Results 1 to 12 of 12

Thread: About Louis Cha [Jin Yong]

  1. #1
    Senior Member TuToo's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2004
    Location
    reality
    Posts
    342

    Default About Louis Cha [Jin Yong]

    $this->handle_bbcode_img_match('http://spcnet.tv/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=1394&stc=1')

    Name : Cha Leung Yung, Louis Cha

    Pen Name : Jin Yong

    Religion : Buddhism

    Birthday : Feb 6th, 1924


    Louis Leung-yung Cha, with his pen name as Jin Yong and born in Hangzhou, he is native of Haining, Zhejiang province. He studied at Zhejiang Province Jiaxing High School (presently Jiaxing First High School) after graduation from primary school. Upon graduation from high school, he was admitted to the Faculty of Foreign Languages of Chunking Central University and then transferred to the Faculty of Law of Dongwu University majoring in International Law.

    He successfully obtained the job as English translator at Ta Kung Pao with the best score in English after graduation from college. He move to Hong Kong with the newspaper and worked as copy editor at Ta Kung Pao and Hsin Wan Pao. He took on the job as scenarist-director at the Great Wall Movie Enterprises Ltd. and Phoenix Film Co. in the late 1950s, focusing on play writing and Enchoulu movie criticism. He began to write swordsman fictions in 1955 and published Shujian Enchoulu, Bixuejian, Xueshan Feihu and Shediao Yingxiongzhuan. He started the business of Ming Pao Daily News with Shen Baoxin in 1959 and acted as director. Since 1966, he also launched Ming Pao Monthly, Ming Pao Weekly and Ming Pao Evening News. He established the Book Publishing House later.

    He had worked as executive member of the Basic Law Drafting Committee and Consultative Committee of the Hong Kong SAR since 1985 and resigned on May 20, 1989. He listed Ming Pao Group Ltd. on stock market in 1991 and acted as Chairman of Board of Directors. He sold Ming Pao Group Ltd. to Yu Pinhai in February 1993 and retired. He had served as Honorary President of Ming Pao Enter- prises Co. Ltd., panel member of Legal Reform Committee, the Association of International Press and academician of Modern China Research Centre of the British Oxford University. He was appointed member of the Preparatory Committee of the Hong Kong SAR in December 1995.

    He was awarded the title of OBE in 1981. He was awarded honorary doctorate of Hong Kong University in 1986 and invited to work as honorary professor of the Faculty of Chinese Language and Literature of Hong Kong University in 1989. He was awarded "honorary citizen of Jiaxing City" in 1994 and engaged as honorary professor of Beijing University in October of that year. In November 1996, he was appointed honorary professor of Zhejiang University and senior advisor of the People's government of Jiaxing City.

    His novels include Shendiao Xialu, Feihu Waizhuan, Xiao'ao Jianghu, Tianlong Babu and Luding Ji. He has published some other writings like On Yuan Chonghuan and Genghis Khan and His Family. He is also devoted to studies of Confucian and Chinese Go.

    He donated HK$1million for disaster relief in July 1991 and HK$3 million to build a library at Jiaxing School of Higher Education in 1993. In 1994, he donated HK$200,000 to the school's library to purchase books. The property of his family is estimated at HK$1.2 billion by December 1995.

    Interest: Playing Go

    Madam: Lin Leyi

    this is a pretty amazing site about the JY here i got my source from it.
    Attached Images Attached Images
    i.am.2too.

  2. #2
    Senior Member TuToo's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2004
    Location
    reality
    Posts
    342

    Default

    What makes Louis Cha's martial-arts novels so wildly popular in Asia?
    By Simon Elegant
    September 5, 1996

    Louis Cha doesn't know how many books he's sold. Not to the nearest 10 million, anyway. The 72-year-old Hong Kong writer and journalist isn't being coy, though. It's just that he's been able to sell legitimate versions of his hugely popular martial-arts novels in his main market-China-only for the last two years. That means he has no idea how many pirated copies of his books have been published illegally on the mainland.

    Cha does know that in 1984, when his books could finally be published in China after being banned for many years as ideologically unsound, he was told by the director of China's Bureau of Publications that an estimated 40 million pirated copies of his 15 novels were circulating in the country. "They accused me of being responsible for the lack of paper to print textbooks on," Cha laughs.

