The Plum in the Golden Vase or, Chin P'ing Mei, Volume One : : The Gathering / / ed. by David Tod Roy.

• Superior document: Title is part of eBook package: De Gruyter Asian Studies Archive (pre 2000) eBook Package
• HerausgeberIn: Roy, David Tod,
• Place / Publishing House: Princeton, NJ : : Princeton University Press, , [2013]; ©1993
• Year of Publication: 2013
• Edition: Course Book
• Language: English
• Series: Princeton Library of Asian Translations ; 51
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (520 p.) :; 40 line illus.

In this first of a planned five-volume set, David Roy provides a complete and annotated translation of the famous Chin P'ing Mei, an anonymous sixteenth-century Chinese novel that focuses on the domestic life of Hsi-men Ch'ing, a corrupt, upwardly mobile merchant in a provincial town, who maintains a harem of six wives and concubines. This work, known primarily for its erotic realism, is also a landmark in the development of the narrative art form--not only from a specifically Chinese perspective but in a world-historical context.

Table of Contents

Frontmatter -- Contents -- List of Illustrations -- Acknowledgments -- Introduction -- Cast of Characters -- Preface to the Chin P'ing Mei tz'u-hua -- Preface to the Chin P'ing Mei -- Colophon -- Four Lyrics to the Tune "Burning Incense" -- Lyrics on the Four Vices to the Tune "Partridge Sky" -- CHAPTER 1. Wu Sung Fights a Tiger on Ching-yang Ridge; P'an Chin-lien Disdains Her Mate and Plays the Coquette -- CHAPTER 2. Beneath the Blind Hsi-men Ch'ing Meets Chin-lien; Inspired by Greed Dame Wang Speaks of Romance -- CHAPTER 3. Dame Wang Proposes a Ten-part Plan for "Garnering the Glow'' Hsi-men Ch'ing Flirts with Chin-lien in the Teahouse -- CHAPTER 4. The Hussy Commits Adultery behind Wu the Elder's Back; Yün-ko in His Anger Raises a Rumpus in the Teashop -- CHAPTER 5. Yün-ko Lends a Hand by Cursing Dame Wang; The Hussy Administers Poison to Wu the Elder -- CHAPTER 6. Hsi-men Ch'ing Suborns Ho the Ninth; Dame Wang Fetches Wine and Encounters a Downpour -- CHAPTER 7. Auntie Hsüeh Proposes a Match with Meng Yü-lou; Aunt Yang Angrily Curses Chang the Fourth -- CHAPTER 8. All Night Long P'an Chin-lien Yearns for Hsi-men Ch'ing; During the Tablet-burning Monks Overhear Sounds of Venery -- CHAPTER 9. Hsi-men Ch'ing Conspires to Marry P'an Chin-lien; Captain Wu Mistakenly Assaults Li Wai-ch'uan -- CHAPTER 10. Wu the Second Is Condemned to Exile in Meng-chou; Hsi-men and His Harem Revel in the Hibiscus Pavilion -- CHAPTER 11. P'an Chin-lien Instigates the Beating of Sun Hsüeh-o Hsi-men Ch'ing Decides to Deflower Li Kuei-chieh -- CHAPTER 12. P'an Chin-lien Suffers Ignominy for Adultery with a Servant; Stargazer Liu Purveys Black Magic in Pursuit of Gain -- CHAPTER 13. Li P'ing-erh Makes a Secret Tryst over the Garden Wall; The Maid Ying-ch'un Peeks through a Crack and Gets an Eyeful -- CHAPTER 14. Hua Tzu-hsü Succumbs to Chagrin and Loses His Life; Li P'ing-erh Invites Seduction and Attends a Party -- CHAPTER 15. Beauties Enjoy the Sights in the Lantern-viewing Belvedere; Hangers-on Abet Debauchery in the Verdant Spring Bordello -- CHAPTER 16. Hsi-men Ch'ing Is Inspired by Greed to Contemplate Matrimony; Ying Po-chüeh Steals a March in Anticipation of the Ceremony -- CHAPTER 17. Censor Yü-wen Impeaches Commander Yang; Li P'ing-erh Takes Chiang Chu-shan as Mate -- CHAPTER 18. Lai-pao Takes Care of Things in the Eastern Capital; Ch'en Ching-chi Supervises the Work in the Flower Garden -- CHAPTER 19. Snake-in-the-grass Shakes Down Chiang Chu-shan; Li P'ing-erh's Feelings Touch Hsi-men Ch'ing -- CHAPTER 20. Meng Yü-lou High-mindedly Intercedes with Wu Yüeh-niang; Hsi-men Ch'ing Wreaks Havoc in the Verdant Spring Bordello -- APPENDIX I. Translator's Commentary on the Prologue -- APPENDIX II. Translations of Supplementary Material -- NOTES -- BIBLIOGRAPHY -- INDEX