Wives and concubines in abundance

Author: Su Tong
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2000-06-01
Features: The Story of Qiqi is considered a typical representative work of renowned author Su Tong's transition from "avant-garde" to "new realism" style. Although the novel tells a story that follows an old formula—a "new woman's" marriage tragedy in an old-fashioned family—Su Tong uses modern narrative methods and pure, transparent language to create a vivid and striking story setting for readers. It leaves a lasting impression. The famous film Big Red Lantern directed by renowned director Zhang Yimou is adapted from this book. The Story of Qiqi uses the unique feudal family model of old China as the framework for the novel, with a man marrying four women as his wives. However, the author is not concerned with how one man navigates among the four women or controls them, but rather with how the four women become entangled together under one man's neck, like a withering vine in thin air, mutually strangling each other for that little bit of air. The Story of Qiqi is one of the most exquisite works in "new historical fiction." Due to the adaptation of the novel The Story of Qiqi into the film Big Red Lantern, the relationship between serious novels and films has gradually become a hot topic in academic circles. Su Tong's novels possess a broad spirit, a moist atmosphere, magnificent dreams, and a gentle temperament.