    Add to that number the one million legitimate copies that have sold every year for the last decade in Hong Kong and Taiwan. Then assume -- not unreasonably -- that he has matched his pre-1984 sales in China over the last 12 years, and the total begins to approach 100 million. And that's not counting the sales of his books that have been translated into Korean, Bahasa Indonesia, Vietnamese and, soon, Japanese. Not bad for someone who hasn't written a word of fiction since 1972.

    It's still a little difficult though to equate the dapper man in the blue blazer and grey slacks relaxing in the opulent surroundings of his house at No. 1, Peak Road with the swashbuckling and often fairly bloodthirsty adventure stories for which the Asian reading public seems to have an inexhaustible appetite. Perhaps that's because in the 24 years since he last published a novel, Cha has devoted his time to making a name for himself in other fields.

    Journalism, for example, where he used money from his literary success to found the Ming Pao newspaper. Under his guidance the paper rose to become Hong Kong's most respected daily. He also wrote regular columns and editorials, though the paper's early drawing card was a the thousand-word excerpt it printed each day from the latest novel by Jin Yong, Cha's pen name.

    Or, latterly, politics, in which he has served as a senior adviser to the Chinese government during the drawn-out negotiations over the handover in 1997. Or even scholarship, where he has found time to publish a series of works on Chinese history and culture ranging from The Life and Times of Genghis Khan to The Concept of Materiality in Buddhist Thinking.

    Despite such accomplishments, Cha faces a problem much like that which confronted a writer he cites as one of his formative influences, Arthur Conan-Doyle, author the Sherlock Holmes mysteries. Conan-Doyle became so exasperated with the public's infatuation with his detective that he killed Holmes off-only to be forced to bring him back to life after a prolonged outcry.

    Cha, too, is plagued by constant entreaties for new works, but he is able to meet such demands with an equanimity that Conan-Doyle -- who was always short of cash -- could not. Cha's novels and newspaper publishing have brought him wealth on a scale the impoverished Conan-Doyle could never even imagine. He recently sold his house for a reported HK$190 million ($21 million), for example, and his personal fortune is estimated at many times that.

    His wealth has allowed Cha to resist calls for more martial-arts fiction. But now that he has retired from journalism -- he sold his controlling stake in Ming Pao three years ago -- Cha says he is spending his time on historical research that might lead to a nonfiction book: "My ambition is to write a readable history of China; there are many histories of China very very good and very scholarly, but they are written in a very clumsy and hard-to-read style." Or he might decide to write a historical novel.

    The prospect of another Jin Yong novel -- albeit one which will "definitely not" be another martial-arts epic -- will surely be welcome news to the legions of Jin Yong fans. They range from eight-year-old boys, who can be seen on Hong Kong's subways labouring through Cha's often consciously archaic prose, to professionals, businessmen and even mainland academics.

    "I've read all his books, each one many times-like most people who read Cha," says Chi-shun Feng, a 49-year-old Hong Kong doctor. "Nobody comes even close. There are Chinese literary classics, but Cha transcends these. Everybody knows and loves them, but nobody reads them 10 times. But Louis Cha's books, it's easy to find people who have read them 10 times over the years."

    What is it in Cha's novels that causes such devotion? Critics and scholars say there is nothing exactly comparable in the Western canon; perhaps the Musketeer romances of Alexandre Dumas senior. The closest modern comparison might be Patrick O'Brian's historical novels that follow the adventures of an English naval captain in the Napoleonic wars.

    Cha's novels are sprawling, complex epics featuring the exploits of "dashing heroes and heroines possessing in varying degrees extraordinary prowess" in kung fu, the traditional Chinese martial arts, according to John Minford, an academic at Hong Kong Polytechnic University. He is coordinating an Oxford University Press project that aims to translate all of Jin Yong's works into English.

    "Kung fu, together with Chinese medicine, calligraphy, painting, playing Go and strumming the seven-stringed zither constitute the core of the Chinese cultural essence," Minford says. All these elements appear in the novels, and their placement firmly in the myth-shrouded past combine to produce a kind of "cultural euphoria" in Chinese readers that cannot be found anywhere else in modern Chinese literature.

