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Chinese Literature

Code: 105868
Credits: 6
2026/2027
Degree programme Type Course
Spanish and Chinese Studies: Language, Literature and Culture OB 3

Contact lecturer

Name :
Maialen Marin Lacarta
Email :
maialen.marin@uab.cat

Group languages

You can consult this information at the end of the document.

Prerequisites

None.

Objectives

The aim of the course is to provide students with a panoramic view of the great literary currents of Chinese literature from its origins to the contemporary era. Upon completion of the course, students will learn about the chronology of Chinese literature, the major works of classical Chinese literature, as well as the most important works of Chinese literature of the 20th and 21st centuries. In addition, they must be able to decipher the aesthetic and literary keys of these works, and must also be able to identify and place the texts of the Chinese tradition in the original context based on their reading. Students will also need to be able to analyze classical texts as well as modern and contemporary texts in translation. Students are also expected to be able to justify their analyses and to critically present works from the Chinese tradition, modern and contemporary times.

Learning outcomes

  1. Develop strategies for autonomous learning.
  2. Explain the explicit or implicit code of practice of one's own area of knowledge.
  3. Possess interpersonal skills.
  4. Use different tools for specific purposes in the field of history.
  5. Identify and describe the processes and events of pre-modern, modern and contemporary history.
  6. Describe, analyse and valorise the history, thought and literature of East Asia.
  7. Describe and analyse values, beliefs and ideologies of East Asia.
  8. Recognise the connotations of specific cultural references in the area of East Asia studies, and evaluate their influence on interlinguistic and intercultural communication.
  9. Know, understand, describe and analyse the values, beliefs and ideologies of East Asia.
  10. Recognise the referential universe of written and spoken texts in the languages of East Asia.
  11. Describe, analyse and evaluate the history, thought and literature of East Asia.
  12. Differentiate between literary genres and identify the specificities.
  13. Identify, differentiate between and use different linguistic genres.
  14. Apply the perspective of gender to the analysis of literary production in modern and contemporary East Asia.
  15. Resolve problems of intercultural communication.
  16. Evaluate the result obtained in the process of searching for documentation and information and to update knowledge of the history, literature, language, thought and art.
  17. Make document searches in the languages of East Asian countries.
  18. Demonstrate a knowledge of literary trends.
  19. Integrate literary knowledge to solve translation problems.
  20. Ensure quality standards for your own work.
  21. Generate innovate and competitive perspectives in research and in professional activity.
  22. Work in teams in an international multilingual and multicultural context.

Contents

This compulsory third-year subject will introduce students to Chinese literature from the earliest times to the present day by studying its main characteristics, the most representative currents, the main authors and some of the most relevant literary texts (in translation, with the exception of some easier modern and contemporary texts of which the original in Chinese will also be provided).


The course is divided into two major blocks: one for classical Chinese literature and one focusing on modern and contemporary literature.


The selection of topics may include the following:



  • Early Chinese texts (e.g. Book of Poetry and the classical canon)

  • Drama (e.g. Yuan drama)

  • Poetry writings (e.g. Tang Poetry and Song Lyrics)

  • Fictions and prose from the Ming Dynasty to the May Fourth Movement

  • Contemporary writings from the Chinese Mainland, Taiwan, and Hong Kong

Learning activities and methodology

Title Hours ECTS Learning outcomes
Lectures 26 1.04 2, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 15, 18
Reading texts 30 1.2 1, 4, 7, 8, 10, 12, 13, 15, 16
Study (primary and secondary sources) 46.5 1.86 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 16, 17, 18, 19
Analysis of texts 28 1.12 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22

The presentations of the great literary movements and of the most representative authors as well as their historical context will be combined with the reading and commentary of specific works (or fragments).

Students must ACTIVELY PARTICIPATE in the classes and will have to do the corresponding readings for each class.

The basic readings will be uploaded to Moodle each week.

Students are also expected to study on their own in order to supplement the information given during the guided sessions.

Annotation: within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.

Assessment

Continuous assessment activities

Title Weight Hours ECTS Learning outcomes
Critical essay test (in class) 25 % 1.5 0.06 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 15, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21
Content-related test 30 % 1.5 0.06 1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19
Reading reports 10 % 15 0.6 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 16, 18, 22
Readings Test 35 % 1.5 0.06 1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 18, 19

The evaluation consists of four tests:

  • Reading reports (10%)

A brief reading report must be submitted through Moodle every week. These reports will not be graded, but they are compulsory and will be the basis for class discussion.

  • Critical essay test (in class) (25%)

Criticism of poetry translations. The expected format for this exercise will be explained in class.

  • Content-related test (30%)

Brief questions about the knowledge presented in class (literary currents, authors, historical context).

  • Reading test (35%)

Questions about the basic readings commented in class.

Review

When publishing final marks prior to recording them on students' transcripts, the lecturer will provide written notification of a date and time for reviewing assessment activities. Students must arrange reviews in agreement with the lecturer.

Missed/failed assessment activities

Students may retake assessment activities they have failed or compensate for any they have missed, provided that those they have actually performed account for a minimum of 66.6% (two thirds) of the subject's final mark and that they have a weighted average mark of at least 3.5.

The lecturer will inform students of the procedure involved, in writing, when publishing final marks prior to recording them on transcripts. The lecturer may set one assignment per failed or missed assessment activity or a single assignment to cover a number of such activities. Under no circumstances may an assessment activity worth 100% of the final mark be retaken or compensated for. In case of retaking, maximum grade will be 5 (Pass).

