Introduction to Postwar Taiwan Fiction Unit 14 Voices from the Margin: Stories by Li Yongping and...

Introduction to Postwar Taiwan Fiction Unit 14

Voices from the Margin:Stories by Li Yongping and Topas Tamapima

Lecturer:

Richard Rong-bin Chen,

PhD of Comparative Literature.

Unless noted, the course materials are licensed under Creative Commons Unless noted, the course materials are licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Taiwan (CC BY-NC-SA 3.0) (CC BY-NC-SA 3.0) 1

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/tw/deed.en

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/tw/

Li Yongping (1947~)

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• In 1947, he was born in Sarawak, one of the two Malaysian states in Northern Borneo.

• After graduated from high school, in 1967, Li went to Taiwan to study in the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures, NTU, and graduated in 1971.

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• After working in NTU for several years as a teaching assistant, in 1976, Li went to the States to study Comparative Literature in University at Albany, SUNY for a MA degree.

• In 1978, he relocated to St. Louis for his PhD degree in Washington University.

Sarawak and Sabah

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Wikipedia Fvasconcellos

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en

A Devoted Writer

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• After returning to Taiwan in 1982, Li started to teach at National Sun Yat-sen University, Kaohsiung. In order to focus on writing, he quit in 1987.

• Five years later, he started to teach in Department of English, Soochow University.

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• In 2000, he found a teaching job in Department of English, National Donghua University, where he has been teaching since then.

• He started to attract the attention of Taiwan’s literary circle in the early 70s with his “A La-tzu Woman” [〈拉子婦〉 ] (1972). He is also one of the first “Malaysian Chinese Writers” [Mahua Writers or 馬華作家 ] ever to win a literary award in Taiwan.

• In 1979, with his “Sun Showers” [〈日頭雨〉 ], he won the Fourth Annual United Daily News Award for Fiction [第四屆聯合報小說獎 ].

• It took him seven more years to complete his first book-length novel Retribution: The Jiling Chronicles [《吉陵春秋》 ], which includes twelve independent and related stories and “Sun Showers” is the second chapter of Book One.

• Retribution: The Jiling Chronicles, the English version of 《吉陵春秋》 , was published in 2003 by Columbia University Press.

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About “Sun Showers” (1979)

• According to the writer himself, the title of the book is quite meaningful. In an article written to explain the novel, he made it clear that, with it, he tried to bring people’s attention to the thin line between “humanity” and “monstrosity,” and what aftermath would occur if morals were not followed.

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• He went on to argue that “Jiling is a symbol [象徵 ], and Chronicles is a fable [寓言 ].” Therefore, it makes no sense trying to identify the location of the township, be it in China or Southeastern Asia. The township is abstract and universal: it is an epitome of any human community.

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About the Title

• Why did Li Yongping use the name Chunqiu [春秋 ]?

• What does Chunqiu mean in Chinese culture? (Please note that Li always uses his fiction to engage in the discussion of Chinese culture.)

• Literally, Spring and Autumn.

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About the Title• Basically a historical period. (771-476

BC.)

• A historical documentation compiled by Confucius, who made a lot of comments on the warlords and disloyal ministers in the period.

• So, basically, Chunqiu is a historical genre which makes commentaries on immoral characters.

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The Literary Technique of Contrast

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• Also, according to David Der-wei Wang, a famous oversea scholar from Taiwan, one of the most significant techniques used in the novel is contrast.

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• The novel is filled with the contrasts between “crime and punishment,” “God and Demon,” “Past and Present,” and “Body and Soul.” Various ironies are also present in the work.

• For example, if the “All Blessings Lane” [萬福巷 ] is really blessed, how could Changsheng’s tragedy happen?

• Who is the real demon? Liu Laoshi or Sun the Fourth?

The Main Plot of the Story

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• In the first paragraph, a piece of news is told by Xiao Yue’s mother: “Liu Laoshi is back in town” (p. 34).

• Who is Liu Laoshi?

• Flashback: the plotline of Liu Laoshi and his wife Changsheng.

• Present time action: the plotline of what will happen to Xiao Yue.

Source: Li Yung-p'ing. (2003). Retribution : the Jiling Chronicles New York : Columbia University Press

http://get.nccu.edu.tw:8080/getcdb/handle/getcdb/127023

Who is the demon?