    The historical settings and plots often seem designed to stoke that glow of cultural euphoria. As Feng, the Hong Kong doctor, notes, the plots of Cha's books "always involve so-called Barbarians trying to invade the Han lands. They're about how the Han Chinese try to fight back."

    For Cha himself, the core of his books' popularity rests on a simple quality: their storytelling. "My novels are full of stories and very exciting developments," he says. "People like adventures, they like to read adventure stories." But he also identifies that "Chineseness" of his works as an important element in their continuing success. "I think maybe the reason my books are so popular is not only the style but also because people in them are thinking and acting in a very Chinese way, without any taint of the Western influence, so readers think: ÔThis is we Chinese.'"

    Cha also sees himself as filling a vacuum created during China's turbulent emergence into the modern world since the overthrow of the Qing dynasty in 1911. Following the revolution, "China was under the foreign aggressor very severely and the intellectuals tried to analyze the reason and they found many, many faults in traditional Chinese culture. So they knocked down everything. They thought a modern and strong China should copy the Western countries. So they copied everything, even the style of literature."

    That produced generations of writers like Lu Xun who, in Cha's opinion, produced Western novels and plays and poems that happened to be written in Chinese and set in China. He notes that even the Communist founding father, Mao Zedong, "wrote poems totally in the old style. People could remember his poems and recite them. But other new poems written in the Western style, people couldn't remember them at all." There was little or no attempt to draw on the traditions of the past and evolve a new style based on those traditions. It was the hunger created by that vacuum that his martial-arts novels have filled, Cha concludes.

    These days, of course, China is far from weak, and Cha -- who was renowned for his anti-communist stance during the Cultural Revolution -- has of late counselled a conciliatory attitude in dealings with her. He did resign as a senior adviser to China after the Tiananmen Massacre in 1989, but this year accepted a position on the China-appointed committee that will supervise Hong Kong's handover in 1997.

    Cha remains discreet and publicly optimistic about the Chinese leadership and the future of Hong Kong under its new masters. But sparks of the old fire are evident when he expresses surprise at the widespread official and critical praise his novels have garnered on the mainland.

    "I was maybe a little surprised because my later novels have a strong taint of anti-Marxism and anti-totalitarianism," he says. "They are very much individualistic, anti the control of the individual and advocating freedom of thought and activity."
    i.am.2too.

  3. #3
    Senior Member TuToo's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2004
    Location
    reality
    Posts
    342

    Default

    if any1 is kind enough to translate this page to English, i'll thank you a'h

    http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Pagod...rviews_b5.html
    i.am.2too.

  4. #4
    Senior Member TuToo's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2004
    Location
    reality
    Posts
    342

    Default

    Louis Cha's literary genius lives on
    (Shenzhen Daily)
    Updated: 2004-11-18 10:11

    $this->handle_bbcode_img_match('http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2004-11/18/xin_421101181016096154496.jpg')

    With a huge popular following, standing ovation and warm applause, Louis Cha no doubt attracted more than his fair share of attention at a lecture organized by the Fifth Shenzhen Reading Month.

    It is said that wherever Chinese people live, there are wuxia (also known as martial arts) legends, which are like fairy tales for adults. Wu means martial arts, and xia means a heroic and chivalrous spirit.

    Louis Cha, the creator of adult fairy tales, has not just started a Louis Cha reading craze. He has also become a cultural phenomenon in Chinese communities around the world. His works, all written between 1955 to 1972, have become a byword for martial arts legends in Chinese. The stories themselves are filled with secret societies, honor and betrayal, hospitality and love, revenge and duty as well as the magical kung fu style.

    Like most classics, they are large works set against a meticulously researched historical background. Dozens of films and TV series have been adapted from his novels.

    "My reading experience of Louis Cha's wuxia began with the TV series Legend of Condor Heroes almost 20 years ago. The hero's personality is very similar to mine, so I saw myself living the hero¡¯s life on TV," said Xi Shijun, a Louis Cha fan in his forties.

    Like Xi, many Chinese people have grown up with Louis Cha's novels. While the values and tastes of readers have changed dramatically during recent decades, these novels remain like permanent magnets that draw generations of Chinese readers.