Classification as \"not assessable\"

In the event of the assessment activities a student has performed accounting for just 25% or less of the subject's final mark, their work will be classified as \"not assessable\" on their transcript.

Misconduct in assessment activities

Students who engage in misconduct (plagiarism, copying, personation, etc.) in an assessment activity will receive a mark of “0” for the activity in question. In the case of misconduct in more than one assessment activity, the student involved will be given a final mark of “0” for the subject. Assessment activities in which irregularities have occurred (e.g. plagiarism, copying, impersonation) are excluded from recovery. Reading reports done with IA will receive a grade of 0.


Single assessment

This subject may be assessed under the single assessment system in accordance with the terms established in the academic regulations of the UAB and the assessment criteria of the Faculty of Translation and Interpreting.

Students must make an online request within the period established by the faculty and send a copy to the teacher responsible for the subject, for the record.

Single assessment will be carried out in person on one day during week 16 or 17 of the semester. The Academic Management Office will publish the exact date and time on the faculty website.

On the day of the single assessment, teaching staff will ask the student for identification, which should be presented as a valid identification document with a recent photograph (student card, DNI/NIE or passport).


Single assessment activities

The final grade for the subject will be calculated according to the following percentages:

  • Critical essay test (in class) (30%)

Criticism of poetry translations. The expected format for this exercise will be explained in class.

  • Content-related test (35%)

Brief questions about the knowledge presented in class (literary currents, authors, historical context).

  • Reading test (35%)

Questions about the basic readings commented in class.


The 3 tests will be similar to those that will be carried out for continuous evaluation (seeabove)

Grade revision and resit procedures for the subject are the same as those for continual assessment. See the section above in this study guide.


Forbidden use of AI

In this course, the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies is not permitted at any stage of the assessment activities. Any work that includes AI-generated content will be considered a breach of academic integrity and will be graded a 0, regardless of any disciplinary proceedings that may be initiated.


Misconduct in assessment activities

Any irregularity committed during an assessment (academic fraud, plagiarism, or misuse of AI, unless expressly authorized in the course syllabus) that could lead to a significant change in the grade will result in a grade of 0 for that assessment. If multiple irregularities occur during assessments for the same course, the final grade for that course will be 0. Furthermore, disciplinary proceedings may be initiated against any individual who commits any of these irregularities.

Bibliography

The compulsory readings for each week will be available on Moodle.

Recommended readings:

Chen, Eoyang E. The Transparent Eye: Reflections on Translation, Chinese Literature, and Comparative Poetics. Hanolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1993.

Cheung, Martha. Hong Kong Collage: Contemporary Stories and Writings. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998.

Dañino, Guillermo. Esculpiendo dragones: antología de la literatura china (tomos 1 y 2). Lima: Fondo Editorial PUCP, 1996.

Denecke, Wiebke; Li, Wai-yee; Tian, Xiaofei. The Oxford Handbook of Classical Chinese Literature. Oxford: OUP, 2017.

Denton, Kirk A. The Columbia Companion to Modern Chinese Literature. New York, Columbia University Press, 2016.

Hong, Zicheng. A History of Contemporary Chinese Literature. Trans. Michael Day. Leiden: Brill, 2007.

Idema, Wilt L. and Lloyd Haft. A Guide to Chinese Literature. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1997.

Lau, Joseph and Howard Goldblatt, (eds.). Columbia Anthology of Modern Chinese Literature. New York: Columbia University Press, 1994.

Mair, Victor H. (ed.). The Columbia History of Chinese Literature. New York: Columbia University Press, 2002.

Martínez-Robles, David; Prado-Fonts, Carles (coords.); Llamas González de Amezúa, Regina; Relinque Eleta, Alicia; Suárez Girard, Anne-Hélène. Literatura xinesa. Barcelona: UOC, 2004.

McDougall, Bonnie and Kam Louie. The Literature of China in the Twentieth Century. New York: Columbia University Press, 1997.

Mcdougall, Bonnie S. The Literature of China in the Twentieth Century. New York: Columbia University Press, 1999

Minford, John and Joseph Lau (eds.). An Anthology of Translations: Classical Chinese Literature: Volume I: From Antiquity to the Tang Dynasty. New York; Hong Kong: Columbia University Press and Chinese University Press, 2000.

Minford, John and Joseph Lau (eds.). Classical Chinese Literature. New York: Columbia University Press, 1996.

Nienhauser, William H. The Indiana Companion to Chinese Literature. Taipei: SMC Publishing, 1986.

Owen, Stephen. An Anthology of Chinese Literature. Beginnings to 1911. New York: Norton, 1996.

Prado-Fonts, Carles i Martínez-Robles, David (eds.), Relinque Eleta, Alicia. Narrativas chinas: ficciones y otras formas de no-literatura: de la dinastía Tang al siglo XXI. Barcelona: UOC, 2008

Prado-Fonts, Carles i Martínez-Robles, David (eds.), Relinque Eleta, Alicia. Narrativas chinas: ficciones y otras formas de no-literatura: de la dinastía Tang al siglo XXI. Barcelona: UOC, 2008.

Software

Not foreseen. 

Course groups and languages

The information provided is provisional until November 30. After this date, you will be able to consult the language of each group through this link. To access the information, you will need to enter the course CODE

Type of teaching Group Language Semester Shift
(TE) Theory 1 Spanish second semester morning-mixed