PLACES AND LITERARY

WORKS IN ASIAN
LITERATURE
PREPARED BY: RENALINE TRINIDAD, BSE III
ASIAN LITERATURE
• Asian literature encompasses the rich and
widely diverse cultural and ethnic heritages
found in such countries such as China, India,
Japan, and Korea
• Asian literature provides readers with
opportunities to explore various through a
wide variety of literary genres
CHINESE LITERATURE
CHINA – “RED DRAGON OF THE
EAST”
• Chinese literature has a rich history which
stretches back thousands of years. Chinese
poetry and prose build on a tradition of having
precise language. This culture prized literature
and writers so highly there is a god in charge of it
named Wen Chang (or Wendi).
Confucianism
• Confucius as a Chinese philosopher and
politician of the Spring and Autumn
period.
• The philosophy of Confucius, also known as
Confucianism, emphasized personal and
governmental morality, correctness of social
relationships, justice, kindness, and
sincerity.
• Confucius is traditionally credited with having
authored or edited many of the Chinese
classic texts including all of the Five Classics
• Confucius's principles have commonality with Chinese
tradition and belief. He championed strong family loyalty,
ancestor veneration, and respect of elders by their
children and of husbands by their wives, recommending
family as a basis for ideal government. He espoused the
well-known principle "Do not do unto others what you do
not want done to yourself", the Golden Rule. He is also a
traditional deity in Daoism.
• Confucius is widely considered as one of the most
important and influential individuals in human history. His
teaching and philosophy greatly impacted people around
the world and remain influential today
The Five Virtues of Confucius
• Jen – goodwill, empathy, generosity.
• Yi – rightness, duty as guardians of nature
and humanity.
• Li – right conduct and propriety, demonstrating
your inner attitude with your outward expressions.
• Chih – wisdom.
• Hsin – faithfulness and trustworthiness.
The Four Books - are Chinese classic texts
illustrating the core value and belief systems in
Confucianism.
• Great Learning - expresses many themes of Chinese
philosophy and political thinking, and has therefore been
extremely influential both in classical and modern Chinese
thought
• Doctrine of the Mean - demonstrate the usefulness of a golden
way to gain perfect virtue
• Analects - compilation of speeches by Confucius and his
disciples, as well as the discussions they held.
• Mencius - collection of conversations of the scholar Mencius
with kings of his time. In contrast to the sayings of Confucius,
which are short and self-contained, the Mencius consists of long
dialogues with extensive prose.
The Five Classics- was a concrete manifestation of the
coming of age of the Confucian tradition. can be described in terms of five visions:
metaphysical, political, poetic, social, and historical.

• Classic of Poetry - A collection of 305 poems divided into 160 folk songs, 105 festal songs sung
at court ceremonies, and 40 hymns and eulogies sung at sacrifices to heroes and ancestral spirits
of the royal house.

• Book of Documents - A collection of documents and speeches alleged to have been written by
rulers and officials of the early Zhou period and before. It is possibly the oldest Chinese
narrative, and may date from the 6th century BC. It includes examples of early Chinese prose.

• Book of Rites - Describes ancient rites, social forms and court ceremonies. The version studied
today is a re-worked version compiled by scholars in the third century BC rather than the
original text, which is said to have been edited by Confucius himself.

• I Ching (Book of Changes) - The book contains a divination system comparable to Western
geomancy or the West African Ifá system. In Western cultures and modern East Asia, it is still
widely used for this purpose.
• Spring and Autumn Annals - A historical record of the State of Lu, Confucius's native state,
722– 481 BC.
Exemplary Chinese Poets and their famous
works:
Li Po(701 - 762)
• Alone And Drinking Under The Moon
• Taking Leave of a Friend
• Hard is the Journey
• A Mountain Revelry
• Drinking Alone
Tu Fu (712 - 770)
• Alone, Looking for Blossoms Along the River
• Ballad of the Army Carts
• Ballad of the Old Cypress
• By the Lake
• Day's End
Li Ching Chao (1084 - 1151)
• A Friend Send Him A Perfumed Carriage
• A Morning Dream
• A Song of Departure
• As in a Dream
• At a Poetry Party I am Given the Rhyme Chih
Wang Wei (698 - 759)
• A Song of an Autumn Night.
• In The Hills
• A Green Stream.
• Farewell
• Farewell to Hsin Chien at Hibiscus Pavilion
FIVE MAJOR KINDS OF MAJOR ANCIENT
POETIC STYLES
• Shi 詩
Shi poems are composed of couplets. They are poems of
two more coupled lines. The two lines of a couplet
usually rhyme and match rhythmically and complement
each other tonally. Modern Mandarin only has five tones,
but ancient languages usually had more, so the tonal
rhythms are generally lost.
• Ci 詞
Ci poetry can be described as poems that have patterns
of syllables and tonal patterns. In making a Ci poetry, a
poet chooses words that fit a specific pattern. These
patterns may have once been part of a song. But the
music has been lost. There are various patterns that
provided affective settings for various effects or moods.
• Ge 歌
The word "ge" means song. Ge poems are the words to
a song that can be sung. There were folk songs as well
as songs composed by the literate and educated
composers.
• Qu 曲
They were shadow puppet theaters that were puppet
plays of little manipulated figurines and puppets
illuminated by a lamp so that the shadows fell against a
screen. It is thought that the form of operatic drama of the
Yuan Dynasty imitated their shadow play theaters.
• Fu 賦
A fifth major style of poetry is called "Fu." These are
descriptive poems that contain both prose and couplets.
These were popular about 1,500 years to 2,000 years
ago. Often poets included rare or unusual written
characters from preceding eras in their poems.
 JAPANESE LITERATURE