    The touching heroic spirit and everlasting love is always able to touch people's soft spot regardless of sex, age, educational background and social status. That's why Louis Cha's works boast the largest readership base: from unsophisticated peasants to urban sophisticated professionals, from government officials to scientific researchers.

    Cha, whose texts are deemed the classics of traditional wuxia writing, has a theory about fabrication: "To make a lie credible you'd better tell 10 true things with it."

    The theory works well when applied to Cha¡¯s writing. In his books, the stories are always set in contexts full of rich and faithful historical details; the rationales and terminologies of martial arts are elaborately described. As a result, he somehow achieves a sense of verisimilitude for the utopia of his martial arts heroes.

    Cha also believes what makes a great novel is the realistic depiction of human characters, the power to create and portray a vivid character that people understand, have compassion for and are touched by what he does.

    Louis Cha's novels bring readers joy and Cha has equal fun in creating them. "Writing gives me space for my imagination and joy in creating characters, just like a director."

    Notwithstanding this, Cha said his real aim in writing novels is to assert traditional Chinese ethics and sublime moral qualities.

    "Wuxia novels must depict justice and righteousness. Good people fight off bad guys. Traditional ethics are asserted through the characters and their stories, not by preaching with words."

    Cha has contributed to society as a master of literature for several decades. These days he is retired and leads a carefree life.

    "Now I concentrate on academic research. I am particularly interested in the history of the Han Dynasty and the Roman Empire. The Roman Empire fell while China remains. I believe it has to do with Chinese culture."

    Cha remarks that the joy in writing novels comes from creating while that of studying history comes from discovery. He finds joy in evaluating history with new perspectives, concluding new theories, getting inspiration and advancing spiritual civilization.

    source
    i.am.2too.

  5. #5
    Senior Member TuToo's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2004
    Location
    reality
    Posts
    342

    Talking this one is from our site

    Love In Louis Cha's Novels
    *Written by Linda

    It may have occurred to everyone already that all of Louis Cha's novels concern 'everlasting love' but has anyone ever noticed that it is always, and I repeat always, the male who has love problems because he is in love or likes more then one girl at a time? And also, let's say if their lover died or left for a very long time, the guys can seem to move on but the girls can't. If a guy was in love with a girl and she doesn't love him back, he'll be sad for a while then move on, but in Louis Cha's stories, if a girl was in love with a guy, and he doesn't love her, she'll NEVER move on, she'll always be sad--that's just so unfair.

    Mind the language, but I totally think that Louis Cha is so so so BIASED. If his stories just came out now, I would have charged him with Gender Discrimination. This can be seen in almost every single one of his novels, and he only wrote 11.

    'The Legend of the Condor Heroes' (LOCH)- (I'm Viet so I call characters by their Viet names) Quach Tinh (the main good guy) had three girls totally in love with him (in the book). One was the princess Hoa Trang, who even if she knew that he didn't love her, still loved him and stay singled for the rest of her life for him. Hoang Dung (leading female), needless to say she married him so she still loved him. Duong Qua's, (main character for "The Condor Lovers") mother (in the book, they changed it, he had a different mother, not Moc Niem Tu who was in love with the main evil guy in LOCH) was in love with Quach Tinh, and although he knew that he didn't love her, she still loved him to the very end. And lastly, Moc Niem Tu, she was so in love with Duong Khang that when he died she committed suicide (in the book), but on the other hand the guys weren't like that.

    I know that Quach Tinh only loved Hoang Dimg but what about Duong Khang, he loved Moc Niem Tu, but when he realised that she isn't going to be with him unless he left all his riches and kill his adopted father, he decided that he didn't love her any more, so he went and liked Duong Qua's real mother, Tan Nam Cam. Like hello, how can girls be totally in love with one guy, and not be allowed to love anyone else but the guys can change so quickly?

