Wuxia Fiction: Key Inspiration for HK Action Films by Spike
Part Three: Modern Sources Not all wuxia fiction is hundreds of years old. Indeed the twentieth century saw a renaissance in the wuxia genre with novels even being serialised daily in Taiwanese newspapers. It is said that over 4,000 wuxia novels have been written in the last century.
Jin Yong One author of this era: Jin Yong (Louis Cha), stands above all others. His works, all written between 1955 and 1972, are a by-word for wuxia in Chinese communities across the globe. Dozens of HK films are directly based on or inspired by Jin Yong stories, with a particular craze for wuxia films in the early 1990s, e.g. Tsui Hark's Swordsman series (1990 - 1993), Cheung Hoi-ching's Sword Stained with Royal Blood (1993) and Wong Jing's films Kung Fu Cult Master (1993) and Royal Tramp I & II (1992). Perhaps the most beguiling adaption is Wong Kar-wai's Ashes of Time (1994), although it is almost universally hated by Jin Yong fans! There have also been many long-running television series based on his works, but unlike the films these are unfortunately not subtitled in English.	Jin Yong (Louis Cha) Image from AsiaPac Books.
The stories themselves are filled with secret societies, honour, betrayal, special styles of kung fu, hospitality, love, revenge and duty. Just as the classics of old they are large works and set against a meticulously researched historic background. While it is possible to catch a glimpse of the quality of these works through the filter of a HK film, no single (or series of) film(s) can do justice to the grandeur or intricacy of one of Jin Yong's works. Fortunately, a small selection of the stories have been translated into English.   Jin Yong Translations Online For a quick taste of Jin Yong, the story Sword of the Yueh Maiden is available online. The only short wuxia that Jin Yong ever wrote it is also said to be his poorest, lacking the depth and richness of his other work. Perhaps so, but it is still a great read. Set in the 5th century BC it tells the story of the Yueh kingdom's quest for sharp swords and unbeatable sword techniques; finding the later in a young shepherdess' wielding of her staff. The story appears to move about on the web a bit; as of the time of writing, you can find it here. (There are a couple of possible reasons why Jin Yong material can be hard to find on the web. One is that students often like to put his stories on their page, but when they leave campus, the page expires. Another factor is the takedown notice on the Jin Yong Links page: dated March 1998, it is a letter from the author's lawyers to any websites hosting unauthorised versions of his copyrighted material.) A more representative and fully authorised work is Graham Earnshaw's terrific translation of The Book and the Sword. This is the first novel that Jin Yong wrote and is set during the reign of the Manchu emperor Qian Long (during the mid eighteenth century). The story concerns the key members of the Red Flower secret society, a brotherhood sworn to the overthrow of the Manchu dynasty. Once again the typical wuxia and Confucian themes combine for a fantastic story. If you're considering just reading one wuxia story then try this, you won't be disappointed.
Many fans are now generously translating Jin Yong's works. Moinllieon's novel translations site has translations in progress for Eagle Shooting Heroes and Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils. Lanny has finished State of Divinity (aka The Smiling Wanderer) Noone is working on Hap Hak Hang. Amanda keeps tabs on all of these at her site Jin Yong Novels Online. Jin Yong Translations in Print I'm aware of three printed translations of Jin Yong's work: Fox Volant of the Snowy Mountain is a translation by Olivia Mok available from Chinese University Press (ISBN 9622025263). I don't have a copy but understand that it's a love tragedy centering on Hu Fei, the hero (Flying Fox) of the title. Reviews by others who have read it are mixed, saying it is a decent read but pricey and that perhaps the translator lacked sufficient knowledge of martial arts and its terminology.	Fox Volant Olivia Mok trans. Image from Eastwind
His last (and also often regarded as best) work is The Deer and the Cauldron. Two of the three volumes have been translated by John Minford and are available from Oxford University Press as hardbacks (ISBN 01949031234 and 0195903250). Interestingly, while a wuxia novel complete with lots of martial arts action, the main character Wei Hsiao Bao is not a martial-artist, having more of the character of a charming con-man. The Royal Tramp films (1992) starring Stephen Chow are loosely based on this story. Be warned that each volume of The Deer and the Cauldron weighs in at $80 and takes three to four months to arrive from the Hong Kong presses. If you want to sample before buying then look for Volume 3 (June 1993) of The Journal of East Asia History in your university library: it has 2 chapters of Minford's translation.
The final English Jin Yong resource I'm aware of is the comic/manga series Return of the Condor Heroes (Shendiao) published by AsiaPac Books of Singapore. A translation of the second volume (Condor and the Xia Lovers? or The Condor and its Companion) of the Shen Diao trilogy it comes as 18-volumes. The artwork by Wee Tian Beng is quite high quality and the translation is said to be decent. The story takes places during the Mongol invasion and downfall of the Song dynasty with a backdrop of the wulin's (martial arts community) response to the invasion. However the real focus of the story is the love between Yang Kuo and his teacher. AsiaPac are on the web and you can view some of the artwork. China Books in Melbourne stocks this title.	Return of the Condor Heroes Image from AsiaPac Books.

Next Section: Additional Modern Sources: Other authors and comics

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4 Feb 2000 © Spike

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