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Issue: 902 Date: 12/6/2007
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在中國之外寫中國
著名作家裘小龍於香港中文大學演講
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| 中大英文系系主任兼英文講座教授David Parker教授致送紀念品予裘教授 |
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香港中文大學（中大）推動文藝創作不遺餘力，今屆該校的「龔氏訪問學人計劃」邀得來自密蘇里州美國聖路易市之著名作家裘小龍教授，於11月26日在中大校園主持講座，題目為「在中國之外寫中國」。
在講座中，裘小龍教授與近百名中大師生及校友分享其獨特的創作經驗 — 由生於中國的華文作家而至在美國獲獎的英文小說家和詩人的歷程。裘教授認為從遠距離出發寫作可說利多於弊，因為旁觀者清，非在其地，有時候反而能觀察到當地人所看不到的現象。身在國外而描寫國內，作家的創意與熱情往往更能揮灑。他也講及如何運用雙角度以至多角度寫作，並解答一個最常出現的問題：究竟他的書為誰而寫 — 是東方還是西方的讀者？
裘教授1953年生於上海，1988年起旅居美國聖路易市。他是一位以英文創作著名的華裔小說家和詩人。早在80年代，他以中文撰寫的詩作、翻譯和評論，已屢獲殊榮。語言天分過人的裘教授，在青少年時期開始學習英文，自此對英國文學和詩歌產生濃厚興趣。1988年獲福特基金會資助赴美深造，開始以英文創作，並得華盛頓大學比較文學博士學位。
裘教授以陳超探長為主人公撰寫了一系列偵探小說，計有《紅英之死》(2000)、《外灘花園》 (2002)、《石庫門驪歌》(2004)、A Case of Two Cities (2006) 和 Red Mandarin Dress（即將發行）。這些小說大受讚賞，並為他在西方文壇贏得一席之地。此外，他還出版了兩本英譯中國情詩和唐詩選：The Treasury of Chinese Love Poems (2003) 和 Evoking Tang: An Anthology of Classical Chinese Poetry (2007)，以及他本人的詩集 Lines Around China (2003)。
這位深受讀者歡迎的作家，對當代中國的重要社會和政治議題也相當關注。他的小說全都以中國為背景，銷量極佳，並獲世界權威文學雜誌一致好評，更被翻譯成德文、法文、日文、西班牙文、挪威文、荷蘭文、芬蘭文、中文、瑞典文、意大利文、丹麥文、匈牙利文和希伯來文等十多種語文。他的首部小說《紅英之死》先後入圍愛倫坡小說獎和巴里小說獎，並在2001年榮獲安東尼小說獎，成為世界首位奪得推理小說最高榮譽的華人。
裘教授留港期間，並向中大英文系學生介紹他的新作Red Mandarin Dress (紅旗袍)，並分享以英文這種第二語言創作的心得。
在聖路易市，應聖路易郡公立圖書館之邀，裘小龍將於12月6日(周四)晚間六至七時，在Schlafly圖書館分館舉行Red Mandarin Dress(紅旗袍)新書發表會。不收費用，歡迎各界人士參加。由 Left Bank Books公司提供，Red Mandarin Dress新書可在現場購買。
Schlafly圖書館地址為225 N. Euclid Ave.電話314-206-6779
Celebrated Writer Qiu Xiaolong Speaks at CUHK
As a staunch supporter of the creative arts, The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) presented a public lecture by renowned writer Prof. Qiu Xiaolong on "Writing China out of China" on campus today (26 November). Prof. Qiu is a Visiting Fellow of this year's S.Y. Chung Visiting Fellows Programme.
In the lecture, Prof. Qiu Xiaolong shared his unique writing experience with about 100 CUHK staff, students and alumni - his journey from a Chinese writer born in China, to an award-winning English novelist and poet in the US. Prof. Qiu believes it is an advantage rather than a disadvantage to write from a distance. One may see from an angle that those living in the place fail to see. Sometimes writers write more imaginatively and passionately about their homeland when they are away from it. He also talked about employing double, even multiple perspectives in writing. And he addressed the most frequently asked question: For whom are his books written? Readers in the East or in the West?
Born in Shanghai in 1953, Prof. Qiu is one of the most celebrated Chinese novelists and poets writing in English. He published prize-winning poetry, translation and criticism in Chinese in the 1980s. With a special gift for language, he started learning English while in his teens and then developed immense interest in English literature and poetry. In 1988, he moved to the US as a Ford Foundation Fellow, started writing in English, and obtained a Ph.D. in comparative literature at Washington University.
Prof. Qiu shot to fame in the Western literary arena with his highly acclaimed Inspector Chen series of mystery novels, Death of a Red Heroine (2000), A Loyal Character Dancer (2002), When Red is Black (2004), A Case of Two Cities (2006) and Red Mandarin Dress (to be released soon). He is also the author of two poetry translations, Treasury of Chinese Love Poems (2003) and Evoking Tang: An Anthology of Classical Chinese Poetry (2007); and his own poetry collection, Lines Around China (2003).
He is a highly popular writer and yet at the same time he raises important political and social issues about contemporary China. His novels, which are all set in China, have been reviewed favourably in the world's most prestigious literary journals and are among the best sellers. They have been translated into a dozen languages, including German, French, Japanese, Spanish, Norwegian, Dutch, Finnish, Chinese, Swedish, Italian, Danish, Hungarian, and Hebrew. His first novel, Death of a Red Heroine, was nominated for Edgar Allan Poe and Barry awards, and won the Anthony Award in 2001, making him the first Chinese to receive this highest international accolade for detective fiction.
During his stay in Hong Kong, Prof. Qiu will also share his vision in his latest novel and reflect on creative writing in English as a second language with CUHK English Department students.
He lives in St. Louis with his wife and daughter.
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| The forthcoming novel of Prof. Qiu Xiaolong, Red Mandarin Dress. |
裘小龍教授即將發行的小說 Red Mandarin Dress(紅旗袍) |
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| Prof. Qiu Xiaolong |
裘小龍教授中大演講 |
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| Prof. David Parker, Chairman of English Department and Professor of English, CUHK (right) presents a souvenir to Prof. Qiu |
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