介绍:
In 1987, a horror film named "A Chinese Ghost Story", or known as "Qian Nv You Hun" in Chinese, hit Hong Kong theatres and soon became a box-office smash. Set in ancient times, this supernatural flick features a romantic yet sentimental affair between an alluring female ghost and a doe-eyed, hapless tax collector. For western audiences, this fantasy extravaganza feels like Tim Burton's Corpse Bride, classic Hammer Films and Chinese martial art all wrapped into one.
Yet for Wang Yuebo, a crosstalk performer who has a knack for retelling Chinese classics, the film is no match for its prototype, a short story written by Pu Songling, the Chinese equivalence of the Brothers Grimm.
"The film is pretty good. But compared with its source of inspiration, Strangle Tales from a Chinese Studio, the plot has already changed a lot. The film lacks a cautionary tune for sure. Among the over four hundred tales written by Pu Songling, nearly every piece alludes to reality. "
But before we delve deep into the ghostly world created by Pu Songling, let's stop for a moment, by recounting the life of this talented novelist first, since his origin is as grotesque as his works.
Ma Ruifang, a scholar in ancient Chinese literature from Shandong University, elaborates.
"It was 1640, when Chongzhen, the last emperor of the Ming Dynasty had ruled for thirteen years. During the night of April 16th on the lunar calendar, Pu Pan, a merchant from Zichuan of Shandong Province, had a strange dream. He saw a skinny, sickly monk entering his wife's bedroom. On the naked chest of the monk, there was a sticking plaster as big as a coin. Then Pu Pan woke up and heard the wailing of a baby. The third son of his was just born. When he held the newborn under the moonlight, the father was surprised to find that his son has a mole on his chest, which shares the same position and shape with the plaster of the monk. This story was made up by Pu Songling at the age of forty. Undoubtedly, he was not the reincarnation of an ailing, suffering monk. But we have to admit that the writer did have a bitter life."
Born into a downfallen landlord family, Pu's only hope to climb the social ladder was to attend the Imperial Examination and join the state bureaucracy. At the age of nineteen, he managed to become a Xiucai, an entry-level licentiate. Since then, this young intellectual ran out of his luck at the examination hall. Despite Pu Songling's multiple attempts to pass the tests, this aspiring man ended up becoming a private tutor, a profession with low social standing around that time.
The setback in career, financial frustration and disappointment of private life drove Pu to a road that deviates from the social norm of the 17th century. Instead of cramming up his brain with fusty ancient principles to get a better grade, this curious soul spent a great deal of time in collecting myths, folklores and legends, which was commonly regarded as trivial.
Here is Professor Ma Ruifang again.
"He had a good friend named Zhang Duqing, who was also an exam candidate. When he noticed Pu Songling's hobby, he even wrote poetries to advise Pu to focus on some more important matters. But Pu never listened. Whenever he heard about some anecdotes, he would write them down as sujects for his novel. He also took a fancy for ancient scriptures and journals. In his representative collection, Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio, over one hundred stories were adapted from previous works. "
Original or not, Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio, or better known as "Liao Zhai Zhi Yi" or "Liao Zhai" in Chinese, is surely an eerie and fantastic masterpiece. Resembling Lafcadio Hearn's famous Japanese ghost stories collection Kwaidan, Liao Zhai has introduced its countless readers to all kinds of supernatural beings, such as weretigers, succubuses, and unnaturally cunning fox spirits.
Among over 490 short stories that were compiled by Pu, The Painted Skin is probably the most gruesome one. Here is a condensed and parody edition of this peculiar tale.
"Long time ago, there was a man surnamed Wang. One morning, he spotted a pretty girl roaming in the street. The young thing claimed that she was sold by her parents as a concubine to a rich family and was mistreated by the wife. So she fled and had nowhere to go. A good Samaritan he was, Wang took the runaway in and slept with her, against all the warnings from his wife. Days later, he encountered a Taoist priest who claims Wang was bewitched. Ignored the warning, the man went back home and found out there's a macabre demon in his studio. Green-face and jagged-teeth, the demon was applying make-up to a spread human skin! The hulk-like devil then threw aside the brush, and giving the skin a shake out, just as you would a coat, threw it over its shoulders, and wow…became the girl! Terrified by the sight, Wang went to the priest for help to drive her away but got his own heart ripped out by the irritated devil. The priest exorcised the demon who disguised herself as an old woman. Then he was stopped by Wang's grieving wife who begged him to bring back her husband. Touched by her plea, he suggested her to go to a maniac. The mad man humiliated the wife and forced her to swallow his phlegm. Overwhelmed by rage and grief, she ran back home and cried over her dead husband's heartless body. Suddenly, she felt a lump in her throat and spit it out, which turns out to be a throbbing heart! "
Well, doesn't sound THAT scary, does it?
