Dream of the Red Chamber (Full Two Volumes)

Author: Cao Xueqin (Qing Dynasty), Gao E (Qing Dynasty)
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2001-10-01
Features: "Every word is written with blood, ten years of painstaking effort are extraordinary." Dream of the Red Chamber is a work of heart and soul by Cao Xueqin, written in adversity. Before his death, he mainly completed the first eighty chapters, while the last forty chapters were supplemented by Cheng Weiyuan and Gao E. Dream of the Red Chamber is the most profound reflection of its era in Chinese fiction, demonstrating unparalleled intellectual depth and philosophical pursuit that no other work can match. Through depicting the political decline, moral corruption, economic collapse, and the successive decline of the younger generation in the Jia family, the novel foreshadows the inevitable decline of the old system. Cao Xueqin created the vibrant and joyful Grand View Garden in the book, shaping two characters—Jia Baoyu and Daiyu—who embody his ideals and yearning for intellectual freedom and individual liberation. In the history of Chinese fiction, Dream of the Red Chamber stands as an insurmountable peak in both intellectual depth and artistic achievement. It represents the highest of Chinese fiction creation, a symbol of Chinese literature, and a masterpiece in world literature. Cao Xueqin to China is what Shakespeare is to England, Cervantes to Spain, and Goethe to Germany—a nation's outstanding contribution to world culture.