JAPAN – “LAND OF THE RISING SUN”

• Early works of Japanese literature were heavily
influenced by cultural contact with China and
Chinese literature, and were often written in
Classical Chinese. Indian literature also had an
influence through the spread of Buddhism in
Japan.
JAPANESE WRITING SYSTEM

The modern Japanese writing system uses:

• Kanji, ideographs from Chinese characters
• Kana, a pain of syllabaries consisting of:
 Hiragana – used for native Japanese words
 Katakana – used for foreign loanwords and
sometimes to replace kanji or hiragana foe
emphasis
The Period of Japanese Literature
• Ancient Literature
• Classical Literature
• Medieval Literature
• Modern literature
Edo Period
Meiji Period
Post-War Japan
Contemporary Literature
Ancient Literature
Two of the oldest Japanese literature:
Kojiki (records of ancient matter)
relates to the creation of the wordl, describes the gods and
goddess of the mythological period, and contains facts about ancient
Japan.
Nihongi (Chronicles of Japan)
tells the history of Japan in poetry and shows the profound
influence of Chinese.
Classical Literature
The Heian Period, referred to as the golden era of Japanese art
and literature.
• Man’yoshu (Collection of Myriad Leaves)
The oldest collection of Japanese poetry collected in the year 800.

• Genji Monogatari (The Tale of Genji)

Written by court lady named Murasaki Shikibu is considered the pre-
eminent of Heian fiction and the first example of a work of fiction in the
form of a novel.
Medieval Literature
• Japan experienced many civil wars which lead to
the development of warrior class, and
subsequent war tales, histories, and related
stories.
• Work from this period is notable for its
insights into life and death, simple lifestyles,
and Seppuku.
• Tale of the Heike, an epic account of the
struggle between two clans for control of Japan at
Medieval Literature
the end of the Twelfth century.
Edu Period
• The Togugawa Period is commonly referred to as the
Edu Period. The Capital of Japan moved from Kyoto
to Edo (modern Tokyo).
• Scholarly work continued to be published in Chinese,
which was the language of the learned much as
Latin was in Europe.
• Chikamatsu Monzaemon, a kabuki dramatist,
known as the Japan’s Shakespeare.
• Many genres of literature made their debut during the
Edu Period, helped by a rising literacy rate among
the growing population of townspeople, as well as the
development of leading libraries.
• The importation of Chinese vernacular fiction
that proved the greatest outside influence of the
development of Early Modern Japanese Fiction.
• Genres included horror, crime stories, morality
stories, comedy and pornography – often
accompanied by colorful woodcut prints.
Meiji Period
• The Meiji period marks the re-opening of Japan to
the West, and a period of rapid industrialization.
• The introduction of European Literature brought free
verse into the poetic repertoire. It became widely
used for longer works embodying new intellectual
themes.
• Young Japanese prose writers and dramatists
struggled with a whole galaxy of new ideas and artistic
schools, but novelists were the first to assimilate some
of these concepts successfully.
• War-time Japan saw the debut of several authors best
known for the beauty of their language and their tales
of love and sensuality.
• Kawabata Yasunari, for his narrative mastery,
which with great sensibility expresses the essence
of the “Japanese mind” became Japan’s first winner
of the Nobel Prize for Literature.
Post-war and Contemporary Literature
• World War II, and Japan’s defeat, deeply influenced
Japanese literature. Many authors wrote of
disaffection, loss of purpose, and the coping with
defeat.
• Prominent writers of the 1970s and 1980s were identifies
with intellectual and moral issues in their attempts to
raise social and political consciousness.
• In Japanese fiction, plot development and action have
often been of secondary interest to emotional issues. In
keeping with the general trend toward reaffirming national
characteristics, many old themes re-emerged, and some
authors turned consciously to the past.
Japanese Drama
• Noh play
The national theatre of Japan, which was originally
reserved for the nobility. Legend says that Noh dance was
invented by the Gods.
• Joruri play
A puppet play or doll theatre wherein the dolls are
beautifully made and life-size in size
• Kabuki
The play for the masses. It is less intellectual and more
raelistics, even sensational.
Japanese Poetry
• Tanka (5-7-5-7-7)
It is a five line poem. The first third lines have five syllables each and the others
seven, making a total of thirty-one syllables per poem.
• Haiku (5-7-5)
It is a seventeen-syllable poem of three lines arranged in lines of five-seven-
five.
 KOREAN LITERATURE

Korea – “land of the morning calm”

• Usually divided chronologically into a classical
and modern period
• However, this often questioned because of the
reform after the mid-19th century and the
influence of the West.
Classical Period

• Developed against the backdrop of traditional

folk beliefs of Korean people. It was also

Influenced by Taoism, Confucianism, and
Buddhism.
Modern Period

• Developed out of its contact with Western culture,

following the course of modernization.

• Not only Christian thought, but also various

artistic trends and influences were imported from

the West.
KOREANS CLASSICAL
LITERATURE
HYANGGA from the Shilla period
• The Hyangga poetry signaled the beginning of a
unique form in Korean literature.
• 4-line, 8-line, and 10-line poem
Koryo Kayo Period
• Marked by an increased use of Chines letters, the
disappearance of Hyangga, and the emergence of
Koryo Kayo (Koryosongs) which continued to be
transmitted as oral literature until Choson period.
Shijo and Kasa
• Majority of the Shijo poets were well versed in
Confucianism, and that these poems of the late
Koryo and Early Choson periods for the most part
dealt with the theme of loyalty.
Prose
• Korean prose literature can be divided into
narratives, fiction, and literary miscellany.
• Narratives include myths, legends, and folktales
found in the written records.
• The most important myths are those concerning the
Sun and the Moon, the founding of Korea by
Tangun, and the lives of the ancient kings.
Fiction
from the 17th century onwards, fiction became
increasingly popular and more readily available through
book rentals schemes.
Geumo Sinhwa
–the first known classical work of Korean fiction
– it was written in Chinese Character
Oral Literature
• Oral literature includes all texts that were orally
transmitted from generation to generation until the
invention of Hangul – ballads, legends, mask plays,
puppet-show texts, and p’ansori (“story singing”)
texts.
• Orally transmitted texts are categorized as ballads
and are classified according to singer, subject matter,
and regional singing style.
The early Joseon period
• Yongbi eocheonga (Hangul, Hanja) “ Songs of
the Dragons Flying To Heaven”.
Was compiled during the reign of Sejong the Great
as an official recognition of the Jeseon Dynasty and
anscestral heritage as the forerunners of Joseon, the
Golden Age of Korea.
This compilation was the first piece of Korean text to
depart from a long history reliant on Chinese Characters
and be recorded in Hangul the first and official Korean
Alphabet.
 Each of the poems included in the work convey deep-
seated feelings of nationalism and a proud
proclamation of cultural independence from the Mongol
empire.

Korean Poems were called Hyangga.

Modern Korean Literature
• The period of which Korean Literature is often called
“ enlightenment”.
• Large extent influenced by the West
• Many biographical works were published, the
main character was often depicted as a hero
• Jayusi – formation of modern free verse poetry
• Cheonno-yeokjeong –the first printed work in Korea
• Music and classical poetry, formely considered one as
part of changgok, were increasingly precieved as
old- fashioned and out of date.
• The first complete edition of Bible in Korean
was published in 1910.
• Sinsoseol was a novel that was written in hangul.
Contemporary Korean Literature
• During the Colonial Korea 1910-1945, free speech
and press were restricted, thus influencing literature.
• Literature focused on self discovey and increasingly
on concrete reality.
• Many novelisft experimented with new literacy style
and techniques
• In 1919, kim Tong-in and Kim Hyok founded a
literary magazine “Changjo”.
• Almost all the magazine were ordered to discontinue
publication in the 1940s as the Japanese tightened
the grip with the spread of their aggressive war to the
Pacific.
• Many novels of the 1920s centered around themes
of the sufferings od intellectuals.
• The Korean Literature was directly affected by
the Japanese government strengthening
ideological coercion during 1930s.
 Vietnamese Literature

Vietnam – “ASIA’S RISING STAR”

