by Candace Barrington
When I asked Lian Zhang how Chaucer is taught in Chinese universities, she reminded me that it is rare to find The Canterbury Tales taught in a class devoted only to the works of Chaucer. Instead, she told me, “most Chinese students and scholars have become interested in reading Chaucer, largely because he has been taken by Chinese readers as a canonized author in English literary history. We remember these facts when we read his works: he was the father of English literature, a great English writer second only to Shakespeare, and the one who was the first to be buried in the Poet’s corner of Westminster Abbey. So, first, his importance in literary history has been well recognized by Chinese students. Second, his works create many striking figures, and his stories are exotic and interesting. The journey of the pilgrimage [consists of events and stories. In a way, this reads like the chapter novel which has become popular in China since the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368). I think the verse or [other] poetic features come last in attracting Chinese readers, because the way of rhyming or scheming is so different from the rhyming in classical Chinese poetry, that only English majors would take notice of the features or study these carefully.”
For more about Chaucer in China, see Lian Zhang’s other Global Chaucers contributions: