The People's Bard: How China Made Shakespeare its Own

by Nancy Pellegrini

From the first staging of the Merchant of Venice in 1913, to experimental interpretations in contemporary theaters, Shakespeare plays have been embraced in China. Touching on mortal themes of love and loss, revenge and guilt, his works have transcended the boundaries of language and culture. This book explores the unique story of how the Bard of Avon became the People’s Bard and the universality of his literary genius.

152 pages, Paperback

Published June 1, 2017

Reviews

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very interesting, short essay about the way China embraced and interpreted Shakespeare. The roots began before the first Opium War, as Chinese officials turned to Shakespeare to better understand the British. The dramatic scenes and soliloquys imparting lessons and observations about life and human nature appealed to the Chinese at the time. And Shakespeare's poetic prose caused competition on who could deliver an equally worthy poetic translation. One of the more interesting books on Shakespearean scholarship and interpretation I have read in a while.

[Dan Vine · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an interesting book but it raises more questions than it answers. At times, it is hard to keep track of the meaning Chinese words (for different dramatic forms) and individuals. On one occasion, I was on the verge of going back through the book to see where an unfamiliar term had been defined only to discover that it was defined later in the book. It discussing events in the past, the author often quotes contemporary sources in the past tense, which is also confusing. Having finished the book, I now know that the Chinese have taken to Shakespeare in surprising ways but I feel I have only the haziest notion of why that is the case.