The Classical Chinese Novelist

Jin Yong and the Martial Arts

Aug 23, 2008 Allan Cho

A Hong Kong-based author who wrote a total of fifteen novels, Jin Yong is often considered the father of the modern Chinese martial arts novel.

One of the most influential modern Chinese-language novelists, Jin Yong is a Hong Kong-based author who wrote a total of fifteen novels. Although most of his books were initially published as short stories in daily instalments of the Ming Pao newspaper, the mass demand for his stories eventually helped turn those stories into book editions. In fact, Jin’s stories were so popular that Hong Kong readers had bought newspapers for his stories rather than for the news.

Novels:

1955 - The Book and the Sword

1956 - Sword Stained with Royal Blood

1957 - The Legend of the Condor Heroes

1959 - Flying Fox of Snowy Mountain

1959 - The Return of the Condor Heroes

1960 - Other Tales of the Flying Fox

1961 - Swordswoman Riding West on White Horse

1961 - Blade-dance of the Two Lovers

1961 - Heaven Sword and Dragon Sabre

1963 - A Deadly Secret

1963 - Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils

1965 - Sword of the Yue Maiden

1967 - The Smiling, Proud Wanderer

1970 - Sword of the Yue Maiden

1972 - The Deer and the Cauldron

“Jinology”

The study of Jin Yong's work has led to a new area of study called Jinology. While legions of Jin’s fans have been discussing, debating, and analyzing the fictional world of his themes, characters, and motifs for years, academic scholars are now only beginning to do the same in conferences and journals, particularly in the Western world, where his works are recognized Jin’s work as intellectual rather than just popular fiction.

Chinese Culture and History

Much of the current day Chinese movies and television martial arts dramas can be seen as a homage to the foundation by Jin Yong over the past fifty years. All of his novels have since been adapted into films, TV series and radio series in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Mainland China. The important characters in his novels are so well-known to the public that they can be alluded to with ease by most Chinese.

With nationalism being a major theme in all his novels, Jin Yong’s works has a great amount of emphasis on Chinese identity. Set in time periods when China was occupied or under the threat of occupation by foreign northern peoples such as the Mongols or Manchus, Jin’s stories often revolve around the struggle between the different ethnic groups that battled for supremacy. The search for the identity of being “Han Chinese” – historically and currently the most dominant ethnic group in China – is at the core of Jin’s stories.

Politics

Jin’s novels are hidden with political meanings, observations of his day, particularly of the political conflicts in Mainland China. In The Smiling Proud Wanderer, the factionalism, political duplicity, and senseless violence was written purposely to reflect the mayhem that was occurring during the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution on the mainland.

Because of these subtle political metaphors, some of Jin’s novels were banned in the Mainland China as they were thought to be a mockery of Mao Zedong, others were banned in Taiwan as they were thought to be in support of the Chinese Communist Party, and some were banned by both Chinese governments.

The Reinvention of the Martial Arts Genre

In many ways, Jin rewrote the Chinese martial arts genre and his influence is still far-reaching. By adding history and popular culture to a previously formulaic genre, his novels are marked not only by strong characterizations and plot, but also a strong intellectual literary element which differentiates it from previous martial arts works focused on entertainment.

The copyright of the article The Classical Chinese Novelist in Literary Culture is owned by Allan Cho. Permission to republish The Classical Chinese Novelist in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.