زن دیوانه روی پل

by Su Tong, کیهان بهمنی (Translator)

زن دیوانه روی پل لباسی سنتی بر تن دارد و مایل نیست این لباس را از خود دور کند. در اوج گرمای تابستان و به‌‌رغم تمسخر مردم شهر، او با حالتی مجنون‌وار روی پل می‌ایستد. تا این‌که خانم دکتر جوانی که مسحور زیبایی لباس زن دیوانه شده است، نقشه می‌کشد که این لباس را از زن بگیرد و پس از آن اتفاقات تراژیک بعدی روی می‌دهد. این داستان‌های عجیب و پراحساس که به‌شکلی زیبا به فروپاشی شکوه چین باستان و سلسله‌های پادشاهی نابودشده می‌پردازند، دوران پس از انقلاب چین و بحبوحه سقوط اخلاقیات را که درنتیجه کمونیسم و اقتصاد ببری آن به‌وجود آمده ترسیم می‌کنند. از مردم‌شناسی که خود قربانی تحقیقات روستایی خود می‌شود، تا دکتری که روش درمان نازایی‌ او منجر به تولد نوزادی غول‌پیکر می‌شود و دزد نوجوانی که قطار قرمز رنگی را می‌‌دزدد تا بعد آن را از او بدزدند، داستان‌هایی از سو تونگ هستند که نگاهی عمیق به نهاد بشریت دارند.

Genres: Short Stories, China, Fiction, Chinese Literature, Asia, Asian Literature, Literature

296 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

About the author

Su Tong (simplified Chinese: 苏童; traditional Chinese: 蘇童; pinyin: Sū Tóng; born January 23, 1963) is the pen name of Chinese writer Tong Zhonggui (童忠贵 Tóng Zhōngguì). He was born in Suzhou and lives in Nanjing.

He entered the Department of Chinese at Beijing Normal University in 1980, and started to publish novels in 1983. He is now vice president of the Jiangsu Writers Association. Known for his controversial writing style, Su is one of the most acclaimed novelists in China.

(from Wikipedia)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Su_Tong

Reviews

[Arghavan-紫荆 · Rating 3 out of 5]

سوتونگ ، نویسنده معاصر چینی که بین مردم چین بسیار شناخته شده و پرطرفداره؛ مهارت خیلی خوبی در توصیف جزئیات،احساسات،پوشش و ظرافت های زنانه داره.
کتاب از چند داستان کوتاه تشکیل شده که اسم کتاب درواقع اسم اولین داستانِ کتاب هست.
کتاب اول یکبار به انگلیسی ترجمه شده و بعد جناب کیهان بهمنی متن انگلیسی رو به فارسی برگردان کردن، ترجمه ی روان و خوبی هست اما درمقایسه با متن اصلی، طنز تلخ شیرینِ قلم سوتونگ رو نداره(که البته اکثر اوقات که ترجمه از متن اصلی نیست این اتفاق می افته).
سوتونگ توی این داستان باورهای خرافی، رفتار زنان عامه ی چین و تاحدودی هم فرهنگ پوشش زنانه در چین رو نقد می‌کنه و اگر به فرهنگ چین و شرق شناسی علاقه دارید این داستان میتونه شمارو راضی کنه .

[Bahman Bahman · Rating 3 out of 5]

زن دیوانه روی پل لباسی سنتی بر تن دارد و مایل نیست این لباس را از خود دور کند. در اوج گرمای تابستان و به رغم تمسخر مردم شهر، او با حالتی مجنون‌وار روی پل می‌ایستد

[Sephreadstoo · Rating 4 out of 5]

*Disclaimer: per qualche ragione l'edizione italiana di "Spiriti senza pace" di Goodreads è stata combinata con la raccolta di short stories in inglese di "The madwoman and the bridge".

Hua Jindou è un semplice operaio si suicida, lasciando orfani quattro figlie e un figlio di cui si occuperà la sorella maggiore nubile di Jidou.
Una volta arrivato nell'Altro Mondo, il nostro protagonista si ritrova impantanato nella burocrazia ultraterrena, che lo lascia senza numerino di smistamento, condannandolo a rimanere sospeso tra Paradiso e Inferno.
Jindou, però, è più interessato a seguire le vicende dei suoi famigliari sulla Terra, anche se non può intervenire, e seguirà i figli e la sorella in tutte le difficili sfide quotidiane.

Su Tong è uno dei miei autori di conforto. Ogni volta che lo leggo, rimango intrappolata in un mondo in cui realtà e dimensione immaginifica si intrecciano sempre in modo organico e convincente.
Jindou è un uomo comune con una cultura limitata e da spirito non segue la famiglia insignito di una qualche illuminazione, ma con tutti i pregiudizi derivati da una vita contadina prima e operaia dopo.
Così assiste deluso dalla scoperta del l'omosessualità, dalle tribolazioni e dalle perdite della sua famiglia con tutta la semplicità di un padre preoccupato.

"Spiriti senza pace" non è solo un libro malinconico, ma come si partecipa alle varie sfide della famiglia, si condivide anche una sentita risata per le situazioni tragicomiche a cui si assiste sia sulla Terra che nell'Altro Mondo.

[Kamila Kunda · Rating 4 out of 5]

From many still unread Chinese books I have in my parents’ house I reached for this collection of short stories during my last holidays. Su Tong is the author of famous “Raise the Red Lantern”, which Zhang Yimou adapted into one of my all-time favourite films (here I consider the film much better than the novella). “Madwoman on the Bridge” is a collection of short stories, published in English in 2009. I cannot judge the translation but the style in which these stories were written seemed to me to be very traditional, reminiscent of some Chinese books I read in the 1990s and early 2000s.

