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Chinese Literature

Code: 105868 ECTS Credits: 6
2024/2025
Degree Type Year
2504012 Spanish and Chinese Studies: Language, Literature and Culture OB 3

Contact

Name:
Maialen Marin Lacarta
Email:
Desconegut

Teaching groups languages

You can view this information at the end of this document.


Prerequisites

None.


Objectives and Contextualisation

The aim of the course is to provide students with a panoramic view of the great literary currents of Chinese literature from its origins to the contemporary era. Upon completion of the course, students will learn about the chronology of Chinese literature, the major works of classical Chinese literature, as well as the most important works of Chinese literature of the 20th and 21st centuries. In addition, they must be able to decipher the aesthetic and literary keys of these works, and must also be able to identify and place the texts of the Chinese tradition in the original context based on their reading. Students will also need to be able to analyze classical texts as well as modern and contemporary texts in translation. Students are also expected to be able to justify their analyses and to critically present works from the Chinese tradition, modern and contemporary times.


Competences

  • Act with ethical responsibility and respect for fundamental rights and duties, diversity and democratic values.
  • Carry out critical reading and interpretation of texts using linguistic and literary concepts acquired.
  • Comment on literary texts in Spanish and in Chinese, situate them historically and relate them to the literary trends to which they belong.
  • Compare Spanish and Chinese from a literary and linguistic knowledge of both languages.
  • Demonstrate skills that facilitate teamworking.
  • Evaluate the influence of cultural references in Chinese studies in interlinguistic and intercultural communication.
  • Recognise the bases of the history of East Asia in general and China in particular, and interpret the historical and cultural relations and interactions between Europe and Asia.
  • Students must develop the necessary learning skills to undertake further training with a high degree of autonomy.
  • Use techniques for compilation, organisation and use of information and documentation with precision.

Learning Outcomes

  1. Apply the perspective of gender to the analysis of literary production in modern and contemporary East Asia.
  2. Demonstrate a knowledge of literary trends.
  3. Describe and analyse values, beliefs and ideologies of East Asia.
  4. Describe, analyse and evaluate the history, thought and literature of East Asia.
  5. Describe, analyse and valorise the history, thought and literature of East Asia.
  6. Develop strategies for autonomous learning.
  7. Differentiate between literary genres and identify the specificities.
  8. Ensure quality standards for your own work.
  9. Evaluate the result obtained in the process of searching for documentation and information and to update knowledge of the history, literature, language, thought and art.
  10. Explain the explicit or implicit code of practice of one's own area of knowledge.
  11. Generate innovate and competitive perspectives in research and in professional activity.
  12. Identify and describe the processes and events of pre-modern, modern and contemporary history.
  13. Identify, differentiate between and use different linguistic genres.
  14. Integrate literary knowledge to solve translation problems.
  15. Know, understand, describe and analyse the values, beliefs and ideologies of East Asia.
  16. Make document searches in the languages of East Asian countries.
  17. Possess interpersonal skills.
  18. Recognise the connotations of specific cultural references in the area of East Asia studies, and evaluate their influence on interlinguistic and intercultural communication.
  19. Recognise the referential universe of written and spoken texts in the languages of East Asia.
  20. Resolve problems of intercultural communication.
  21. Use different tools for specific purposes in the field of history.
  22. Work in teams in an international multilingual and multicultural context.

Content

This compulsory third-year subject will introduce students to Chinese literature from the earliest times to the present day by studying its main characteristics, the most representative currents, the main authors and some of the most relevant literary texts (in translation, with the exception of some easier modern and contemporary texts of which the original in Chinese will also be provided).

The course is divided into two major blocks: one for classical Chinese literature and one focusing on modern and contemporary literature.

The selection of topics may include the following:

  • Early Chinese texts (e.g. Book of Poetry and the classical canon)
  • Drama (e.g. Yuan drama)
  • Poetry writings (e.g. Tang Poetry and Song Lyrics)
  • Fictions and prose from the Ming Dynasty to the May Fourth Movement
  • Contemporary writings from the Chinese Mainland, Taiwan, and Hong Kong

Activities and Methodology

Title Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Type: Directed      
Analysis of texts 22.5 0.9 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22
Lectures 26 1.04 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 10, 12, 15, 18, 19, 20
Type: Supervised      
Reading texts 30 1.2 3, 6, 7, 9, 13, 18, 19, 20, 21
Type: Autonomous      
Study (primary and secondary sources) 45.5 1.82 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19

The presentations of the great literary movements and of the most representative authors as well as their historical context will be combined with the reading and commentary of specific works (or fragments).

Students must ACTIVELY PARTICIPATE in the classes and will have to do the corresponding readings for each class.

The basic readings will be uploaded to Moodle each week.

Students are also expected to study on their own in order to supplement the information given during the guided sessions.

Annotation: Within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.


Assessment

Continous Assessment Activities

Title Weighting Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Content-related test 30 % 2 0.08 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 12, 13, 14, 15, 18, 19, 20, 21
Essay (translation criticism) 30 % 12 0.48 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19, 20, 21
Reading reports 10 % 10 0.4 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 12, 15, 17, 18, 19, 21, 22
Readings Test 30 % 2 0.08 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 12, 13, 14, 15, 18, 19, 21

The evaluation consists of four tests:

  • Content-related test (30%)

Brief questions about the knowledge presented in class (literary currents, authors, historical context).

  • Essay: Translation Criticism (30%)

Criticism of poetry translations. The expected format for this exercise will be explained in class.

