CenLit

• Asia, the largest continent in the world, has a vast literary tradition in terms of scope and length of existence
• The literary traditions of Asia are quite diverse, including a wide range of cultures, languages, and genres. They have been around for thousands of years and contain a wide variety of traditions. Ancient literature, poetry, drama, epics, folktales, and other forms of literature are included
• The literatures of Asia are a monument or a testament to the depth, complexity, and enduring imagination of the creative mind. They provide insights into the cultural, historical, and philosophical characteristics of the continent that is the largest in the world
• Literature in the Eastern hemisphere prospered and mirrored the developments in religion, war, and politics
• It is wise to study the Asian literature by geographical region
• China


  One of the world's cradles of civilization, has started its unbroken literary tradition in the 14th century BCE
• The preservation of the Chinese language (both spoken and written), has made the immeasurable prolonged existence of their literary traditions possible
• China has retained its reputation by keeping the fundamentals of its identity intact
• Poets of the Tang Dynasty (618-907), the finest era of Chinese literature

  • Du Fu
  • Li Po
  • Wang Wei
• Chinese writers in modern times are still creative and productive and have kept the Chinese literary tradition prosperous
• Du Fu


  Also known as Tu fu, according to many literary critics, he was the greatest Chinese poet of all time
• Du Fu's poem "The Ballad of the Army Cats"


  • It is about conscription—and with hidden satire that speaks of the noticeable luxury of the court
  • It vividly portrays the suffering and hardships endured by soldiers and their families during times of war
  • It captures the sense of loss, sacrifice, and the harsh realities of war, while also expressing empathy for the soldiers and their families
• Li Po


  • Also known as Li Bai, a Chinese poet who is a competitor of Du Fu as China's greatest poet
  • He was romantic in his personal life and his poetry
  • He is considered one of the greatest poets in Chinese literature, known for his romanticism, lyrical style, and love of nature
• Li Po's poem "Alone and Drinking under the Moon"


  • It deals with the ancient social custom of drinking
  • In this poem, Li Bai describes the scene of himself drinking alone under the moonlight. Despite being alone, he finds solace and companionship in the moon and his shadow
  • The poet creates a sense of intimacy with the natural world, as he shares a moment of contemplation and enjoyment with the moon and his own reflection
• Wang Wei


  • He was a poet, painter, musician, and statesman during the Tang dynasty (the golden ages of the Chinese cultural history)
  • He was the established founder of the respected Southern school of painter-poets
  • Many of his best poems were inspired by the local landscape. Wang Wei is renowned for his mastery of landscape poetry and his deep connection to nature
• Wang Wei's poem "Lu Zhai"


  • It reflects Wang Wei's profound appreciation for the natural world and his ability to capture its serene beauty in his poetry
  • Through simple yet elegant language, the poem invites readers to share in the poet's contemplative experience and to find solace in the quietude of the mountains
• Mo Yan


  • He was a fictionist who won the 2012 Nobel Prize for Literature
  • His first novel was "Red Sorghum", and still his best-known work
  • It tells the story of the Chinese battling Japanese intruders as well as each other during the 1930s. It relates the story of a family in a rural area in Shandong Province during this turbulent time
• Yu Hua


  • He was a world-acclaimed short story writer and considered as a champion for Chinese meta-fictional or postmodernist writing
  • His widely acclaimed novel "To Live" describes the struggles endured by the son of a wealthy land-owner while historical events caused and extended by the Chinese Revolution are fundamentally altering the nature of Chinese society
• Korea's literary tradition is greatly influenced by China's cultural dominance. As early as the 4th century CE, Korean poets wrote literary pieces in Classical Chinese poetry then transformations happened at the 7th century
• Hangul, Korean's distinct writing system and national alphabet, is developed in the 15th century that gave new beginnings of Korean literature
• In contemporary times, the Korean War has made a significant mark on Korean literature. In 1950, the themes present in the literary works are about alienation, conscience, disintegration, and self-identity
• Ch'oe Nam-Seon


  • He was considered a prominent historian, pioneering poet, and publisher in the Korean literature
  • He was also a leading member of the modern literary movement and became notable in pioneering modern Korean poetry
  • One of his works, the poem "The Ocean to the Youth" made him a widely acclaimed poet. The poem aimed to produce cultural reform. He sought to bring modern knowledge about the world to the youth of Korea
• Yi Kwang-su


  • He was also the one who launched the modern literary movement together with Ch'oe Nam-Seon
  • He was a novelist and wrote the first Korean novel "The Heartless" and became well-known because of it. It was a description of the crossroads at which Korea found itself, stranded between tradition and modernity, and undergoing conflict between social realities and traditional ideals
• Kim Ok


  • He was a Korean poet and included in the early modernism movement of Korean poetry
  • He wrote the first Korean collection of translation from Western poetry "The Dance of Agony"
• Yun Hunggil


  • He was a South Korean novelist who won the 1977 Korean Literature Writers Award
  • He wrote the classic novel "Changma"(The Rainy Spell) that on a post-war family with two grandmothers and their shared grandson
• Pak Kyongni


  • She was a South Korean poet and novelist
  • She wrote the Korean's masterpiece and internationally acclaimed 21-volume epic novel T'oji ("The Land"), wherein she chronicled the violent Korean history from 1897 to 1945
• Japan has a rich and unique literary history even though it has been influenced by the Chinese language and Chinese literature
• Haiku


  A short descriptive poem with 17 syllables, a world-renowned poetic genre in Japan
• Noh


  A traditional Japanese theatrical form and one of the oldest extant theatrical forms in the world
• Kabuki


  A traditional Japanese popular drama with singing and dancing performed in a highly stylized manner
• Japanese literature reflects simple yet complex, imperfect yet abounding with beauty–the traditional Japanese cultural identity
• In contemporary times, Western influences take part in the Japanese literature, specifically in the pioneering of modern Japanese novels, translations of the poetry, and reinventions of traditional Japanese poetic forms like haiku and tanka
• Abe Kobo


  • A Japanese novelist and playwright, also known by the pseudonym of Abe Kimifusa
  • He wrote the best-known play "Tomodachi" (Friends) which is a story, with dark humor, reveals the relationship with the other, and exposes the peculiarity of human relations in the present age
  • He also won the 1967 Akutagawa Award and the 1951 Akutagawa Award for his short novel Kabe ("The Wall")
• Abe Kobo's play "Tomodachi" (Friends)


  • It explores themes of friendship, loyalty, and the complexities of human relationships
  • It delves into the dynamics of power and influence within friendships, as well as the blurred boundaries between admiration and manipulation
  • It touches on the disillusionment that can arise when one discovers the flaws and vulnerabilities of a beloved friend
• Kimitake Hiraoka (Mishima Yukio)


  • The most important Japanese novelist of the 20th century
  • He was one of the finalists of the 1963 Nobel Prize for Literature and won numerous awards for his works
  • He wrote the novel "The Temple of the Golden Pavilion" and won Yomiuri Prize from Yomiuri Newspaper Corporation for the best novel
• Mishima Yukio's novel "The Temple of the Golden Pavilion"


  • It explores themes of beauty, obsession, and the destructive impulses that lie within the human psyche
  • Through Mizoguchi's character, Mishima delves into the complexities of desire, identity, and the search for meaning in a world that often seems indifferent and chaotic
  • The novel is renowned for its rich and evocative prose, as well as its exploration of existentialist themes and the clash between traditional Japanese values and the modern world
• Ryūnosuke Akutagawa


  • He was a Japanese writer and regarded as the Father of the Japanese short story
  • He wrote the short story "Rashomon" that recounts the encounter between a servant and an old woman in the dilapidated Rashōmon, the southern gate of the then-ruined city of Kyoto, where unclaimed corpses were sometimes dumped
  • The Akutagawa Prize, Japan's premier literary award was named after him to honor his memory after he died by committing suicide
• Ryūnosuke Akutagawa's short story "Rashomon"


  • It is famous for its exploration of the nature of truth and the subjectivity of human perception
  • It raises questions about memory, perception, and the inherent ambiguity of storytelling
  • It also delves into themes of morality, justice, and the darker aspects of the human psyche
• Haruki Murakami


  • He was a Japanese novelist who won the international award Jerusalem Prize
  • He also won the Gunzou Literature Prize for his first novel "Hear the Wind Sing"
  • It featured episodes in the life of an unnamed protagonist and his friend, the Rat, who hang out at a bar
  • The unnamed protagonist reminisces and muses about life and intimacy
  • Murakami's work has been translated into more than fifty languages
• Existentialism


  • It focuses on the individual's experience of existence and the search for meaning in a seemingly indifferent or absurd world
  • It emphasizes the importance of individual freedom, choice, and responsibility, as well as the inherent anxiety and uncertainty that accompany human existence