The Last Word
The Role of Literature and the Arts in Contemporary Chinese Culture
Friday, Nov. 18, 6:30 p.m., Presentation Pavilion (N.E 3rd Street and 1st Avenue)
China has one of civilization’s oldest literary traditions. Even today, the role of the public intellectual in China remains primarily the domain of the author. How has the political and cultural climate in China changed and shaped this tradition? How does the role of the artist, and, in particular, the author, in China compare with those roles in the United States? What is the cultural climate for the arts in China? What are some of the opportunities and challenges faced by Chinese artists?
Join a timely panel discussion, comprised of many of China’s most successful, knowledgeable, and, in some cases, controversial authors and educators, as they present a fascinating image of contemporary China: Jiang Bing, the Secretary General of the China Novels Society; Yan Lianke, the author of eight novels, ten novellas, and five volumes of essays, some of which have been banned in China; Jing Yi, the principal of the Huaxia School of Traditional Culture; Zhu Wen, one of the most influential writers and film directors in contemporary China; and Yu Hua, the first Chinese writer to win the James Joyce Foundation Award. The panel will be moderated by Da Chen, a leading Chinese-American memoirist, literary novelist, and young-adult author, whose writing has been translated into 14 languages. Chen’s next novel, My Last Empress, will be published in 2012. (Simultaneous interpretation available)
Author(s) and Guest(s)
Jing Yi
Jing Yi is the principal of the Juaxia School of Traditional Culture. She has devoted herself to the promulgation of traditional Chinese culture through education. Quing is a member of the Foundation for Preserving Chinese Traditional Culture, a guest professor of Sinology at Tsinghua University, and the deputy president and secretary-general of the Xuzhou Confucius Institute. Yi is the author of several books, including The Wisdom of The Great Learning and Simple Explanation to Heart Sutra.
Bing Jiang
Jiang Bing, the author of six books, holds several prestigious positions in China, including secretary general of China Novels Society, member of China Writers’ Association, and standing director of the China Contemporary Literature Research Society. He also serves as a judge of China's annual Top List of Novels.
Yan Lianke
Yan Lianke is the author of eight novels, ten novellas, and five volumes of essays. The satirical nature of much of Lianke's writing has caused some of his work to be banned in his native China. He is the recipient of more than twenty national and international awards, and his writing has been translated into more than a dozen languages.
Zhu Wen
Zhu Wen has published six collections of novellas and short stories, two collections of poetry and one novel. He first gained fame with his 1995 short story collection, I Love Dollars. Zhu Wen is also an accomplished screenwriter and director: his directorial debut won the Grand Jury Prize at the 2001 Venice Film Festival, and his second film was awarded the NETPAC Prize at the 2004 Berlin Film Festival.
Yu Hua
Framed by ten phrases common in the Chinese vernacular, China in Ten Words (Pantheon, $25.95), written by Yu Hua and translated by Allan H. Barr, gives insight as never before to the world’s most populous yet misunderstood nation. Hua is the author of four novels, six collections of stories, and three essay collections. In 2002, he became the first Chinese writer to win the James Joyce Foundation Award.
Da Chen
Da Chen is a leading Chinese-American memoirist and literary novelist. He is the author of much-heralded, best-selling memoirs, Colors of the Mountain and Sounds of the River. His books are used as textbooks in Yale, Vassar, Wellesley, in the New York State University system, and in high schools and middle schools throughout the country. His newest novel, My Last Empress, will be published next year.
Hong Ying
Hong Lin has established herself as one of China's top novelists. Best known in English for the novels K: the Art of Love, Summer of Betrayal, Peacock Cries, and her autobiography Daughter of the River, Hong Ying has been published in twenty- nine languages and has appeared on the bestseller lists of numerous countries.
Schedule
Location
Miami Book Fair International * Miami Dade College
300 NE Second Ave., Miami, FL 33132
Presentation Pavilion (N.E 3rd Street and 1st Avenue)
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