  • Reading test (30%)

Questions about the basic readings commented in class.

  • Reading reports (10%)

A brief reading report must be submitted through Moodle every week. These reports will not be graded, but they are compulsory and will be the basis for class discussion.

Review

When publishing final marks prior to recording them on students' transcripts, the lecturer will provide written notification of a date and time for reviewing assessment activities. Students must arrange reviews in agreement with the lecturer.

Missed/failed assessment activities

Students may retake assessment activities they have failed or compensate for any they have missed, provided that those they have actually performed account for a minimum of 66.6% (two thirds) of the subject's final mark and that they have a weighted average mark of at least 3.5.

The lecturer will inform students of the procedure involved, in writing, when publishing final marks prior to recording them on transcripts. The lecturer may set one assignment per failed or missed assessment activity or a single assignment to cover a number of such activities. Under no circumstances may an assessment activity worth 100% of the final mark be retaken or compensated for. In case of retaking, maximum grade will be 5 (Pass).

Classification as "not assessable"

In the event of the assessment activities a student has performed accounting for just 25% or less of the subject's final mark, their work will be classified as "not assessable" on their transcript.

Misconduct in assessment activities

Students who engage in misconduct (plagiarism, copying, personation, etc.) in an assessment activity will receive a mark of “0” for the activity in question. In the case of misconduct in more than one assessment activity, the student involved will be given a final mark of “0” for the subject. Assessment activities in which irregularities have occurred (e.g. plagiarism, copying, impersonation) are excluded from recovery.

Single assessment

This subject may be assessed under the single assessment system in accordance with the terms established in the academic regulations of the UAB and the assessment criteria of the Faculty of Translation and Interpreting.

Students must make an online request within the period established by the faculty and send a copy to the teacher responsible for the subject, for the record.

Single assessment will be carried out in person on one day during week 16 or 17 of the semester. The Academic Management Office will publish the exact date and time on the faculty website.

On the day of the single assessment, teaching staff will ask the student for identification, which should be presented as a valid identification document with a recent photograph (student card, DNI/NIE or passport).

Single assessment activities

The final grade for the subject will be calculated according to the following percentages:

 The final grade of the subject will be set according to the following percentages:

Classical literature test: 25%

Classic texts test: 25%

MC Literature Test: 25%

Modern literature texts test: 25%

The 4 tests will be similar to those that will be carried out for continuous evaluation (see above)

Grade revision and resit procedures for the subject are the same as those for continual assessment. See the section above in this study guide.


Bibliography

The compulsory readings for each week will be available on Moodle.

Recommended readings:

Chen, Eoyang E. The Transparent Eye: Reflections on Translation, Chinese Literature, and Comparative Poetics. Hanolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1993.

Cheung, Martha. Hong Kong Collage: Contemporary Stories and Writings. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998.

Dañino, Guillermo. Esculpiendo dragones: antología de la literatura china (tomos 1 y 2). Lima: Fondo Editorial PUCP, 1996.

Denecke, Wiebke; Li, Wai-yee; Tian, Xiaofei. The Oxford Handbook of Classical Chinese Literature. Oxford: OUP, 2017.

Denton, Kirk A. The Columbia Companion to Modern Chinese Literature. New York, Columbia University Press, 2016.

Hong, Zicheng. A History of Contemporary Chinese Literature. Trans. Michael Day. Leiden: Brill, 2007.

Idema, Wilt L. and Lloyd Haft. A Guide to Chinese Literature. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1997.

Lau, Joseph and Howard Goldblatt, (eds.). Columbia Anthology of Modern Chinese Literature. New York: Columbia University Press, 1994.

Mair, Victor H. (ed.). The Columbia History of Chinese Literature. New York: Columbia University Press, 2002.

Martínez-Robles, David; Prado-Fonts, Carles (coords.); Llamas González de Amezúa, Regina; Relinque Eleta, Alicia; Suárez Girard, Anne-Hélène. Literatura xinesa. Barcelona: UOC, 2004.

McDougall, Bonnie and Kam Louie. The Literature of China in the Twentieth Century. New York: Columbia University Press, 1997.

Mcdougall, Bonnie S. The Literature of China in the Twentieth Century. New York: Columbia University Press, 1999

Minford, John and Joseph Lau (eds.). An Anthology of Translations: Classical Chinese Literature: Volume I: From Antiquity to the Tang Dynasty. New York; Hong Kong: Columbia University Press and Chinese University Press, 2000.

Minford, John and Joseph Lau (eds.). Classical Chinese Literature. New York: Columbia University Press, 1996.

Nienhauser, William H. The Indiana Companion to Chinese Literature. Taipei: SMC Publishing, 1986.

Owen, Stephen. An Anthology of Chinese Literature. Beginnings to 1911. New York: Norton, 1996.

Prado-Fonts, Carles i Martínez-Robles, David (eds.), Relinque Eleta, Alicia. Narrativas chinas: ficciones y otras formas de no-literatura: de la dinastía Tang al siglo XXI. Barcelona: UOC, 2008

Prado-Fonts, Carles i Martínez-Robles, David (eds.), Relinque Eleta, Alicia. Narrativas chinas: ficciones y otras formas de no-literatura: de la dinastía Tang al siglo XXI. Barcelona: UOC, 2008.


Software

Not foreseen. 


Language list

Name Group Language Semester Turn
(TE) Theory 1 Chinese second semester morning-mixed