    'Legend of the Condor Lovers'- Ok, now let's start counting how many girls were in love with Duong Qua:

    1. Tieu Long Nu (main leading female character)

    2. Hoang Nhan Binh (this girl at the start wanted to kill this guy but couldn't defeat him and Duong Qua help her, but she ended up not killing the guy anyway, she couldn't bring herself to do it because the only reason he lost to her is because he tried to stop her from committing suicide)

    3. Luc Vo Song (this is the girl that had a limp)
    4. Trinh Anh (Luc Vo Song's cousin, she is the disciple of West Weirdo Hoang Dung's father)

    5. Cong Ton Luc Ngac (she is the daughter of the guy that lives in the cave who tried to force Tieu Long Nu to marry him, she died at the end)



    Five girls were in love with Duong Qua, and guess what? They still loved him till the very end of the film. Tieu Long Nu, even with 16 years of separation, still maintained her love for him. Nguyen Nhan Binh, although did have a little fling with Vo Don Nho (one of the two guys who is in love with Quach Phu, Hoang Dung's daughter) she was just doing that to make Duong Qua jealous, but it didn't work so she stayed single for the rest of her life. Luc Vo Song and Trinh Anh both loved him and never ever even looked at another guy. Both stayed single for the rest of their lives. And Cong Ton Luc Ngac, she was the worse, she loved him so much that she even lied to her mother, stripped naked in front of her father to protect him. And she died at the end, but she still loved him. On the other hand, Vo Don Nho and Vo Tu VAn (the two brothers who was fighting over Quach PHu) both were in love with Quach Phu, but seeing that she did not love them, they both went looking for other loves, one went with Gia Luc Yen, one had a fling with Hoang Nhan Binh. That is just so unfair, all the girls had to stay in love with the same guy, but all the guys can fall in love with anyone whenever they wish.

    'The Smiling Proud Wanderer'- Lenh Ho Xuan (the main guy) is at first in love with Nhac Linh Sanh (his little kung fu sister) but when she doesn't love him, he goes and loves Nham Doanh Doanh (the girl from the evil sect). Whereas Nham Doanh Doanh is in love with him and always will be. Nghi Lam (the monk girl) who was also in love with him was still in love with him till the end.

    'The Demi Gods and Semi Devil'--o my god, did i hate Doan Du (the prince in one of the three main guys) or what. Moc Uyen Thanh (the girl in black who Doan Du met at the start) and Chunh Linh (a girl he met at the start then was both captured, she told him to go find her parents in that cave, where if you wanted to go in you must hit the word Doan) were both in love with him and stayed single for the rest of their lives for him. If anyone had read the book, they would have noticed that Doan Du was in love with Moc Uyen Thanh first but he didn't think she was the prettiet girl in the world therefore didn't want to marry her, he actually said that a man should marry the most beautiful woman for them not to waste their life. There's a saying that if there is no love there is no jealousy, that was expressed in much of Louis Cha's novels, and in this novel Doan Du was actually jealous because of Moc Uyen Thanh, therefore he must love her. But no, he went after Duong Ngoc Yen (the pretty girl who loved her cousin first then turn to love Doan Du). I have to say, Duong Ngoc Yen is the only girl that's ever changed her mind in love.

    'Duke of Mount Dear'-- this is the worse one yet. i don't believe that a guy can be in love with more then one girl at a time, let alone seven. In actual fact, he didn't love the Princess, it was only because she was pregnant with his child and didn't let him go that's why he married her. But all seven were in love with him (except for the Wife of the leader of that evil sect) and they stayed loyal to him.

    In conclusion, it is so unfair that Louis Cha's novel always makes the female be the one who understands the words 'everlasting love', it is on rare occasions that you find a guy who understands it too. That is why I find that if Louis Cha is going to write more stories, let him see the fact that we women aren't always going to be the one waiting for you men to turn around. Love is a two way thing, if it's a one way street, then let us do a u-turn.

    from one of our people source
    i.am.2too.

  6. #6
    Senior Member TuToo's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2004
    Location
    reality
    Posts
    342

    Default Novel List

    Book and Sword: Gratitude and Revenge
    (Shi Gim Yan So Luk)

    Jin Yong's first published novel. The story revolves around the Red Flower Society, led by its leader Chan Kar-lok, in its battle to overthrow the Manchu Dynasty. They are forced to rethink their mission after it is revealed that the current Manchu emperor, Qian Long (Chien Lung), is actually of Han birth, and is the older brother of Chan Kar-lok.



