Full Answer
Is there a Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress movie?
Dai Sijie directed the 2002 film version of Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress himself. Though the Chinese government granted Dai permission to film near where he himself was re-educated, China banned the finished film from being screened in the country. Brock, Zoë.
How many languages has the Little Chinese Seamstress been translated into?
It has been translated into 25 languages as of 2017. Dai lives in Paris and writes primarily in French, though he does possess a Chinese passport and can travel to and from China freely. Get the entire Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress LitChart as a printable PDF.
What is the style of Balzac?
Publishers Weekly stated that Balzac was a "slim first novel", and Brooke Allen at The New York Times Book Review called the narrative "streamlined". Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress is written in a characteristic style. The novel focuses and "accents on a soft center rather than ... hard edges", according to Josh Greenfield of Time Europe.
How many languages has Balzac been translated into?
In France, he directed several films before turning to writing. Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress was his first novel, and it won five French literary awards. It has been translated into 25 languages as of 2017.
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Where is Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress set?
Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress is set during the time known as the Cultural Revolution in China. This historical event helped to supply the framework for many of the conflicts faced in the novel. The Revolution of Chairman Mao Zedong "began in 1966 and continued until the dictator's death ten years later".
When did Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress take place?
1971 and 1974Plot. The film is set in a period between 1971 and 1974, during the later stage of the Chinese Cultural Revolution. Two city boys in their late teenage years, Luo Min (played by Chen Kun) and Ma Jianling (Liu Ye), are on their way to a remote village in the mountainous Sichuan province for re-education.
Where did the little seamstress live?
The Little Seamstress is the "princess of Phoenix mountain" and the teenage daughter of the tailor. She's beautiful and has a number of suitors on the mountain. Though she's a "simple mountain girl" and nearly illiterate, she tells Luo that she loves talking with people from the city, which shows her curiosity.
What is the theme of Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress?
Description. Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie is a literarily rich novel that explores the themes of love, coming of age, reading, education, censorship and beauty through the story of three teenagers, two boys and one girl, affected by China's Cultural Revolution.
Why did Luo punch the narrator?
In the first scene, Luo's creative lie foreshadows his impressive story-telling abilities. Likewise, the flashback in which Luo punches the narrator in the face subtly establishes that the narrator is the submissive partner in the friendship.
Why did the Little Seamstress leave?
Why does the Seamstress leave at the end of the novel? The Little Seamstress explains that she leaves because she learned about the power of a woman's beauty. One could understand the sentiment as superficial: she wishes to exploit her beauty in the city.
Is the Little Seamstress really in love with Luo or the narrator?
Luo develops a romantic relationship with the Seamstress, while the Narrator keeps his care for her to himself. Luo and the Narrator know they have small chances of ever leaving the village, once they become interested in books which express western ideas.
What is Phoenix of the Sky Little Chinese Seamstress?
They lived in a little house on stilts. The "Phoenix of the Sky" symbolizes something other than just the name of their village. A phoenix is a bird that is reborn from its own ashes after bursting into flames, this could symbolize that there is something more in store for them after thei... ...
What does the narrator help the seamstress with in the city while Luo is away?
The narrator and Luo help him in exchange for a copy of Honoré de Balzac's short novel Ursule Mirouët. After reading the novel, Luo retells the story to the Seamstress, and they have sex for the first time.
Who is the main character in Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress?
The Little SeamstressFour EyesThe Village HeadmanThe TailorMaLuoBalzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress/Characters
How does Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress end?
The Little Seamstress asserts her newfound independence and adulthood by abandoning her friends. The fact that she attributes her own coming of age to Balzac is a final testament to the transformative power of literature.
Where can I watch the Little Chinese Seamstress?
Currently you are able to watch "Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress" streaming on Kanopy for free.
Storyline
In 1971 China, in the lingering grip of the cultural revolution, two university students, Luo and Ma, are sent to a mountain mining village as part of their reeducation duty to purge them of their classical western oriented education.
Did you know
Filming was allowed in China after seven months negotiations with the authorities, but any projection on Chinese territory was banned.
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By what name was Xiao cai feng (2002) officially released in India in English?
When was Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress published?
