Ask the Author: Alice Poon
Answered Questions (12)
Alice Poon
Hi Nita, I have not read the novels mentioned. According to Wikipedia, Ning Yi is the name of the male lead in The Rise of Phoenixes. I'm not into games and so I'm afraid I can't help.
Alice Poon
To my best guess, I don't think it likely they would bother to read any English novel. Even widely popular English novels that have political nuances like The Poppy War trilogy have hardly attracted their attention :)
Alice Poon
I hope that my novel will send this message, which cannot be repeated often enough: that the world needs to make greater efforts to celebrate women’s contributions and to heed their voices.
I wrote Tales of Ming Courtesans not only to tell the poignant stories of three ill-fated courtesans who showed incredible moral grit and integrity in their struggle against abuse, but, more importantly, to highlight the fact that each of these three women left a lasting legacy on Chinese literature and operatic music respectively.
Liu Rushi was a poetry prodigy and was published by the age of 17. She left behind a significant body of poetic works and epistolary writings, which, since the publication of her biography in 1980, have drawn the serious attention of academicians. Some of her paintings can be found today at the Freer Gallery of Art in Washington DC.
Both Chen Yuanyuan and Li Xiangjun were virtuoso kunqu opera singers and their skills impacted on the development of China’s operatic art. Kunqu opera was the most popular form of entertainment in those times. It had originated in Kunshan in the Suzhou Prefecture and later spread to the whole of Jiangnan. It was in fact the precursor to the more well-known Peking opera. In 2001, UNESCO named kunqu opera as a masterpiece of intangible cultural heritage.
I wrote Tales of Ming Courtesans not only to tell the poignant stories of three ill-fated courtesans who showed incredible moral grit and integrity in their struggle against abuse, but, more importantly, to highlight the fact that each of these three women left a lasting legacy on Chinese literature and operatic music respectively.
Liu Rushi was a poetry prodigy and was published by the age of 17. She left behind a significant body of poetic works and epistolary writings, which, since the publication of her biography in 1980, have drawn the serious attention of academicians. Some of her paintings can be found today at the Freer Gallery of Art in Washington DC.
Both Chen Yuanyuan and Li Xiangjun were virtuoso kunqu opera singers and their skills impacted on the development of China’s operatic art. Kunqu opera was the most popular form of entertainment in those times. It had originated in Kunshan in the Suzhou Prefecture and later spread to the whole of Jiangnan. It was in fact the precursor to the more well-known Peking opera. In 2001, UNESCO named kunqu opera as a masterpiece of intangible cultural heritage.
Alice Poon
Throughout China's dynastic history, very little distinction was made between a courtesan and a prostitute, as both were legally classified as "entertainers" and as such, they belonged to the lowly caste of "jianmin" (worthless people) who ranked below commoners. From the Tang dynasty up to the Qing, entertainers (including courtesans, actresses and prostitutes) had to be registered with the court-run music and dance schools, which operated under the Ministry of Rites.
Generally speaking, a courtesan was someone who entertained men for a living, who possessed certain artistic skills like music, dancing, painting etc. and who could choose whether or not to offer clients bed favors, whereas a prostitute was unskilled and who only offered bed services.
The late-Ming courtesan culture was unique because there was an unprecedented number of cultured courtesans who engaged in the high art of poetry writing. It could be said that courtesans from this era enjoyed much more respect than their counterparts who lived in earlier times or after. This phenomenon had in fact been rooted in the nonconformist literati’s threefold discontent in those unsettling times.
Politically the liberal-minded scholars were dismayed with incompetent rulers and a corrupt court dominated by self-serving eunuchs. On a personal level, they felt stifled by the orthodox Neo-Confucianism teachings that advocated suppression of personal desires as well as adherence to rigid moral codes. In regards to officialdom pursuits, they were fed up with civil exams that prohibited any form of creative writing, forcing candidates to write only prosaic and dull essays that focused on the Four Books and Five Classics.
As a form of protest and outlet for pent-up emotions, these scholars set up private poetry societies, where they could engage freely in political discourse, poetry writing and appreciation, and overt promotion of poetry written by cultured courtesans who shared their political ideals. It was against this backdrop that high-minded courtesans’ literary talents found a nurturing harbor.