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“If you have anything more to do with that demon, I’ll smash my head against this door and die right before your eyes!” (p. 34)



The First Mention of the Event “Running after that hoodlum Sun the Fourth all day long, calling him brother, even adopted father, and tagging along wherever he goes, whoring and gambling. The night of the Guanyin procession in Great Blessings Lane he was with Sun the Fourth carrying out his evil deeds. And now Liu Laoshi’s back, so let that demon settle account.”(p.37)

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The Perspective of Xiao Yue’s Mother—1

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• The Traditional Chinese Concept of Justice

• “It’s about time. Heaven should open its eyes instead of letting a whole town die of heatstroke.” (p. 36)

• “Heaven has eyes.” [老天有眼 ]

• The Buddhist concept of “Karma” and the Jewish concept of “an eye for an eye,” both about “retributive justice.”

• In the end, does Heaven open its eyes?



The Perspective of Xiao Yue’s Mother—2 Are the bystanders sinful and guilty?

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Xiao Yue’s mother picked up her millstone and went back inside, where she dried her hands before lighting three joss sticks and placing them before the altar. “Lots of men from town went to Great Blessings Lane that evening to watch the procession . But when Sun the Fourth did his evil deed, not a single one of them raised a finger to stop him. They turned into a flock of gaping geese and just stood there gawking. If they’re not punished by heaven, I don’t know who will be!” (p.37) Source: Li Yung-p'ing. (2003).

Retribution : the Jiling Chronicles New York : Columbia University Press


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Xio Shun returned home a while ago and said that a stranger came to town at noon. His dark face is covered with a full beard, and he looks like a wild man from the mountains. When he came into town he went straight to the chinaberry tree in front of the county granary and sat down with his bundle. He hasn’t moved all afternoon. (p.39)

The Function of Xiao Shun’s Wife:The Resource of Information



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As soon as they heard that the demon, Liu Laoshi, was back in town, some of the men who had a guilty conscience rushed home and hid out, afraid of their own shadows. But then they got restless sitting around doing nothing, so they all crowded into the woman Zhu’s teahouse across the street from the granary. Xiao Shun says you shouldn’t go out for the next couple of days, because – who knows? – that cleaver might be hidden in the sack.” (p.39)

The Function of Xiao Shun’s Wife



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That evening, Liu Laoshi had gone crazy. Cleaver in hand, he ran out of Great Blessings Lane in search of his mortal enemy. Xiao Yue hid in the thatched privy behind the Zhu woman’s teahouse opposite the county granary. Peering over the wall, he watched the demon burst silently into the kitchen of the Sun family silk shop next door, grab Sun the Fourth’s wife and, without a word, slice off her nipples. (p.41)

The Truth Unfolds: Xiao Yue’s flashbackThe bitch killed by Xiao Yue vs. Sun’s wife killed by Liu



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The woman Zhu quickly closed up shop, dragged Xiao Yue out of the privy, shoved him inside, and made him stand behind the door to watch through the cracks. The street seethed with people. A crowed of idlers gathered in front of Sun the Fourth’s house. With nothing better to do after dinner, they crowded round, mouths agape in disbelief, and watched Liu Laoshi spring out of the house holding a bloody cleaver. Without a word, he ran down South Market Street, and they all fell in behind him, pushing and shoving, as if afraid to lose sight of the demon. (p.41)



More Flashbacks:

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• Like other women in town, Changsheng went to Great Blessings Lane to worship Guanyin on June 19th. (p. 44-45)

• Changsheng was raped by Sun the Fourth in Fragrant Court, the brothel. (p. 48)





The Teahouse Scene: The Customers

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One of the teahouse customers stood in the doorway, holding a porcelain teacup he’d brought from home, and peered outside for a long while before blurting out, “Vengeance will fall on evildoer, debts will fall on the debtor. That cleaver of Liu Laoshi’s will not fall on an innocent body!”(p.51)



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The other man shock his head. “The day Liu Laoshi went crazy, the twenty-second day of the sixth month, and took to the street killing people, those of us watching the goings-on wanted to see every one of those toughs chopped down. Who’d have imagined that the two women-the whore Red Spring and Sun the Fourth’s wife –would lose their lives instead?” (p.51) Source: Li Yung-p'ing. (2003).

Retribution : the Jiling Chronicles New York : Columbia University Press


The Main Message of the Story

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• “The Bodhisattva has eyes!” (p. 38 and 49)

• The heat wave and month-long draught can be considered as a form of “retribution.”

