A History of Modern Chinese Fiction

A History of Modern Chinese Fiction was first published in 1961 and is a classic in the study of twentieth-century Chinese fiction. It traces the development of the form from the Literary Revolution in 1917 to the early 1960s. C. T. Hsia delved into the works of Lu Hsün, Pa Chin, Lao Shê, Eileen Chang and Ch'ien Chung-shu, all of whom were important modern Chinese writers. In Hsia's own words, "the literary historian's first task is always the discovery and appraisal of excellence," and in this belief he re-evaluated the leading figures in modern Chinese literature including Lu Hsün, and "discovered" those who had not been given proper attention, such as Eileen Chang.

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"C. T. Hsia's book is by now an acknowledged classic. It truly opened up a new field and prepared the way for generations of American scholars to do research. We are all in his debt."—Leo Lee

 "Fifty-five years after it was published, C. T. Hsia's A History of Modern Chinese Fiction remains unsurpassed in its field. No book in any language has done more to shape our fundamental conceptions of modern Chinese literary art. Hsia's astute insights and graceful writing make the book enjoyable as well as deeply edifying."—Perry Link

 "The publication of C. T. Hsia's book is an event of the first importance. It has the distinction of being the first serious study of modern Chinese fiction in English. It also has the rarer distinction of being the best study of its subject available in any language. No more ambitious attempt to apply the principles of modern Western literary criticism to the study of Chinese literature has ever been made. Not only the specialist, but every reader who is interested in China or in literature will find it of interest…."—David T. Roy

 "The great virtue of this book is that it provides a practical acquaintance with the writing itself by means of copious passages of translation from representative novels."—New York Times Book Review