The stories themselves take place in the 2000s, however often refer to folk tales, legends or not yet processed trauma of the Cultural Revolution. Some of them were slightly macabre, a bit absurdist in places, many addressed a generational gap as well as difficulties of combining past experiences with the present circumstances and the changes regarding people’s social standing. The hustle economy, which started flourishing in China in the 1990s and has been thriving until now, is also reflected in characters’ behaviour and decisions described by Su Tong. There are some eerie undertones in some stories, which show how much China is populated not only by hundreds of millions of living people but also by spirits and ghosts of the ancestors or the non-living. I found stories which included this element of culture strongest and most engaging.

Overall, I felt I was taken a bit back in time with these stories. There was nothing groundbreaking or too thought-provoking for me in Su Tong’s writing but still, they are good tales which give in insight into the culture.

[Andy Quan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Su Tong is the author of Raise the Red Lantern, which was made into a rather famous movie, which I have to admit I never saw. However, I have come across a translation of his first collection of first stories, Madwoman on the Bridge, and an interesting artefact it is. Expertly translated by Josh Stenberg, the stories have the quality of fable, though with ambiguous moral lessons. They tend to end abruptly, and may offer a framing device where the story is being told in the setting of another story.

Most fascinating to me were simple, throw-away lines that described a culture unfamiliar to me, without need to go into detail: hints of the social standing of those under communism, a parent’s whim that it was good for children to socialise with ‘the proletariats’, a society that was changing through migration, commerce and evolving politics. On the other hand, some of the characters felt crude and simple. Two different characters become obsessed with a material object (a dress in one, a toy train in another). Nearly every story has a character that suffers a dark, gothic fate: death in a car accident, locked in a mental asylum, a hand maimed by a parent.

And like fairy tales, the details don’t always make sense. A truck driver witnesses an accident that happens in an instant in the pouring rain and drives off; but he describes the man killed and situation in close detail, granted a literary omniscience. In any case, it really is an interesting collection.

[jamaicaska · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was the last book I bought before 2009 ended. I bought this out of curiosity after hearing a book review of this on the radio. Add to that my interest with Asian-inspired stories and Asian authors. I havent read Raise the Red Lantern but have heard good reviews about it. This gave me enough reason to buy this book...feeling that Su Tong would not disappoint me.

This book is a compilation of short stories set during the fall-out of Cultural Revolution. Some of the stories amused me, others were dull. Im not sure if this has something to do with the fact that the stories were translated from Chinese to English that it might have lost their essence. There were notes provides on some pages providing facts on dynasties or cultural reference that could help the reader better understand the stories.

It was a tough read for me because some stories are can be dull and makes me think if I should give the succeeding stories a shot. Nevertheless, of all the stories included, I specifically liked the Madwoman on the Bridge, On Saturdays, Thieves and The Private Banquet.

[Glenys · Rating 3 out of 5]

I do not usually enjoy short stories but these are different. Very short and translated from Chinese with footnotes for non-Chinese readers. Interesting.

[Asya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Сборник рассказов, пронизанный чувством какой-то неустроенности и несчастливости. Противопоказано для летнего чтения. Весной читать с осторожностью. Осенью и зимой - исключительно по рекомендации врача.

[Niki · Rating 2 out of 5]

همان توصیف پشت کتاب بهترین بود
داستان هایی درمورد زوال اخلاقی بشریت!

[Rhys · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent collection of stories by the author who wrote the novella on which the film Raise the Red Lantern was based. I have always loved that film, and the main star Gong Li is one of my favourite actresses, so I decided to seek out the prose work of Su Tong. All the stories in this collection are good but the best is possibly the last of all, 'The Giant Baby', which really is a very strange and powerful story about fear and revenge. Many of the stories take place in China just after the Cultural Revolution and they are saturated with unease, even when nothing blatantly bad is happening.

[Richard · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think there are some pretty good stories in here, but I think I can pretty easily blame a lot of the awful writing in here to a bad translator. References to Chinese culture are clunky, footnotes are used to explain wordplay the translator doesn't even attempt in English, and some passages are virtually unreadable. But the stories themselves caught my interest...when I could actually read them. I would easily recommend other Su Tong before this book, even if there were a competent translation, but still some good stuff.

3 stars for the stories.
1 star for the translation.

[Mirvan. Ereon · Rating 5 out of 5]

ONE OF THE BEST SHORT STORY COLLECTIONS I HAVE EVER READ His books changed me... It made me love violence and erotic gore so much that I wanted to be a writer like him. Su Tong is the best Chinese writer for me!!!!!!!

[Aruna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not a beautiful book but an interesting one. Layers of metaphors add to the richness of the text. It is an easy read.

[Nikke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Entertaining :)

[Dave · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title story is destined to be a classic allegory, but there are many strong stories reflecting on China. Well-worth reading.

[Marc · Rating 5 out of 5]

five stars for the title story...outstanding

[Pedy · Rating 4 out of 5]

قدر این کتاب اینجا کمتر از اونچه که باید دونسته شده. مجموعه ای از چند داستان کوتاه مربوط به چین. نویسنده ی این کتاب قبلا داستان فانوس سرخ را بیافروز رو نوشته که ازش فیلم خیلی مشهوری ساخته شده

[Caro · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lu "a bicyclette”recueil de nouvelles chez picquier non trouvé sur goodreads

[Denise · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is super interesting! Many short stories! :)