Fortress Besieged

For one of my classes here at the Chinese Flagship Program, I'm required to read at least one Chinese novel. My tutor suggested I read a book called 《围城》-- "Fortress Besieged." It seems that most Chinese people have read this book, or at least heard about it, and the teacher of my class, who is a modern Chinese literature teacher here at NJU, was ecstatic when I told her I was reading it. Seems like I made a good choice. Anyway, I finished the book about a month ago, and I liked it a lot, so it is to this book which this post is dedicated.

First of all, here is a bit about the author. Qian Zhongshu was one of the leading professors of literature at Tsinghua University for a long time. He lived through some of the more notable events in modern Chinese history, such as World War II (or the "War Against Japan"), the beginning of New China, and the Cultural Revolution. He also studied in Europe with his wife (another famous Tsinghua professor) back in the 1930s. All of this experience went into the writing of "Fortress Besieged", his most famous book.

"Fortress Besieged" is primarily about a young man's love life. This young man's name is Fang Hongjian, and the story starts when he is on a boat headed back to China from studying abroad in Europe. Over the span of a few years, from his time on the boat to his time back in his home town, then on to his experience teaching at a newly opened university, Hongjian meets several young ladies that either want to marry him or that he wants to marry. His smooth talking generally keeps conflict at bay for a while, and then it all storms in at once, leading to some cringe-worthy confrontations and either Hongjian or the girl leaving the city where they met.

The above description probably sounds like a bad "Pride and Prejudice" knock-off, but the book is actually very well written. The author's intention in writing this book was to satirize Chinese culture and society from multiple angles, and he did just that. He pointed out the flaws in everything from the actions of Chinese intellectuals (which are, coincidentally, full of pride and prejudice) to family relationships. Qian Zhongshu is also a master of metaphors, and he uses metaphors from Asian and European culture for a more diverse effect.

In short, "Fortress Besieged" is definitely worth the read. I would highly recommend it!

-小强