{"product_id":"persons-roles-and-minds-tina-lu-9780804737111","title":"Persons, Roles, and Minds: Identity in Peony Pavilion and Peach Blossom Fan","description":"\u003cp\u003eFocusing on two late-Ming or early-Qing plays central to the Chinese canon, this thought-provoking study explores crucial questions concerning personal identity. How is a person, as opposed to a ghost or animal, to be defined? How can any specific person (as distinguished, for example, from an impostor or twin) be identified? Both plays are \u003ci\u003echuanqi\u003c\/i\u003e, representatives of a monumental genre that represents Chinese dramatic literature at its most complex: Tang Xianzu's \u003ci\u003ePeony Pavilion\u003c\/i\u003e is a romantic comedy in 55 acts, and Kong Shangren's \u003ci\u003ePeach Blossom Fan\u003c\/i\u003e narrates the fall of the Ming Dynasty in 40 acts.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eNo reader of Chinese literature would find a sexual encounter between a young man and a female ghost surprising. In \u003ci\u003ePeony Pavilion\u003c\/i\u003e, however, the lovers actually marry and join human society--a possibility that invites speculation on the nature of personhood and agency. By contrast, \u003ci\u003ePeach Blossom Fan\u003c\/i\u003e addresses the question of identity in an explicitly political fashion. After the fall of Beijing, many men put forward imperial claims. Who, in a time of turmoil, is truly the Emperor? In a Confucian society, where hierarchy and identity are so interdependent, how does the lack of certainty about the Emperor's identity affect all human identities?\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe question of personal identity is intrinsically bound up with questions of agency, legal responsibility, and participation within a polity. Confucian patriarchy, in particular, implies an anxiety of identity: in order to serve one's father appropriately, one must first know who he is. Drawing on related contemporary sources, the author combines a range of perspectives, including literary criticism, philosophy, jurisprudence, and art history.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Tina Lu\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0804737118\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780804737111\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Stanford University Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 06\/01\/2002\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 376\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.51lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.00h x 6.00w x 1.00d","brand":"Tina Lu","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":48065144553727,"sku":"9780804737111","price":160.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_ebf16795-5103-4a15-b230-2577981d6df0.jpg?v=1768673288","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/persons-roles-and-minds-tina-lu-9780804737111","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}