Because of the appearance of these quasi-political poetry societies, there was an explosion of poetry anthologies that included works by both the literati and the famous courtesans. In fact, anthologizing courtesans’ poetry became a popular activity at the poetry societies. Liu Rushi, a protagonist in Tales of Ming Courtesans, was a renowned poet-courtesan who churned out a significant body of poetic works at a very young age, and was known for her cross-dressing as a scholar and mingling with the literati.
Generally speaking, a courtesan was someone who entertained men for a living, who possessed certain artistic skills like music, dancing, painting etc. and who could choose whether or not to offer clients bed favors, whereas a prostitute was unskilled and who only offered bed services.
The late-Ming courtesan culture was unique because there was an unprecedented number of cultured courtesans who engaged in the high art of poetry writing. It could be said that courtesans from this era enjoyed much more respect than their counterparts who lived in earlier times or after. This phenomenon had in fact been rooted in the nonconformist literati’s threefold discontent in those unsettling times.
Politically the liberal-minded scholars were dismayed with incompetent rulers and a corrupt court dominated by self-serving eunuchs. On a personal level, they felt stifled by the orthodox Neo-Confucianism teachings that advocated suppression of personal desires as well as adherence to rigid moral codes. In regards to officialdom pursuits, they were fed up with civil exams that prohibited any form of creative writing, forcing candidates to write only prosaic and dull essays that focused on the Four Books and Five Classics.
As a form of protest and outlet for pent-up emotions, these scholars set up private poetry societies, where they could engage freely in political discourse, poetry writing and appreciation, and overt promotion of poetry written by cultured courtesans who shared their political ideals. It was against this backdrop that high-minded courtesans’ literary talents found a nurturing harbor.
Because of the appearance of these quasi-political poetry societies, there was an explosion of poetry anthologies that included works by both the literati and the famous courtesans. In fact, anthologizing courtesans’ poetry became a popular activity at the poetry societies. Liu Rushi, a protagonist in Tales of Ming Courtesans, was a renowned poet-courtesan who churned out a significant body of poetic works at a very young age, and was known for her cross-dressing as a scholar and mingling with the literati.
Alice Poon
The period in question is one that straddles two ruling regimes: the Ming and the Qing dynasties. I have a particular interest in this turbulent period because growing up I had come across intriguing and poignant human stories of love, sacrifice, divided loyalties and patriarchal cruelty from the period through books, operas, movies and TV dramas. As a grown-up, I’ve found these stories highly relatable, as they seem to reflect in some way our present-day human condition.
Also, this period in Ming history saw the culmination of literary (in particular poetry) and music development. In particular, it witnessed a dynamic interaction between cultured courtesans and the literati, both in the romantic and literary sense.
In short, in Tales of Ming Courtesans I wanted to highlight three courtesans’ love stories and their gritty struggle against a misogynistic society, as well as capture the era’s unique and vibrant artistic tapestry.
[For other interview questions and my answers, please go to this link:
https://china-underground.com/2020/04...]
Also, this period in Ming history saw the culmination of literary (in particular poetry) and music development. In particular, it witnessed a dynamic interaction between cultured courtesans and the literati, both in the romantic and literary sense.
In short, in Tales of Ming Courtesans I wanted to highlight three courtesans’ love stories and their gritty struggle against a misogynistic society, as well as capture the era’s unique and vibrant artistic tapestry.
[For other interview questions and my answers, please go to this link:
https://china-underground.com/2020/04...]
Alice Poon
I read from a nonfiction book that Chen Yuanyuan at one time lived in a villa in Kunming built for her by Wu Sangui, called 安阜園 (Anfu Garden). Her 法名 at the Temple of Three Sages (三聖庵) was 寂靜, 又号玉庵禪師 (Yu An) (ref. Biographical Dictionary of Chinese Women (Qing Period: 1644 - 1911)).
Alice Poon
Hi, Jason, thank you for your questions. As I mentioned in the notes, although there are no official court documents to prove the marriage, there is enough literary evidence like poems and folklore that told about their marriage after Shunzhi's enthronement in the Forbidden City. As for Bumbutai's visit to the Kharakhotun Mountains and other romance details, they are instances of my taking artistic license.
