Adventures in Chinese Fiction

09 am, Sun 22 June 2025
EMASI Nam Long
147 No. 8 Street, Nam Long Residential Area, District 7, HCMC
Registration link

From the organizer:

The exhibition ‘The year is XXXX’ re-examines the travel writings of colonial Indochina to guide visitors on a journey through imaginary lands that center instead the landscapes’ natural inhabitants. In reworking the genre of the travelogue, the exhibition unfolds like an expedition, the viewer lured into traversing the realms of religion, culture, and colonial memory.

In the XXXX years of Indochina, Chinese tales also ventured to Vietnam through their translations to chữ quốc ngữ (the ‘national script’, or Vietnamese written in the romanized alphabet), and adapted itself to resonate with the culture and customs of Vietnamese people, specifically of those living in the South. In turn, Vietnamese readers journeyed to the world of Chinese historical figures, mythological beings, and folk heroes. This literary adventure would prove consequential for the Vietnamese, as attested by the scholar Vương Hồng Sển: ‘Our neighbor’s accounts are like our own – these tales, though a thousand miles away or a hundred years past, are to us mortal beings the mirrors through which we reflect ourselves.’ (Vương Hồng Sển, ‘The Pleasures of Reading Chinese Fiction’, HCMC, Tổng Hợp Publishing House, 1993, p. 50).

The panel discussion ‘Adventures in Chinese Fiction’ is an extension of the mythical expeditions in ‘The year is XXXX’. Embodying its very title, the discussion largely revolves around two such adventures. The first adventure starts at the very source, the birthplace of these tales, where we explore the essence of Chinese fiction, its formation, and the cultural values it harbors within Chinese society. From there, the adventure moves southward to Vietnam, where we delve into the transmission of Chinese fiction across borders, and how it took root in Vietnam’s literary culture and shaped contemporary reading habits. And, if time permits, a third adventure awaits: an excursion into Chinese fiction, its cinematic adaptations, and its reception among modern audiences.

About the speakers

1. Dr To Phuong Cuong is a professor and former head of translation theory in the Department of Chinese Language at the Ho Chi Minh University of Education. His research specializes in issues surrounding the Chinese language, Sino-Nom and translation studies.

2. Dr Lam Phuong Nam is an esteemed reader and ancient book collector, widely recognized within literary circles across the country. His interests span across Chinese fiction, Vietnamese poetry, historical scholarship, music, and the arts. He currently serves as a Level II specialist at the Ho Chi Minh City University of Medicine and Pharmacy Hospital.

3. Quach Trong is a translator and manager–specialist at Ba Tan Books, and an editor-cum-translator at Bookhuntor. His independently translated works include ‘The Whole Movement of Life is Learning’, ‘On Relationship’, and ‘Choiceless Awareness’ – all by J. Krishnamurti. In addition to his translation work, he actively contributes to the editing and proofreading of various other titles.

4. Huyen Trang is a Level 9 Guzheng artist and founder of the Van Mong Guzheng Center. She has been pursuing the guzheng for a decade, mastering the instrument through performances of traditional pieces known for their technical sophistication. She also creatively adapts music from the guqin as well as popular contemporary songs from Vietnam, China, the US and the UK.

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