According to Wang Yuebo, a die-hard fan for Pu Songling's writing, there're certain moral-cautionary elements in the story of Painted Skin.
"In his commentary of this story, Mr Pu wrote: how foolish men are, to see nothing but beauty in what is clearly evil! When men have fallen prey to lust, how absurd it is to let their wives to bear the consequence! In that regard, Pu Songling concluded his story from a feminine perspective. He was a pro-feminist to a certain extent. "
Females play an important role in Pu Songling's collection, since love stories are pervasive in the realm of 491 stories. Flipping through the pages, we witness how a man falls in love with a fair maiden painted on the wall, experiences a heartbroken love triangle between a shapeshifting fox, a scholar and a ghost girl, while gets touched by the entanglement of a man and a errant ghost.
Zhang Shaogang is the author of the essay collection "No Story Talk ", a book inspired by Pu Songling's novel. According to him, most of Pu's female protagonists are strong and independent women in their own rights, whose nobility always belittle their human lovers' worldly pettiness.
"In terms of male-female relations in Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio, women are always the active ones. They have the initiative and will to decide whether they will stay or leave the relationships."
But Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio is not all about romance with a quirky setting. Behind all those alluring and intricate prodigies that involve strange creatures and inexplicable phenomenons, the author tried to sway us with the ugliness of reality, such as how honest and free sprits are shackled by the unfair and rigid examination, how the corrupted and skewed government enslaves common folks.
Pu's cynic attitude is evident in one of his stories, "The Land of Luocha and the Sea Market ", which features the quaint adventure of a young man.
Researcher Ma Ruifang recounts this unusual tale.
"Failed in the Imperial Examiantion, the main character Ma Ji started his business. One day, he made a voyage by sea to a country named the Land of Luocha by the typhoon. The word 'Luocha' means devil in sanskrit. So You can imagine how hideous the citizens of this country are. But everyone on the street ran away in fear, when they spot Ma, despite him being a youth of surpassing beauty. Soon Ma realised that in Luocha, everything depended not on literary talent, but on looks. People treated ugliness as beauty and the most beautiful were made ministers of state. In that case, Ma was regarded as the ugliest man. Until one day, he accidentally applied some coal slags to his face and made himself look extremely horrid. But locals were so pleased with his new look and soon recommended Ma Ji to the king! So in this story, Pu Songling tried to deliver a simple but powerful message: people have to disguise themselves to survive in the society. If you present your true self to others, people will be scared. I think, that's probably the reason why French sinologist Claude Roy once said, Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio is the most beautiful allegory in the world."
But Pu Songling didn't witness his growing fame. This brilliant yet frustrated wordsmith toiled his whole life in obscurity. Spending decades in writing "Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio", the novelist bitterly noted it as his "book of loneliness and resentment". Although his delicately crafted stories had been circulated around for quite a long time, it was 1740, 25 years after Pu's death, this masterpiece was finally codified and published by his grandson.
Three hundred years later, Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio, or widely-known as Liao Zhai, still remains a household name. Served as a prism that reflects the social and political climate of China in the 18th century, Liao Zhai not only casts a tremendous impact on Chinese literature in later times, but also inspires numerous spin-off movies, cartoons, plays and TV shows.
But how does a ghost stories collection stand the test of time?
Professor Ma Ruifang provides her answer.
"Pu Songling used deities, ghosts and fox spirits to depict the human condition. At the first glance, those stories might be quite fanciful and flamboyant. But if you think further, they actually reflect our mundane life. Those supernatural creatures are purely metaphors. I think that is the reason why people enjoy Strange tales from a Chinese Studio so much. The book combines fantasy, fairy tale, fable and legend together. It's the pinnacle of ancient Chinese novels. "
With that, we end today's special edition of Ink&Quill on ghost stories and fairy tales.
Hope you enjoyed the show as much as I did. Don't forget that there are always more interesting happenings in the literary world. To learn more about us, you are always welcome to follow our facebook account, ChinaPlus.
Here is the theme song from the movie "A Chinese Ghost Story", "Life Path", presented by the late Hong Kong pop icon Leslie Cheung.
Thanks for tuning in. I am Zhang Wan.Goodbye!
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