    Sword Stained with Royal Blood
    (Bik Huet Gim)

    Set in the final years of the Ming Dynasty. The story revolves around Yuen Sing-chi, the son of a Ming general who was wrongfully accused of treason by the Emperor Chong Zhen. Yuen grows up to be a master martial artist, who wants nothing more than to avenge his father, and clear his name. Complications arise when Yuen falls for the emperor's daughter.



    Flying Fox of Snowy Mountain
    (Zhit Zan Fei Wu)

    Not a feature length novel, but a short novel based on the exploits of the Flying Fox Wu Fei. The story is about Wu Fei's mission to avenge his parents, but Jin Yong uses Fei to bring out his parents' history and the reason they died.



    The Young Flying Fox
    (Fei Hu Wai Chuan)

    As the title suggests, this is a short novel about the early years of the Flying Fox, and his relationship with difficult girls. His love for justice and fighting for the good is counter-balanced by his cold-heartedness, and his inability to hold down friends.



    The Eagle-Shooting Heroes
    (Ser Dil Ying Hung Juen)

    The first part of a trilogy. Set in the Sung Dynasty (12th Century AD China) at a time when the Mongols were threatening to invade, the story is centred around a young man named Kwok Jing. Kwok grows up in Mongolia but is of Han descent. He becomes a staunch supporter of the Sung emperor, and vows to stop the Mongol invasion. Kwok falls in love with Wong Yung, the daughter of Wong Shin-yeung, one of the five greatest martial artists of the time. The others are: Wong Yat-si (The Sinister East); Ou Yeung-fung (The Evil West); Hung Chat-gung (Northern Beggar); and Duen Zhi-shing (Southern emperor).



    The Return of the Eagle heroes
    (San Dil Hap Lui)

    The second part of the trilogy. Set around twenty years after the first book, the Mongol hordes are invading China; Kwok Jing and his wife, Wong Yung, are desperately trying to save the city of Seung Yeung from falling to the Mongols. Although Kwok and his wife are featured prominently in the novel, the real hero of the book is Yeung Gor, the orphaned son of Yeung Hong (friend/enemy of Kwok Jing). Yeung has had a troubled upbringing, and is more of a rebel of the traditional themes. He meets a beautiful young woman called Little Dragon Girl, who teaches him martial arts. Later they fall in love, but due to fateful circumstances, they have to wait another sixteen years to be finally together.



    Heaven Sword and Dragon Sabre
    (Yee Ting Tung Lung Gey)

    Final part of the trilogy. Set around a hundred years after part two, the story revolves around the two greatest weapons on earth: the Heaven Sword and Dragon Sabre, said to be forged by Kwok Jing and Wong Yung. If combined together, the weapons would give the bearer ultimate power, so that he/she could rid China of the Mongols. The hero of the story is an orphan boy called Cheung Mo-kei, who gained great power from the Nine Sacred Scrolls. He becomes leader of the Ming Sect, and by the end of the novel, enables one of his commanders, Zhu Yuan Zhuang, to become the founder of the new Ming Dynasty; while Mo-kei runs off into the sunset with a Mongol princess.



    Demi Gods and Semi Devils
    (Ting Lung Bak Bo)

    Regarded as one of Jin Yong's greatest pieces of work. Demi Gods and Semi Devils is a very long story about the different behaviour aspects of people turned good/bad. The three heroes of the book are: Qill Fung, the leader of the Beggar society. Brought up by a Han couple, he believed himself to be of Han descent, but when it is revealed that he is actually a Khitan, his fellow members forces him out; Duen Yuet, a prince of Dali, is a young happy-go-lucky man whose good luck gets him the best of everything; and finally, Zhu, the cowardly monk, whose inability to fight becomes much a farce. But he overcomes his fears and becomes a master martial artist.



    Way of the Heroes
    (Hap Hak Hang)

    Story about twins, whose separation at birth leads them to have very different personalities. One is a serious goody-two-shoes, while the other is a mischievous brawler, whose obsession with good looking girls net him half a dozen wives.



    Requiem of Ling Sing
    (Ling Sing Kuet)

    One of the most depressing stories ever written by Jin Yong. Yun has had a poor upbringing, but his friendship with a girl gives him hope. However, she goes off with another bloke, which leaves poor Yun heartbroken. He learns some damn good martial arts, but is betrayed by people he thought to be friends.