Vietnamese literature was developed at an early date.
Despite tha harsh trials of history in the form of
repeated foreign invasion, its own characteristics
remain.
It includes two major components which have
developed simultaneously and are profoundly
interrelated: Folk Literature and Written
Literature
Folk literature
• Folk literature came into being very early and had
profound effect on the spiritual life of the Viet’s. the
folk literature always praised beauty, humanism, and
the love of goodness, and contributed to the formation
of the national sense.
• Legends, fairy tales, humorous stories, folk songs,
epics and so on have tremendous vitality and have
lived on today.
Written
literature
• First appeared around the 10th century. It had a leading
role and bore the main traits of Vietnamese literature.
• Well-known works written in Chu Nom included
Chinh Phu Ngam by a female poet Doan Thi Diem,
the Kieu story by Nguyen Du, and Chu Nom poems
of female poet Ho Xuan Huong.
• These works were the cream of Vietnamese
literature. However, entering the 20th century, works
written in classical Chinese disappeared.
• In the 20’s and the following decades, the
country’s literature was written in Vietnamese
quoc ngi (Romanized natinal language).
Vietnamese literature

• From then on, Vietnamese literature developed

constantly, particularly during the two wars of
resistances for national liberation. Many young
authors emerged in the literary circles.
• Traditionally, Vietnamese literature always
featured patriotism, national pride and humanism.
 Thailand Literature

THAILAND – “THE LAND OF SMILE”

• Thai Literature was traditionally heavily influenced by
Indian culture. Thailand’s national epic is a version
of the Ramayana called the Ramakien.
• Early Thai literature was primarily concerned with
religion and until the mid-19th century was in verse
form. Thai verse was written exclusively by the
aristocracy or royalty, the only educated classes able
to do so.
Thailand Literature
• The tradition of authorship by kings can be seen in
all periods of the country’s history, from Sukhothai up
to Bangkok. Two Chakri monarchs, King Rama II
(1809- 1824) and King Rama VI (1910-1925), were
distinguished poets and stalwart patrons of Thai arts.
• One of the most important Thai literary works is the
Ramakian, a uniquely Thai version of the Indian
epic, the Ramayana.
• King Rama II composed two episodes of the
Ramakian for classical drama purposed and wrote
several other epic poems, including the Inao, a
romance with a Javanese background. The Inao is a
treasure trove of historical information on early 19th-
century Thai customs, habits, and manners and figures
prominently in the repertoire of classical drama.
• Another major Thai literary figure was Sunthon
Phu (1786-1855), a poetic genius and well-beloved
commoner.
• His major works were Phra Aphai Mani, a
romantic adventure, and nine Nirats mostly written
during a pilgrimage, associating romantic memories
with the places he visited in central and eastern
Thailand.
• Both King Rama V and Rama VI were also
distinguished writers whose creativity contained the
rich intellectual heritage in several proses and verse
forms.
Ngo Pa and Klai Ban by King Rama V
 Matthana Phatha, Phra non-Kham Luang by
King Rama VI
 Singaporean Literature

SINGAPORE – “LAND OF THE LION”

• The literature of Singapore comprises a collection of
literary works by Singaporeans in any of the
country's four main languages: English, Chinese,
Malay and Tamil.
• the literature of Singapore is viewed as a distinct
body of literature portraying various aspects of
Singapore society and forms a significant part of the
culture of Singapore
Singaporean Literature
• A number of Singaporean writers such as Tan Swie
Hian and Kuo Pao Kun have contributed work in
more than one language. However, this cross-
linguistic fertilisation is becoming increasingly rare
and it is now increasingly thought that Singapore has
four sub- literatures instead of one.
Poetry in Singapore
• The first notable Singaporean work of poetry in English
is possibly F.M.S.R., a pastiche of T. S. Eliot by
Francis
P. Ng, published in London in 1935. This was followed
by Wang Gungwu's Pulse in 1950.
• Poetry is the predominant mode of expression; it has
a small but respectable following since independence,
and most published works of Singapore writing in
English have been in poetry.
• There were varying levels of activity in succeeding
decades, with poets in the late 1980s and early 1990s
including Simon Tay, Leong Liew Geok, Koh Buck
Song, Heng Siok Tian and Ho Poh Fun.
• In the late 1990s, poetry in English in Singapore found
a new momentum with a whole new generation of poets
born around or after 1965 now actively writing and
publishing, not only in Singapore but also
internationally.
• The poetry of this younger generation is often politically
aware, transnational and cosmopolitan, yet frequently
presents their intensely focused, self-questioning and
highly individualised perspectives of Singaporean life,
society and culture. Some poets have been labeled
Confessional for their personalised writing, often
dealing with intimate issues such as sexuality.
Singaporean Fiction
• Fiction writing in English did not start in earnest until
after independence. Short stories flourished as a
literary form, the novel arrived much later. Goh Poh
Seng remains a pioneer in writing novels well before
many of the later generation, with titles like If We
Dream Too Long (1972) – widely recognized as the
first true Singaporean novel – and A dance of Moths
(1995)
• Haresh Sharma is a playwright who has written more
than fifty plays that have been staged all over the
world, including Melbourne, Glasgow, Birmingham,
Cairo and London. His highly acclaimed play Those
Who Cant Teach was published in book form by the
independent publisher Epigram Books.