• The suspensive atmosphere of retribution.

• People driven crazy.

• The implication of the sun shower.

• Can it wash away the sin of the town?



Topas Tamapima (1960~)

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• Born in a Christian family in Nantou County, Central Taiwan in 1960.

• His Chinese name is Tien Ya-ko [田雅各 ]. (Ya-ko means Jacob in Chinese.)

• Graduated from Kaohsiung Medical College (now Kaohsiung Medical University) in 1985.

• He applied for a job in Orchid Island [蘭嶼 ], so started his medical career in a Public Health Center there in 1987.

• He is now a doctor in a Public Health Center in Taitung County.

“The Last Hunter” (1985)What does the title mean?

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• The implication of hunting?

• What it means to be a hunter?

• The question of “What am I?”

• The question of “Who am I?”

• What it means to be “the last hunter”?

• What does the author try to say to the government?

• The lineage of a hunters’ family might end up on Biyari.

• In the near future, the forest would be eradicated by the government, many of the animals become extinct.

• The last sentence of the story, which is uttered by the policeman: “Hey, Old Boy. Take it easy and turn over a new leaf. Don’t call yourself a hunter . . . ” (p. 20)

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Source: Topas Tamapima. (2005). John and Yingtsih Balcom (Eds.), Indigenous writers of Taiwan : an Anthology of stories, essays, & poems New York : Columbia University Press


Luka warned Biyari of the possibility of a fruitless hunting trip,

but Biyari remained optimistic:

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“Your curses are of no use, they don’t scare me. Ever since I was small I followed my father and his hunting gun all over. Never once was his bag empty. Wild animals don’t have their tubes tied on account of family planning, so you don’t have to curse me. Let me take a look at your squirrel.”(p.11)



Domesticity vs. Mountains

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At home, Biyari felt suffocated and discouraged.

BIYARI SQUATTED IN the woodshed at dusk chopping firewood. His dull eyes were those of an old man. He no longer chopped the wood as cleanly as he did in the past; the wood looked more like a piece of raw pork gnawed by a rat. Sometimes his chopping ax would stray and strike the ground. He became increasingly more irritated. Finally he stopped chopping and squatted there holding the ax in both hands with a vacant look on his face. (p. 3)

Even Yifan, his dog, lay dozing lazily beside him. Source: Topas Tamapima. (2005). John and Yingtsih Balcom (Eds.), Indigenous writers of Taiwan : an Anthology of stories, essays, & poems New York : Columbia University Press


Biyari Refused to Play by the Han Chinese People’s Rules

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“Biyari, who are you thinking about? Are you deaf? If you had listened to me and gone down to the flatlands to work as a temporary packer and bought some sweaters, then you wouldn’t have to chop wood to fend off the cold. Hurry up and toss me a couple pieces of wood.” (p.3) Source: Topas Tamapima. (2005). John and Yingtsih Balcom (Eds.),

Indigenous writers of Taiwan : an Anthology of stories, essays, & poems New York : Columbia University Press


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• From Biyari’s perspective, hunting is a way to fight against Han Chinese people’s economic domination, not just a job.

• During Pasula’s pregnancy, Biyari found a temporary job of a packer.

• But he was fired, so he decided not to disobey his father’s idea again: he was destined to be either a farmer or a hunter. (p. 6) Source: Topas Tamapima. (2005). John and Yingtsih Balcom (Eds.),



Biyari’s Dream before Departure

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“Pasula, you’re already up. I’m going up the mountain today. Last night I had a dream, and hunter’s dreams always come true. It was just like the bahyu omens my father believed in. Will you get rice and salt ready for me? I’ll probably spend two nights in the forest.” Biyari stood behind Yifan and spoke to Pasula, who was about to faint from fear.

“Forget it. Don’t bring up your dreams. Your ancestors never send you a dream about having kids.” (p.5) Source: Topas Tamapima. (2005). John and Yingtsih Balcom (Eds.),



Hunting and Superstition

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“Stop it, Yifan. Shooting a red turtledove is bad luck for a hunter. We have to cross this peak by noon if we are going to get to the cave before nightfall.” (p. 8)

• Biyari slipped on some wet green moss, and almost fell. If he had fallen, he would have called off the hunting, because it’s a hunters’ taboo. (p. 8)

• Instead of being just economic, hunting is closely related to Biyari’s belief system.





At the Store Run by the Hakka Couple

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• Biyari is not the same as some other aboriginal people.

OK. Why don’t you buy some Gaoliang wine, I’ve got some Quemoy Gaoliang. I like it myself- rice wine is too plain.”

“Not for me. This strong stuff is for those who are dying. Keep it and sell it to those sad people to wash away their suffering. I just want plain old rice wine. Here’s thirty yuan.” Biyari felt around in his pockets. Fortunately he had the thirty yuan. (p. 6) Source: Topas Tamapima. (2005). John and Yingtsih Balcom (Eds.),



The Conflict between Law and Aboriginal Culture.

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• After arriving at the height of three thousand meters, Biyari found a police checkpoint.

The checkpoint had been set up to catch people illegally removing timber. After hunting was banned, the checkpoint was no longer a rest stop for hunters. Biyari pulled off to the side of the road; two other motorcycles were already parked there.(p.9)



The Forestry BureauEnvironmental Issues

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He entered a hunting trail and scanned the bamboo grove, the underbrush, and the black bark of the pine trees that looked more like telephone poles. Ten years before a huge forest fire had decimated tree trunks indicated that a forest once stood there. The older hunters told the young ones that after the Forestry Bureau had cut the expensive timber a fire had been set and the area later replanted.

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Hunting is a way to coexist with nature.

The young hunters couldn’t believe that the Forestry Bureau could be so foolish, but they were certain it hadn’t been the hunters who had caused the fire. They knew life in the forest accounted for half the life on earth, most of which was closely bound up with the hunters. Biyari knew that his father would never have done such a stupid thing. (p. 9) Source: Topas Tamapima. (2005). John and Yingtsih Balcom (Eds.),



Forest Personified

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In the following passage, Biyari even made a comparison which relates women to the forest, which has the qualities of quietness and solemnity, and “the beauty of the forest is harmonious and green, just like the Garden of Eden . . . ” (p. 9).

Hungry, he lost control and swore, “Bastards, my God. Come out of your holes; don’t hide. The forest is shamed by a hunter starving to death.”(p.12)





The Coming Extinction of the Forest

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He hadn’t sighted a living animal all day and blamed the scarcity on the shrinking forest filled with the sound of people and vehicles; there wouldn’t be a trace of any animals and hunters would disappear. The forest had been his refuge, his consolation. Biyari felt lonely and uneasy about the future of the forest. Well-off government employees should be brought to the forest to probe its secrets. Perhaps they were afraid of its mysteries the way a boss fears his employees. (p.15-16)



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They should come and listen to the birds and beasts and the wind and falling leaves; they should go to the valley to see the magnificent cliffs; they should take off their shoes and put their feet in the water and watch the fish swimming in unpolluted water, unafraid of people. They would unravel the enigma of the forest and, like sinners condemned to hell, they would regret their previous lack of understanding in seeing the forest as nothing but a source of timber. (p.16)



Image of the Policeman

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The policeman was about sixty years old. His white hair grew over his ears. He had small mean eyes, though the left one looked handsome. His eyebrows were fine and short and he had a surprisingly round nose. When the policeman breathed, he looked like a wild boar in search of something to eat. Biyari found this very amusing.(p.18)



Biyari Insulted by the Policeman

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“Hey, savage, what are you looking at? What are you up to? Are you a hunter or an arsonist?”(p.18)



The Oppressive Law

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“Hey, you mountain people are cruel by nature. The government takes care of you people so that you don’t have a care. But you people are lazy and dirty and break the law. Don’t you know what the law is? It would be better to lock all you hunters up to teach you a lesson”(p.19)



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• Biyari gave up in the end and turned in the muntjac he had hunted, because he wanted to go home as soon as possible before Pasula left him.

• But he remained a hunter in his heart, and he would definitely return to his hunting ground in the mountains.

The Main Message of the Story

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• Pasula

• Luka

• The policeman

• Han Chinese people’s political and economic domination

• The aboriginal people’s belief

• Their concept of nature

• The implications of Hunting

Copyright DeclarationPage Work Licensing Author/Source

4Wikipedia Fvasconcelloshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Sarawak_state_locator.svg2012/06/06 visited

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In the first paragraph, a piece of news is told by Xiao Yue’s mother: “Liu Laoshi is back in town”

Li Yung-p'ing. (2003). Sun Showers. Searching for the Lost Wings of the Angel. Retribution : the Jiling Chronicles. (p.34) New York : Columbia University Press. It is used subject to the fair use doctrine of:•Article 52 & 65 of Taiwan Copyright Act.

15If you have anything more …and die right before your eyes!”


16“Running after that hoodlum …let that demon settle account.”


17“It’s about time. Heaven …whole town die of heatstroke.”


18 Xiao Yue’s mother picked …I don’t know who will be!”


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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Sarawak_state_locator.svg






http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en


19

Xio Shun returned home a while ago …bundle. He hasn’t moved all afternoon.


20As soon as they heard that the …cleaver might be hidden in the sack.”


21

That evening, Liu Laoshi had …without a word, slice off her nipples.


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The woman Zhu quickly closed up shop, …if afraid to lose sight of the demon.


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Like other women in town, Changsheng went …to worship Guanyin on June 19th.

Li Yung-p'ing. (2003). Sun Showers. Searching for the Lost Wings of the Angel. Retribution : the Jiling Chronicles. (p.44-45) New York : Columbia University Press. It is used subject to the fair use doctrine of:•Article 52 & 65 of Taiwan Copyright Act.

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Changsheng was raped by Sun the Fourth in Fragrant Court, the brothel.


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One of the teahouse customers …Laoshi’s will not fall on an innocent body!”


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The other man shock his head. …Fourth’s wife –would lose their lives instead?”


26The Bodhisattva has eyes!

Li Yung-p'ing. (2003). Sun Showers. Searching for the Lost Wings of the Angel. Retribution : the Jiling Chronicles. (pp.38,49) New York : Columbia University Press. It is used subject to the fair use doctrine of:•Article 52 & 65 of Taiwan Copyright Act.

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Hey, Old Boy. Take it easy and turn over a new leaf. Don’t call yourself a hunter . . .

Topas Tamapima. (2005). The Last Hunter. John and Yingtsih Balcom (Eds.), Indigenous writers of Taiwan : an Anthology of stories, essays, & poems (p.20) New York : Columbia University Press. It is used subject to the fair use doctrine of:•Article 52 & 65 of Taiwan Copyright Act.

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“Your curses are of no use, they don’t …Let me take a look at your squirrel.”

Topas Tamapima. (2005). The Last Hunter. John and Yingtsih Balcom (Eds.), Indigenous writers of Taiwan : an Anthology of stories, essays, & poems (p.11) New York : Columbia University Press.It is used subject to the fair use doctrine of:•Article 52 & 65 of Taiwan Copyright Act.

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BIYARI SQUATTED IN the woodshed …with a vacant look on his face.


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Page Work Licensing Author/Source

32 “Biyari, who are you thinking …toss me a couple pieces of wood.”


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But he was fired, so he decided not to disobey his father’s …either a farmer or a hunter.


34

“Pasula, you’re already up. I’m …send you a dream about having kids.”


35“Stop it, Yifan. Shooting a red …get to the cave before nightfall.”


35Biyari slipped on some wet green …because it’s a hunters’ taboo.


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OK. Why don’t you buy some …pockets. Fortunately he had the thirty yuan.


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Page Work Licensing Author/Source

37The checkpoint had been set …motorcycles were already parked there


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The young hunters couldn’t …would never have done such a stupid thing.


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In the following passage, Biyari …and green, just like the Garden of Eden . . . ”


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Hungry, he lost control and swore, …by a hunter starving to death.”


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He hadn’t sighted a living animal all day and blamed …a boss fears his employees.

Topas Tamapima. (2005). The Last Hunter. John and Yingtsih Balcom (Eds.), Indigenous writers of Taiwan : an Anthology of stories, essays, & poems (pp.15-16) New York : Columbia University Press.It is used subject to the fair use doctrine of:•Article 52 & 65 of Taiwan Copyright Act.

42They should come and listen to the …nothing but a source of timber.


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The policeman was about sixty years old. …to eat. Biyari found this very amusing.


44

“Hey, savage, what are you looking at? What are you up to? Are you a hunter or an arsonist?”


45Hey, you mountain people …all you hunters up to teach you a lesson


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Introduction to Postwar Taiwan Fiction Unit 14 Voices from the Margin: Stories by Li Yongping and...

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Transcript of Introduction to Postwar Taiwan Fiction Unit 14 Voices from the Margin: Stories by Li Yongping and...