Modernism and the Orient
Description
In Modernism and the Orient, Zhaoming Qian continues his interpretation of modern literature’s relationship to Asia. These twelve essays delve into the relationships major twentieth century modernists such as Ezra Pound, Virginia Woolf, James Joyce, and Marcel Proust had with Chinese and Japanese culture as well as examine Asia’s influence on modernist precursors such as Emily Dickinson and Oscar Wilde. In the book’s introduction, Qian writes “Modernism’s dialogue with the Orient constantly challenges scholars with its variations, contradictions, and ambivalences. These contributions not only reflect this but hope to advance ongoing research and debate on this critical topic.”
Reviews
"Modernism and the Orient is a splendid collection of a dozen essays about its subject, written by a talented group of contributors from both West and East…With this gathering, Zhaoming Qian continues his work as a our foremost interpreter of modernist literature’s relation to Asia." —George Bornstein, Professor Emeritus, University of Michigan
"In its readiness to trust the spirit in all its searching, flickering, glowing radiance Modernism and the Orient explores the permeable, ever changing boundaries of East and West in modern poetic practice. The scrupulous research, wide range of documentation and personal fervor which I delight in finding in Zhaoming Qian’s work bode especially well for the future of his enterprise." —Anne Luyat, Professor of English, Université d’Avignon
"In its assertion that 'East/West interconnections in the modernist movement must be interpreted case by case and interval by interval.' Modernism and the Orient offers us a lively model for future scholarship." —Anne Witchard, University of Westminster
Author Bio
Zhaoming Qian, formerly Chancellor’s Research Professor of English at the University of New Orleans, is Chair Professor of English and Comparative Literary Studies at Hangzhou Normal University. His books include Orientalism and Modernism: The Legacy of China in Pound and Williams (1995), The Modernist Response to Chinese Art: Pound, Moore, Stevens (2003), Ezra Pound and China (2003), and Ezra Pound’s Chinese Friends (2008). His current project is East/ West Collaboration & Renewal of Modernism.
