30050 - Chinese Literature 1 (2nd cycle)

Learning outcomes

The student possesses in-depth knowledge of the history of modern Chinese literature, with particular attention to the relationship between literary texts and the historical, artistic, and linguistic context. They know and can use practical methodologies for the analysis and interpretation of the literary text.

Course contents

LABOUR IN CONTEMPORARY CHINESE LITERATURE

Labour is a constant presence in the Chinese literary landscape from the early decades of the twentieth century to today. If Mencius could claim that "Those who labour with their minds govern, those who labour with their hands are governed" (勞心者治人，勞力者治於人), the advent of industrialization in the 20th century and the influence of Marxist ideas brought the historical role of the working class to the center of debate and political action. With the transition from the literary revolution, brought about by the May Fourth Movement, to revolutionary literature, meaning the political commitment of a significant portion of writers between the 1920s and 1930s, representing the working masses became crucial. The founding of the People's Republic of China saw the official discourse place the working class "at the head" of the country; this, even within the context of strict political control over literary production, generated interesting cases of writing – especially poetry – by the workers themselves, educated at state-designated institutes. The new phase of capitalist development, initiated by the market reforms of the late 1970s, on one hand marginalized the working class from official discourse, and on the other created a vast mass of hundreds of millions of migrant workers. They are credited with the creation of a new form of proletarian literature that reflects the living conditions of this vast labour force.

The course aims to investigate the evolution of Chinese literature on labour in parallel with the developments that have transformed the working class in China. What continuities and discontinuities can be identified in its history? What perspectives does this literature offer today to decipher the reality of a country with intense capitalism but that continues to declare itself governed by the proletariat?

Through seminar-style teaching, attention to theoretical-methodological tools, and the analysis of specific case studies, the course also strengthens the students' ability to conduct original and independent research, even in view of the final exam.

Course Program (45h)

• Theory: how to read a literary work and its context from a materialist perspective
• Methodology: literature of workers, about workers, for workers? The problem of the author-subject-reader triad
• The 1920s, '30s, and '40s: factory reportage and rural poetry
• The Maoist phase: gongnongbing 工农兵 poetry
• The new worker poets: Xie Xiangnan and Zheng Xiaoqiong
• Labour beyond the factory: Fan Yusu and Meng Yu
• Wasted youth compared: Xu Lizhi and Xiao Hai
• Poetry, activism, and internationalism: the Gongren shige magazine and other cases of militant poets
• The "old" working class: industrial memories in Dongbei
• Labour and gender: female and queer poets on the assembly line
• Final discussion: is there a "worker literature"?
• Student presentations

Readings/Bibliography

Please refer to the Italian-language page for a full list of readings.

Teaching methods

Seminar-style lessons, with active student participation. Students are required to read and prepare primary sources and/or critical texts before each week and to consistently contribute to the class discussion.

The primary sources will mostly be in Chinese, but knowledge of the language is not required for satisfactory participation in the course.

In preparation for the final paper, four lessons are dedicated to the drafting of an academic paper on a literary topic.

Assessment methods

Oral exam. Discussion of a paper of about 3,500 words (excluding notes and bibliography), based on the independent critical analysis by the student of one of the literary texts listed in the bibliography, through the construction of their own critical apparatus (bibliographic sources, etc.). The purpose of the exam is to assess the solidity of the argumentation and verify the ability to link the chosen theme with the general perspective proposed by the course.

Attending students are required to give an individual presentation (or, if numbers demand, a group presentation) delving into a course topic or presenting the theme of their own report. The presentation counts for 50% of the final grade.

Teaching tools

PowerPoint presentations.

Office hours

See the website of Federico Picerni