    The Proud Smiling Wanderer
    (Sill Ou Gong Wu)

    One of the most famous of his works, this was different in respect that there were a number of anti-traditional themes within the story. Main hero Ling Wu Chung loses his girlfriend to another bloke; is betrayed by his master, and later faces Asia the Invincible.



    Deer and the Cauldron aka Duke of Mount Deer
    (Luk Ding Gey)

    Another one of Jin Yong's classics, and the last one he ever wrote. This is more of a comedy than a serious outlook on the jiang hu world. The hero Wai Siu Bo is more of an anti-hero, whose characteristics are certainly the very opposite of a traditional hero. He doesn't know any martial arts at all, and his crude womanising ways is certainly something a true hero would frown upon. However, his endearing qualities mean that he is quick to make friends, even turn enemies into friends, and he remains one of the best loved characters created by Jin Yong.

    source

    he wrote 14 novels. i missed 2, please check which are the 2 that missed.
    i.am.2too.

  7. #7
    Senior Member TuToo's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2004
    Location
    reality
    Posts
    342

    Default

    In the Eyes of the Culturati

    Mr. Louis Cha is a famous writer. His wu - xia novels are works of literature that earn popularity among the mass. He is at the same time as a successful entrepreneur, who has founded and built up the Ming Pao Daily News. He was a member of the Basic Law Drafting Committee and devoted his wholehearted effort and time to the job. Cha is among the few people who can command the fields of academic, ethics with business.

    "The advancement of knowledge and personal integrity is involved in a long term process of accumulation. School education is just a starting point. No matter good things or bad things, they all accumulated with time until the end of your life."

    I have long desired to interview Louis Cha. He is a talented writer, a candid and outspoken media boss as well as a carefree and gracious academic. To be able to interview him is already an honour to me, not to mention the opportunity to be benefited by his learned views on Chinese culture and on life. I was attracted by his gentility and grace. His smiles gave you warmth.


    Jin Yong we - xia novels are the beloved of a lot of readers. But which literary work is Cha's favourite? "Among Chinese novels I like "Hong Lou Meng" (Dream of the Red Chamber). You feel differently each time when you read it and re-read it at different ages. Among foreign writers I like Alexandre Dumas. His "The Three Musketeers" has influenced me the most. It inspired me to write my wu -xia novels. My style is deeply affected by Dumas."

    Cha also believes what makes up a great novel is the realistic depiction of human characters, the power to create and portrait a vivid character that people understand, have compassion with and are touched by what he does. Cha is indifferent to foreign contemporary novels.

    "I cannot understand contemporary novels. They fail to touch me. I am surprised at why modern and contemporary critics despise popular works and recommend only the high sounding ones. I would say this looks like 'the King's new clothes'". Does he feel pity for such literary development? He smiles, "No! No! When people cannot understand high sounding novels, they will turn to popular ones." Only works that stand the challenge of time become classics. Jin Yong novels can sustain popularity the stories depict a world of love and righteous that captures the heart of the readers.

    Jin Yong novels bring readers joy, and Cha has equal fun in creating them. "Writing gives you space for imagination and joy in creating characters, making them do whatever you like. Just like a director." Notwithstanding this, Cha said his real aim in writing novels is to assert traditional Chinese ethics and sublime moral qualities. "Wu - xia novels must depict justice and righteousness. Good people fight off bad guys. Good characters must not tell lies, be ungrateful and unfaithful to friends. They must be just and affectionate, conduct no violence and evil calculations. Traditional ethics are asserted through the characters and their stories, not by preaching with words." Literary works reflect author's beliefs. The novels at the same time reflect Cha's personal sense of justice, righteousness and sense of value.

    Founding Ming Pao Daily News reflects another side of Cha, his quest for truth. "A newspaper must always be open and serves the interest of most readers." Cha tells us his vision in founding the paper, "You must always tell the truth. If you agree to something, say it. If don't, say you don't. The key to Ming Pao's success is its courage to speak up, disregarding the pressures. I wrote editorials in Ming Pao Daily News to protest against unjust phenomena."

