This is the fourth and penultimate volume in David Roy's celebrated translation of one of the most famous and important novels in Chinese literature. "The Plum in the Golden Vase or, Chin P'ing Mei" is an anonymous sixteenth-century work that focuses on the domestic life of Hsi-men Ch'ing, a corrupt, upwardly mobile merchant in a provincial town, who maintains a harem of six wives and concubines. The novel, known primarily for its erotic realism, is also a landmark in the development of the narrative art form - not only from a specifically Chinese perspective but in a world-historical context. Written during the second half of the sixteenth century and first published in 1618, "The Plum in the Golden Vase" is noted for its surprisingly modern technique. With the possible exception of "The Tale of Genji" (ca. 1010) and "Don Quixote" (1605, 1615), there is no earlier work of prose fiction of equal sophistication in world literature. Although its importance in the history of Chinese narrative has long been recognized, the technical virtuosity of the author, which is more reminiscent of the Dickens of "Bleak House", the Joyce of "Ulysses", or the Nabokov of "Lolita" than anything in earlier Chinese fiction, has not yet received adequate recognition. This is partly because all of the existing European translations are either abridged or based on an inferior recension of the text. This complete and annotated translation aims to faithfully represent and elucidate all the rhetorical features of the original in its most authentic form and thereby enable the Western reader to appreciate this Chinese masterpiece at its true worth.

About the Author

David Tod Roy is professor emeritus of Chinese literature at the University of Chicago, where he has studied the "Chin P'ing Mei" and taught it in his classes since 1967.

Table of Contents

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS ix ACKNOWLEDGMENTS xi CAST OF CHARACTERS xiii CHAPTER 61: Han Tao-kuo Prepares an Entertainment for Hsi-men Ch'ing; Li P'ing-erh Painfully Observes the Double Yang Festival 1 CHAPTER 62: Taoist Master P'an Performs an Exorcism on the Lantern Altar; Hsi-men Ch'ing Laments Egregiously on Behalf of Li P'ing-erh 44 CHAPTER 63: Friends and Relatives Offer Funeral Oblations at a Memorial Feast; Hsi-men Ch'ing Is Reminded of Li P'ing-erh While Watching a Drama 83 CHAPTER 64: Y?-hsiao Kneels in Making an Appeal to P'an Chin-lien; Officers of the Guard Sacrifi ce to a Rich Man's Spouse 104 CHAPTER 65: Abbot Wu Meets the Funeral Procession and Eulogizes the Portrait; Censor Sung Imposes on a Local Magnate to Entertain Eunuch Huang 121 CHAPTER 66: Majordomo Chai Sends a Letter with a Consolatory Contribution; Perfect Man Huang Conducts a Rite for the Salvation of the Dead 153 CHAPTER 67: Hsi-men Ch'ing Appreciates the Snow While in His Studio; Li P'ing-erh Describes Her Intimate Feelings in a Dream 174 CHAPTER 68: Cheng Ai-y?eh Flaunts Her Beauty and Discloses a Secret; Tai-an Perseveres Assiduously in Seeking Out Auntie Wen 211 CHAPTER 69: Auntie Wen Communicates Hsi-men Ch'ing's Wishes to Lady Lin; Wang Ts'ai Falls for a Trick and Invites His Own Humiliation 244 CHAPTER 70: Hsi-men Ch'ing's Successful Efforts Procure Him a Promotion; Assembled Offi cials Report before Defender-in-chief Chu Mien 277 CHAPTER 71: Li P'ing-erh Appears in a Dream in Battalion Commander Ho's House; The Judicial Commissioners Present Their Memorials at the Audience 306 CHAPTER 72: Wang the Third Kowtows to Hsi-men Ch'ing as His Adopted Father; Ying Po-chueh Intercedes to Alleviate the Grievance of Li Ming 342 CHAPTER 73: P'an Chin-lien Is Irked by the Song "I Remember Her Flute-playing"; Big Sister Yu Sings "Getting through the Five Watches of the Night" 384 CHAPTER 74: Censor Sung Ch'iao-nien Solicits the Eight Immortals Tripod; Wu Yueh-niang Listens to the Precious Scroll on Woman Huang 420 CHAPTER 75: Ch'un-mei Vilely Abuses Second Sister Shen; Yu-hsiao Spills the Beans to P'an Chin-lien 456 CHAPTER 76: Meng Yu-lou Assuages Yueh-niang's Wrath; Hsi-men Ch'ing Repudiates Licentiate Wen 503 CHAPTER 77: Hsi-men Ch'ing Slogs through the Snow to Visit Cheng Ai-yueh; Pen the Fourth's Wife Sits by the Window Waiting for a Tryst 544 CHAPTER 78: Hsi-men Ch'ing Ventures upon a Second Engagement with Lady Lin; Wu Yueh-niang Invites Ho Yung-shou's Wife to View the Lanterns 579 CHAPTER 79: Hsi-men Ch'ing in His Sexual Indulgence Incurs an Illness; Wu Yueh-niang Bears a Child upon the Death of Her Husband 627 CHAPTER 80: Ch'en Ching-chi Resorts to Pilfering Jade and Purloining Perfume; Li Chiao-erh Makes Off with the Silver and Returns to the Brothel 668 NOTES 689 BIBLIOGRAPHY 855 INDEX 895 Roy.

Reviews

Praise for previous volumes: "Roy has made a major contribution to our overall understanding of the novel by so structuring every page of his translation that the numerous levels of narration are clearly differentiated. In addition, [he] has annotated the text with a precision, thoroughness, and passion for detail that makes even a veteran reader of monographs smile with a kind of quiet disbelief. -- Jonathan Spence, New York Review of Books Praise for previous volumes: "Reading Roy's translation is a remarkable experience. -- Robert Chatain, Chicago Tribune Review of Books Praise for previous volumes: "Clearly David Roy is the greatest scholar-translator in the field of premodern vernacular Chinese fiction... The puns and various other kinds of word plays that abound in the Chin P'ing Mei are so difficult to translate that I can't help 'slapping the table in amazement' each time I see evidence of Roy's masterful rendition of them... I recommend this book, in the strongest possible terms, to anyone interested in the novel form in general, in Chinese literature in particular, or in the translation of Chinese literature. -- Shuhui Yang, Chinese Literature: Essays, Articles, and Reviews