Border Town

Author: Shen Congwen
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2007-06-01
Features: Some of Shen Congwen's novels depict urban life, such as The Second Baboon, Like Ruyi, and The Eight Horses. These novels are satirical but tend to be superficial. He also wrote a different kind of novel that portrays the primitive customs and simple humanity of Western Hunan, often tinged with a touch of melancholy for life, such as Xiao Xiao and The Husband. Novels like Moonlit Scenery and The Vegetable Garden critique ignorant traditions and dark realities. However, what truly established Shen Congwen's place in literary history are the "pastoral" novels like Border Town—set against the backdrop of Western Hunan's human relationships, nature, and customs, aiming to showcase pure humanity and idealized human conditions. These novels, with their sincere emotions, elegant language, and poetic sentiments, create a Shen Congwen-style ideal world for us, like fresh and serene pastoral songs, expressing his deep affection for Western Hunan, his reverence for nature, and his imagination of the most virtuous and beautiful human relationships and harmonious, tranquil ideal states. Shen Congwen's unique cultural choices and perspectives are perfectly embodied in these novels, making them the enduring part of his literary works. Border Town, completed in 1943, is a representative of this "pastoral" style and also a peak in Shen Congwen's literary creation.