PQ2664.A437 B3513 2001. Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress (French: Balzac et la petite tailleuse chinoise) is a semi- autobiographical novel written by Dai Sijie, and published in 2000 in French and in English in 2001. A film based on his novel directed by Dai was released in 2002.
What are the themes of Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress?
The major themes of Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress include friendship and lost innocence.
Why does Luo leave the village?
After staying up all night reading the book, Luo gives the book to the narrator and leaves the village in order to tell the story to the Little Seamstress. Luo returns carrying leaves from a tree near where he and the Little Seamstress had sex.
How does the Little Seamstress learn about the outside world?
The Little Seamstress learns about the outside world by reading the foreign books with Luo's help. She eventually leaves the mountain and everything that she has known without saying goodbye, to start a new life in the city. Luo becomes inebriated and incinerates all of the foreign books "in [a] frenzy", ending the novel.
How old is the village headman?
The Village Headman, the leader of the village to which the narrator and Luo are sent for re-education, is a 50-year-old "ex- opium farmer turned Communist cadre." One day, he blackmails Luo to fix his teeth in return for not sending the narrator to jail.
Who is the narrator in Little Seamstress?
Narrator, Teenage boy named Ma with a talent for the violin. Luo, the narrator's best friend, son of two famous dentists and talented in storytelling. The Little Seamstress, the daughter of a famous local tailor, is a rare beauty with no formal education who cannot read well, so Luo and the narrator read to her.
Is Balzac a slim book?
Publishers Weekly stated that Balzac was a "slim first novel", and Brooke Allen at The New York Times Book Review called the narrative "streamlined". Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress is written in a characteristic style.
Who directed Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress?
Film Censorship. Dai Sijie directed the 2002 film version of Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress himself. Though the Chinese government granted Dai permission to film near where he himself was re-educated, China banned the finished film from being screened in the country.
When was Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress written?
Full Title: Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress (originally published in French as Balzac et la petite tailleuse chinoise) When Written: late 1990s. Where Written: France. When Published: 2000 in France; first English publication in 2001.
Who is the antagonist in the Little Seamstress?
Climax: When the Little Seamstress leaves the mountain for the city. Antagonist: Chairman Mao and his oppressive communist government; the village headman. Point of View: First person, narrated by the unnamed narrator. There are short interludes narrated by the Little Seamstress, Luo, and the miller.
How many languages has Balzac been translated into?
Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress was his first novel, and it won five French literary awards. It has been translated into 25 languages as of 2017.
Where does Balzac and the Little Chinese seamstress take place?
Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress Summary. Next. Part 1, Chapter 1. Luo and the narrator arrive at the mountain Phoenix of the Sky, a dizzyingly tall and extremely rural mountain near the Chinese border with Tibet. The village headman wants to burn the narrator's violin, but Luo explains to the headman that the narrator is ...
How did the little seamstress leave the village?
He explains that the Little Seamstress left suddenly after deciding to become a city girl. In the time leading up to her departure, she cut her hair into a bob, asked the tailor to buy her white shoes, and altered a jacket for herself. The result was modern and stylish, and Luo decided that reading to her had paid off. The narrator says that he and Luo didn't realize then that the final aspect of the Little Seamstress's transformation hadn't happened yet. A month later, the narrator and Luo are working in the fields when they hear a commotion in the village. The tailor is in the village, and he tells the boys that the Little Seamstress left for the city. Luo and the narrator run down the mountain in pursuit of the Little Seamstress. After two hours, the narrator spots the Little Seamstress sitting by the graveyard. He stops and watches Luo reunite with her. The narrator watches as the two begin talking and he hears Balzac's name. He feels betrayed that the Little Seamstress didn't tell him she was leaving. The seamstress gets up and resumes her march down the mountain. The narrator calls after her, but she keeps running. Luo tells the narrator that the Little Seamstress said that she learned from Balzac that her beauty is a treasure, and she's going to the city to try her luck.
What does the Little Seamstress suggest to Luo and the Little Seamstress?
When she leaves and the narrator tells Luo and the Little Seamstress what he learned, the Little Seamstress suggests they steal the suitcase of books before Four-Eyes leaves. Luo and the narrator fashion a master key to pick Four-Eyes' lock and plan to steal the books during the village's celebratory banquet.