    Cha never gives up to non-justice. The courage comes from his deep beliefs, persistence and his sense of responsibility to the society, demonstrating Chinese traditional virtues. But to be a successful entrepreneur it requires completely different qualities. It requires efficiency, delicate management skills, accurate judgement of market information and flexibility. Yet Cha is successful in both fields, mastering all these qualities.

    Cha has contributed to the society in the role of literati for several decades. Now he is retired and leading a carefree life. "Now I concentrate on academic research. I am particularly interested in the history of the Han dynasty and the Rome Empire. Roman Empire has fallen while China is still here. I believe it has to do with some elements in Chinese culture." Cha remarks that the joy in writing novels comes from 'creation" while that of studing history comes form "discovery". He finds joy in evaluating history with new perspectives, concluding new theories, getting inspirations, and advancing spiritual civilization.

    On the declining respect shown to traditional Chinese values, Cha says, "Although we have accepted Western science and technology, our deep rooted family values cannot be shaken. Chinese Confucianism emphasizes harmony of human relationships. There are deep passions between father and son, brothers and friends. The westerners are too detached. Even the son goes Dutch with his father when dining out together. We Chinese think it impossible."

    Cha is also optimistic about Hong Kong's future. " Hong Kong is an international city. Hong Kong people are knowledgeable and have great exposure. But they share no passion on traditional Chinese culture. Upon Hong Kong's returning to the Mainland China and more frequent communications between the two places, Hong Kong people will get to know more about China and the greatness of the Chinese culture. It cannot happen overnight but I am optimistic on the outcome."

    Cha has faith in the future of the society. He understands that faith and trust is the cornerstone of the society, of the country's future, and the continuance of the cultural heritage. He believes community leaders should set up examples of sublime moral qualities, promote Chinese traditional values so as to enhance the overall ethical standard of the society.

    Finally Cha encourages us to improve our knowledge and moral qualities. He kindly gave me his new book, Compassionate Light in Asia. It is a dialogue between Cha and Mr. Daisaku Ikeda, the well-known religious thinker, on topics of literature, politics, culture, Buddhism and life. The book illustrates the unique views of these two famous persons.

    Cha's gracious manner and amiability in this short interview impressed me. His sincerity and passion towards people made me feel wonderful.


    "Culturati" reports
    i.am.2too.

  8. #8
    Senior Member allunderheaven's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2004
    Location
    ....earth...???
    Posts
    240

    Default

    one of them that u missed was 'the sword maiden of yeuh' a short story of the five warring states period. thankz alot the iformation is very informative for my fav author. thanks for your research

  9. #9
    Senior Member rabadi's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2002
    Posts
    2,308

    Default

    The Sword of Maiden Yueh is not considered as a novel, IIRC. It is a short story. The two novels you missed are Yin Yang Dao (sp?) and Bai Ma Xiao Xi Feng (junzi is doing the translation, be sure to check it in the wuxia translation forum).

  10. #10
    Senior Member Trinie's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2002
    Posts
    5,521

    Default

    Thank you so much for all of the info TuToo. I have read some of it before and am happy to read it again... It is great to read more about JY.
    Respect other people's opinions and views. If we learn how to do that than all of these fights and arguments will not occur.

  11. #11
    Senior Member Tazzy1972's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2004
    Location
    Tazzy Land
    Posts
    1,348

    Default

    interesting read
    TaZzY InC

  12. #12
    Junior Member
    Join Date
    Oct 2022
    Posts
    1

    Default

    nice post

Similar Threads

  1. Replies: 17
    Last Post: 05-16-15, 05:57 PM
  2. How did you know Jin Yong?
    By Yang Ming in forum Wuxia Fiction
    Replies: 34
    Last Post: 01-11-09, 10:26 PM
  3. Why did Louis Cha choose 16 years for ROCH?
    By scypEr in forum Wuxia Fiction
    Replies: 14
    Last Post: 07-04-08, 03:39 PM
  4. Someone criticizes Jin Yong!
    By Tom in forum Wuxia Fiction
    Replies: 19
    Last Post: 04-07-08, 09:42 AM
  5. new edition of Louis Cha novels
    By metwin1 in forum Wuxia Fiction
    Replies: 1
    Last Post: 01-10-04, 04:39 PM

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •