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Author: Ba Jin
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2000-05-01
Features: The Family is one of the three parts of Ba Jin's The. The consists of The Family, Spring, and Autumn. The work draws its material from a feudal family in old China, featuring a tyrannical patriarch, an obedient son who suffers in silence, men and women who fight for family property, young lives crushed, love stifled, and resistance against tyranny—all vividly depicted by the author for the readers. The moving narration and sincere, reveal the author's meticulousness and originality. The Family is the most influential and successful of the three works, establishing Ba Jin's status as a giant in modern Chinese literature.
Introduction: This book masterfully employs artistic techniques to create numerous typical literary figures. The book features over seventy characters, including the autocratic, aging, and decadent highest ruler of the feudal family, the representative of the feudal patriarchy, Grandfather Gao; the licentious, cruel false scholar and executioner Feng Leshan; the corrupted and wasteful wastrel, Fifth Uncle Ke Ding; the shrewd and greedy Fourth Uncle Ke An; and various other figures from the ruling class. There are also victims of feudal morality and rituals, such as the pure and fierce maid Mu Feng who dare to protest the feudal tyranny with her life, the gentle Miss Mei Fen who passively endures the consequences of old rituals, and the kind, compassionate, and tender youngest daughter-in-law Rui Jue, among others.