A Memoir of Misfortune
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | 4.51 (818 Votes) |
| Asin | : | 0375410392 |
| Format Type | : | paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 352 Pages |
| Publish Date | : | 2013-11-26 |
| Language | : | English |
DESCRIPTION:
"Helpful in understanding modern Chinese intellectual history" according to Zhenqin Li. The author of this book, Su Xiaokang, was a principle author of a six-part TV series in China in late 1980s, River Elegy, which "galvanized" the country due to its sweeping "indictment" of Chinese beliefs and values. The TV series won endorsement of then Communist Party Secretary, Zhao Ziyang. The ensuing intellectual debate was covered by prominent Chinese news media at tha. "the beauty of thought and self question" according to Brian Pressman. Ok, I must be honest, Zhu Hong (translator) was my Professor for my Chinese Womens Literature class and I might not have read this book otherwise. That being said, as individual and beautiful as the human mind, Memoir of Misfortune truly is a work of art. The book is written as an interior monologue by Su XiaoKang as he attempts to deal with the traumatic aftermath of a car
Su's reflections are a clear look at the way people without faith in God can find meaning in life through unimaginable tragedy and suffering. Misfortune in the form of a devastating 1993 car accident that left Fu Li paralyzed and brain injured is at the core of Su's story. The translation is awkward at times, but because it heightens many of the points Su makes about differences in Western and Chinese culture, that awkwardness works to strengthen the overall effect of this powerful story. Two years later, his wife, Fu Li, and son joined him in the United States. There are also some wonderfully pithy observations, particularly Su's discovery, when trying to buy a home, that "in the United States to clear your credit history is just as arduous as it is to remove a counterrevolutionary stigma in mainland China." Su makes regula
Having survived the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989, he now became the focus of a massive pursuit as one of the regime’s five most wanted “criminals,” and was smuggled out of China, leaving behind his wife, Fu Li, and their young son. When Su Xiaokang regained consciousness, he discovered that Fu Li was in a coma, from which she would eventually emerge unable to speak or to control her limbs.Suddenly, the national hero who had accepted his place at the center of a political revolution was a husband and a father who had to remake an emotional world for his wife and son. For a brief time, it seemed as if the worst was behind them. After two long years and great international pressure, the family was fin