Dream of the Red Chamber by Tsao Hsueh-Chin

Before this edition, only some of the chapters, couplets and poems were translated. 'Pao Yu', Waley continued, stands for 'imagination and poetry' and his father for 'all those sordid powers of pedantry and restriction which hamper the artist.'. Waley said that in the passages which recount dreams 'we feel most clearly the symbolic or universal value' of the characters. This English abridged translation by Wang Chi-Chen, which emphasizes the central love story, was published in 1929, with a preface by Arthur Waley. Long considered a masterpiece of Chinese literature, the 2500 page novel is generally acknowledged to be the pinnacle of Chinese fiction. It was written sometime in the middle of the 18th century during the Qing Dynasty. *** Composed by Cao Xueqin, DREAM OF THE RED CHAMBER is one of China's Four Great Classical Novels.

Text block upper tip abraded to a small degree. The front end paper has a small, nickel sized tear at the upper corner.

The dj, priced at $3.00, is chipped along its edges, soiled, with a sunned spine small loss at the tips and the spine's crown and tail. Bound in red cloth backed bamboo boards with red stamped figure of Chinese lady on the front board in black, red and green pictorial dust jacket. A Good+ copy in Good to Very Good dust jacket. And in the 'so few exceptions to the rule department' here's my query: Is Kim Jong-un, the only Asian who tests badly?.Ĭloth. Anthill, and habitually lead to treeing the wrong bobcat. The rule that '1st editions are always more valuable than reprints of them' has its exceptions, but the exceptions are so few, and the individual reasons for their exception vary, and vary so haphazardly, that all attempts to form guidelines turn into a long climb up Mt. Our 1st American edition is preceded in English by a quirky 1892-1893 Hong Kong edition, but quirky or not, that's the real 1st edition in English and thus it's worth more money. A novel written in, and set in, the 18th century (Qing dynasty) about conflicts undermining a sizable household, their rise and fall, contrasted alongside their loyalties to, and their plots against, one another, a microcosm that often mirrors the macrocosm of Qing Imperial politics, its ethics, customs, education, religion, economics, laws, culture, and intrigues, during the last period of China's feudal era. A laid-in clipping has offset at page 208 else very good in a price clipped dustjacket with chips, tears, and neat strengthening, but a good jacket, and yes it's flawed, but the old anvil laughs at many broken hammers, and it's the only one I've had (the cleanest shirt in the hamper) because this book has been hard to find in jacket since the ark docked. 1st American edition (in English) of the all-time best selling Chinese novel.

Dream of the Red Chamber by Tsao Hsueh-Chin