Alice Poon
For Chinese imperial history, there is a comprehensive set of official histories entitled "The Twenty-Four Histories" or "The Orthodox Histories" covering a period from 3000 BC to the Ming Dynasty (17th century). This complete set was fixed and edited under the reign of Qianlong Emperor of the Qing Dynasty. As for the Qing Dynasty history, there is the "Draft History of Qing". Despite academic efforts to edit and finalize it, those efforts have been thwarted by political forces.
Alice Poon
As far as I know, there's a biography of Mao by Jung Chang & Jon Halliday, entitled "Mao: The Unknown Story". I haven't read it as I reckon there's no way of finding out whether it is historically accurate, not least because China has banned any discourse on the subject.
Alice Poon
Hi there, HBalikov! Thank you very much for leaving an interesting question.
You may be aware that China has a very lengthy imperial history and thus we may find that specific court customs of one dynasty might differ from another, especially where the ruling regime was a minority tribe like the Yuan Dynasty (under Mongolian rule) and the Qing Dynasty (under Manchu rule). In my novel, the period covered straddled the Ming Dynasty (under Han Chinese rule) and the Qing Dynasty (under the Manchus, whose origin was the Jurchen tribe). Bumbutai was a Mongolian princess belonging to the Khorchin Mongol tribe (descendants of Genghis Khan's brother Khasar). She was betrothed to Hong Taiji at the age of 12, who was then a Manchu Prince and who later became a Qing Emperor. As Bumbutai was born and grew up in the Mongolian steppe, she was taught to ride and shoot at a very tender age, as was customary among Mongolian children. Her grandfather saw it as his mission to maintain peace by offering his daughters and granddaughters in marriage to the princes of the rising Manchu Empire, who were overtly desirous of invading the Chinese Ming Empire, and he made it a point to educate his girls in the Manchu, Han Chinese and Mongolian languages and cultures. Hence, Bumbutai was brought up against such a background, and her marriage was an arranged marriage under her grandfather's auspices.
You may be aware that China has a very lengthy imperial history and thus we may find that specific court customs of one dynasty might differ from another, especially where the ruling regime was a minority tribe like the Yuan Dynasty (under Mongolian rule) and the Qing Dynasty (under Manchu rule). In my novel, the period covered straddled the Ming Dynasty (under Han Chinese rule) and the Qing Dynasty (under the Manchus, whose origin was the Jurchen tribe). Bumbutai was a Mongolian princess belonging to the Khorchin Mongol tribe (descendants of Genghis Khan's brother Khasar). She was betrothed to Hong Taiji at the age of 12, who was then a Manchu Prince and who later became a Qing Emperor. As Bumbutai was born and grew up in the Mongolian steppe, she was taught to ride and shoot at a very tender age, as was customary among Mongolian children. Her grandfather saw it as his mission to maintain peace by offering his daughters and granddaughters in marriage to the princes of the rising Manchu Empire, who were overtly desirous of invading the Chinese Ming Empire, and he made it a point to educate his girls in the Manchu, Han Chinese and Mongolian languages and cultures. Hence, Bumbutai was brought up against such a background, and her marriage was an arranged marriage under her grandfather's auspices.
Alice Poon
I’m working on my next historical novel, which is set in the same period as "The Green Phoenix". It is about the tragic lives of three famous courtesans: Liu Rushi (a poetess and painter), Li Xiangjun (an opera singer) and Chen Yuanyuan (a singer and pipa player).
Alice Poon
I was first drawn to Bumbutai (Empress Xiaozhuang) when I watched, back in 2003, a Chinese TV historical drama series about her life (entitled "The Secret History of Xiaozhuang" 孝莊秘史), which centered on the forbidden love between her and the Manchu Prince Dorgon. I became obsessed with her and the idea of writing about her. When I began to read historical materials on her, I became even more entranced by her political acumen and charismatic and selfless qualities. I am convinced that her contributions to humanity as a female leader in China’s patriarchal history has been grossly underrated. At the same time, I am aware that her story has never been introduced to Western readers.
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