'Mono-no-aware ' in Two Cities: A Study of Kawabata Yasunari and Zhu Tianxin's Namesake Novel 'The Ancient Capital'

摘要

Zhu Tianxin is a famous contemporary female writer in Taiwan. Her novel with the same title as the masterpiece of Kawabata Yasunari's, "The Ancient Capital" which was created at the end of 1990s also made a great flutter in the literary world. For the theme of the novel, it is deeply influenced by the traditional Japanese spirit of "mono-no-aware" in the works of predecessors and shows such features as mourning for lost beautiful things, empathy for objective things and sincere affection. Moreover, Zhu Tianxin has not been confined to the original pattern of Kawabata Yasunari in the creation of this namesake novel. Instead, she has rebelled against the traditional concept of "mono-no-aware" by such means as obvious post-modern narrative strategy, fuzzy image and fervent concern about politics and then established its unique literary value.