Talk by Huan Jin, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.
Tuesday, June 3, 2025
4:00 PM - 5:30 PM
Royce Hall 243
The Collapse of Heaven investigates a long-neglected century in Chinese literature through the lens of the Taiping War (1851–1864), one of the most devastating civil wars in human history. With the war as the pivot, Huan Jin examines the manifold literary and cultural transformations that occurred from the 1850s to the 1880s. The book analyzes a wide range of writings—proselytizing pamphlets, diaries, poetry, a full-length novel, drama, and short stories—with a particular emphasis on the materiality of these texts as well as their production and dissemination. Tracing allusions to political turbulences across many genres, Jin discusses how late imperial Chinese literary and cultural paradigms began to unravel under conditions of extreme violence and tracks the unexpected reinventions of literary conventions that marked the beginning of Chinese literary modernity. In addition to making a significant contribution to Chinese studies, this book offers an important comparative perspective on the global nineteenth century and engages with broad scholarly discussions on religion, violence, narrative, history, gender, theater, and media studies.
Huan Jin is a historian of premodern Chinese literature and culture. She is currently an Assistant Professor in the Division of Humanities at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. Dr. Jin specializes in mediated literary and cultural transformations in late imperial China (ca. 1400–1911 CE). Her scholarship encompasses diverse literary forms, including fiction, drama, diaries, memoirs, and propaganda. Dr. Jin’s first book, The Collapse of Heaven: The Taiping Civil War (1851–1864) and Chinese Literature and Culture (1850–1880), published by Harvard University Asia Center in 2024, investigates the profound shifts in literary and cultural paradigms prompted by wartime violence. Her articles have appeared in notable journals such as Late Imperial China, Journal of Chinese Literature and Culture, and Journal of the American Oriental Society.
Sponsor(s): