion, translator Bruce Humes shares his insights on Chi Zijian's evocative work, The Last Quarter of the Moon. He highlights the cultural identity of the Evenki people, their traditional lifestyle, and the impact of modernity. Topics include the challenges of translating indigenous narratives, the significance of eco-feminism in literature, and the struggles of cultural representation faced by the Evenki in contemporary China and Russia. Bruce's passion for the intertwining of civilizations shines through as he navigates the rich tapestry of their heritage.

It is not often that one has the opportunity to observe the extinction of an entire civilisationIn the forty first episode of The Translated Chinese Fiction Podcast, we are venturing into Cat Country (猫城记 / Māo Chéng Jì), a science fiction oddity of the Republic of China. Helping me save the nation and stay off the damned reverie leaves is Molly Silk, a doctoral researcher of Chinese Space Policy.-// NEWS ITEMS //Little Smarty Travels to the Future comic now available in translationChinese Science Fiction Goes Global by Regina Kanyu WangCelestial Empire: The Emergence of Chinese Science Fiction by Nathaniel Isaacson-// WORD OF THE DAY //(迷叶 / Mí Yè / reverie leaves)-// MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE //The Wandering Earth: A Device for the Propagation of the Chinese Regime’s Desired Space Narratives? by Molly herselfThe Trial by Franz KafkaLao She in LondonI Am a Cat by Natsume SōsekiThe Cat Returns (2002, dir. Hiroyuki Morita)-// Handy TrChFic Links //Episode Transcripts // Help Support TrChFicINSTAGRAM 🐈 TWITTER 🐈 DISCORD 🐈

The ultimate fate of all intelligent beings has always been to become as grand as their thoughts.Episode 40 is no ordinary episode! This time TrChFic is crossing over with Couch Command and its esteemed host Keith Hayward to jump right down the Chinese sci-fi wormhole of Liu Cixin's haymaker-punch ending to his Three Body Problem trilogy, Death's End (死神永生 / Sǐshén Yǒngshēng). Hell yes.-// NEWS ITEMS //Feng Jicai event: Tales of Old Tianjin w/ XINRAN, Guanghwa Bookshop & Sinoist BooksWhat's Going Wrong With Translated Chinese Literature? by Dylan Levi KingOn UFOlogy with Chinese Characteristics and the Fate of Chinese Socialism-// WORD OF THE DAY //(警告 / Jǐnggào / warning)-// MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE //What Makes Chinese Science Fiction Chinese? by Xia JiaThe Roman and Chinese EmpiresThe London Chinese Scifi Group and their discussion of The Lighthouse Girl by BaoshuThe Cultural Revolution, Fanaticism and Rationality in The Three-Body Problem - a Master's thesis that gets into some of what Keith and I discuss-// Handy TrChFic Links //Episode Transcripts // Help Support TrChFicINSTAGRAM // TWITTER // DISCORD

executioner: ᴇᴜᴍᴇɴɪᴅᴇsIn the thirty ninth episode of The Translated Chinese Fiction Podcast, we are looking at Death Notice (死亡通知单 / Sǐwáng Tōngzhī Dān), a fast paced crime thriller with a mean streak. Joining me to inspect the corpses is its polymath translator, Zac Haluza. Expect to be surprised by just how much this work was adapted in translation.-// NEWS ITEMS //The Southern Tour PodcastStrange Beasts of China by Yan GeChina's Muslims and Japan's Empire-// WORD OF THE DAY //(時差 / shíchā / time difference)-// MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE //Zhou Haohui NYT articleExit West by Mohsin Hamidnumbing spice-// Handy TrChFic Links //Episode Transcripts // Help Support TrChFicINSTAGRAM // TWITTER // DISCORD

'O thou city that surpasseth our understanding! How impressive are they emptiness, and thy commonness, and thy bad taste!'In the thirty eighth episode of The Translated Chinese Fiction Podcast, we are looking at Hymn to Shanghai (上海之歌 / Shànghǎi Zhīgē), a piece by 'the little critic' himself, Lin Yutang. Joining me to pick apart Lin's biblical condemnation is the roguish raconteur and historian of Old Shanghai, Paul French. Expect to hear a lot about the virtues of liberal cosmopolitanism and the evils of Art Deco and gin liqueur. -// NEWS ITEMS //Yen Ooi's article in the SFRA review - Chinese Science Fiction: A Genre of AdversityThe Three Body Problem gets picked up by Netflixa cool book I only just learned exists: Reading Lu Xun Through Carl Jung- // WORD OF THE DAY //(黄包车 / huáng bāo chē / rickshaw) -// MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE //Little Tokyo in Old ShanghaiDo Bedbugs Exist in China? by Lin YutangLin Yutang's Chinese typewriterExtraterritoriality in ChinaMetropolis (dir. Fritz Lang, 1927)The XXth Century - the Nazi magazine that Eileen Chang got her start in-// Handy TrChFic Links //Episode Transcripts // Help Support TrChFicINSTAGRAM // TWITTER // DISCORD

'The scholar suddenly glimpsed a movement in the darkness. Something dived towards him like a swift bird. The shadowy outline of a person neared him, reaching out with a hand.'In the thirty seventh episode of The Translated Chinese Fiction Podcast, we are looking at The Woman in the Carriage (车中女子 / Chē Zhōng Nǚzǐ), a chuanqi story dating back to the Tang Dynasty. Our guest is its translator, Yilin Wang.The Woman in the Carriage is a short tale, but the more you look at it, the more you see. Moral lessons, subtle humour, inexplicable strangeness, the roots of modern wuxia...it's all there!A condensed transcript of the interview in this episode is available on Yilin's website.-// NEWS ITEMS //Shen Shixi's children's lit controversyNew guidelines for Chinese scifi films from the China Film AdministrationThe MCLC Modern Chinese Literature Video Lecture Series-// WORD OF THE DAY //(盗贼 / dào zéi / thief)- // MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE //Yilin's blog on Jin YongThe term chuanqiThe Man Who Sold a Ghost-// Handy TrChFic Links //Episode Transcripts // Help Support TrChFicINSTAGRAM // TWITTER // DISCORD

'I think there is no brother in this world as strange as you'In the thirty sixth episode of The Translated Chinese Fiction Podcast, we are looking at a video game(!) series called Gujian (古剑/ Gǔ Jiàn). Helping me level up and face my shadow self is Emily Jin, a highly active Chinese science fiction translator, and better yet: a hardcore Gujian fan!Gujian isn't a Western Tolkeinesque RPG, nor is it a JRPG Final Fantasy-style affair. It's made in China, set in China, and played (mostly) by Chinese gamers. You may not be shocked to learn that it's a Wuxia RPG, with a little Xianxia magic thrown in for good measure.-// NEWS ITEMS //a new interview with Murong XuecunLand Wars and Xi Jinping's father2021 Newman prize nominees announced-// WORD OF THE DAY //(剑 / Jiàn / a straight, double-edged Chinese sword)-// MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE //Paladin - Gujian's predecessorFable - Angus' beloved teenage RPGancient Yanling 鄢陵 - a 'flower city''the Shadow' in Jungian thoughtPhilip K Dick, other realities, and the hero's journeyBi Xie 辟邪 - the mythic animal Emily describedC语言修仙 - the Chinese hacker/xianxia webnovel Emily recommended-// Handy TrChFic Links //Episode Transcripts // Help Support TrChFicINSTAGRAM // TWITTER // DISCORD

...the lid of the stone coffin slowly shifted open, filling the chamber with a rancid stench of decay. Two blackened arms reached out from the interior...In the thirty fifth episode of The Translated Chinese Fiction Podcast, we are looking at Necropolis Immortal (仙墓 / Xiān Mù), written by Immortal Amidst Snow in July. Our guest is the novel's irrepressible translator, Etvolare.Necropolis Immortal blends two particularly Chinese genres: xianxia, and tomb raiding. It's not quite the tomb raiding one associates with Indiana Jones and Lara Croft, as Etvo explains in our interview.-// NEWS ITEMS //Nick Stember's essay on Sinophilia: Sinophiles between Flatland, Fetish, and FeuilletonGe Fei's Peach Blossom Paradise available for pre-orderTang Fei to be guest of next London Chinese Sci-fi Group meeting-// WORD OF THE DAY //(墓 / Mù / Tomb)-// MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE //The 'tomb raiding fiction' genre in ChinaChinese webnovels as a literary modeTaiji philosophy-// Handy TrChFic Links //Episode Transcripts // Help Support TrChFicINSTAGRAM // TWITTER // DISCORD