Chinese Literature Podcast

Xi Xi, one of Hong Kong's most famous writers, pens a weird, postmodern portrait of Hong Kong. Rob does not like it, Lee does. Why? Take a listen as they tackle this weird and sometimes wonderful effort to deal with what Hong Kong is. Or, is it even Hong Kong?

Today's episode is a joke. No really, we are looking at a joke that is making the rounds on Weibo. This is a joke that is very opaque, but that opacity points to how autocracy in China works today.

In today's podcast, we interview author Yang Huang about her new book looking at the intersection of China, the US, and the politics of family and gender. The book is titled My Good Son, and it is her third work of fiction. The book's plot revolves around two father-son pairs, one Chinese, one American. In the Chinese pair, the son does not meet the father's academic standards, while in the American pair, the father is religious while the son is gay. Join us for a fascinating talk with one of the people who actually does the hard work of making literature.

The dark night lifts at last! 1976 marks the end of both the Cultural Revolution and the Maoist era. It also marks the beginning of one of the most remarkable periods of literature in Chinese history. Literature on Taiwan is also flourishing. Join us to find out more!

Today's podcast is Rob-less, and it looks at the 1052 poem by Wang Anshi, China's controversial economic thinker. This poem (probably) has little to do with Wang's economic policies, but is rather all about his love for his father and elder brothers and his meditation on his own mortality.