SOURCE: Liu Wu-chi. “Great Novels by Obscure Writers.” In An Introduction to Chinese Literature, pp. 228-46. Bloomington, Ind.: Indiana University Press, 1966.

In this essay, Liu provides an overview of the major novels of the late Ming and early Ch'ing dynasties: Journey to the West, The Golden Lotus, Dream of the Red Chamber, and The Scholars. With the exception of Journey to the West, Liu finds that an unflinching, even graphic realism characterizes the masterworks of the early Chinese novel.

Contemporaneous with the short story, the Chinese novel flourished from the middle of the Ming dynasty to the end of the Ch'ing (sixteenth to early twentieth century). Many writers devoted their time and energy to the writing of fiction and their output was impressive, particularly in the late Ch'ing period. This effort was noteworthy because, in spite of the recognition of the novel as an established literary genre, it...