What does the Little Seamstress ask the narrator to do when the sorceresses?
When the sorceresses begin to fall asleep, the Little Seamstress asks the narrator to tell them a story to keep them awake. Luo regains consciousness partway through the narrator's poor recitation and speaks the final heart-wrenching line of the story, sending the sorceresses into tears.
What does the tailor tease Luo about?
One day, the narrator and Luo run into her father, the tailor, on a narrow mountain path, and the tailor teases the narrator about his violin. Several weeks later, Luo and the narrator stop by the tailor's house to ask the Little Seamstress to lengthen Luo's pants.
How long does it take for the narrator to see the Little Seamstress?
After two hours , the narrator spots the Little Seamstress sitting by the graveyard. He stops and watches Luo reunite with her. The narrator watches as the two begin talking and he hears Balzac's name. He feels betrayed that the Little Seamstress didn't tell him she was leaving.
Where do Luo and the Little Seamstress go?
Luo, the narrator, and the Little Seamstress go to Yong Jing to see a film. At the hotel that night, they learn that a woman is on her way to retrieve her son from his re-education. The next day, while the narrator waits for his friends next to a path, the narrator meets this woman. She's Four-Eyes' mother, the poetess, and she says that Four-Eyes has gotten a job at a revolutionary journal. When she leaves and the narrator tells Luo and the Little Seamstress what he learned, the Little Seamstress suggests they steal the suitcase of books before Four-Eyes leaves.
Overview
Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress (French: Balzac et la petite tailleuse chinoise) is a semi-autobiographical novella written by Dai Sijie, and published in 2000 in French and in English in 2001. A film based on his novel directed by Dai was released in 2002.
Plot summary
The novel, written by Dai Sijie, is about two teenage boys during the Chinese Cultural Revolution, Luo, described as having "a genius for storytelling", and the unnamed narrator, "a fine musician". They are assigned to re-education through labor and are sent to a mountain called "Phoenix of the Sky" near Tibet to work in the coal mines and with the rice crop, because their doctor parents have been declared enemies of the state by the government. The two boys fall in love with the Little Se…
Characters
• Narrator, Teenage boy named Ma with a talent for the violin.
• Luo, the narrator's best friend, son of two famous dentists and talented in storytelling.
• The Little Seamstress, the daughter of a famous local tailor, is a rare beauty with no formal education who cannot read well, so Luo and the narrator read to her.
Major themes
Critics have noted that the novel deals with the strength of education and literature. Jeff Zaleski of Publishers Weekly said that the novel "emphasize[s] the power of literature to free the mind." A book review by Brooke Allen in The New York Times addresses the themes, such as the "potency of imaginative literature and why it is hated and feared by those who wish to control others." This reviewer addresses the evil and ultimate failure of "any system that fears knowledge and education... …
Style
Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress is notable for its size. Publishers Weekly stated that Balzac was a "slim first novel", and Brooke Allen at The New York Times Book Review called the narrative "streamlined".
Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress is written in a characteristic style. The novel focuses and "accents on a soft center rather than ... hard edges", according to Josh Greenfield of Time Eu…
Background
Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress is set during the time known as the Cultural Revolution in China. This historical event helped to supply the framework for many of the conflicts faced in the novel. The Revolution of Chairman Mao Zedong "began in 1966 and continued until the dictator's death ten years later". The Cultural Revolution in China was "intended to stamp out the educated class and . . . old ideas, old culture, old customs, and old habits". In order to do this, "hundreds of …
Publication history
Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress has been translated from the original French. The novel was first published in France in the French language" in 2000, and since then, rights of the book have been sold in nineteen countries. The English translation of Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Ina Rilke was published by the company in 2001 Knopf and has been praised for its clarity." The Chinese version of the novel is available online. In 2001, this novel was also made in…
Reception
The book received reviews related to its "warmth and humor." It has been stated as well that the novel "abound[s] in gentle humor, warm bonhomie and appealing charm" in Time Europe.
The novel has likewise been seen as an emotional tale. Jeff Zaleski has reviewed Balzac as a "moving, [and] often wrenching short novel". Dai Sijie has been praised as a "captivating, amazing, storyteller" whose writing here is "seductive and unaffected". In a San Jose Mercury News article, …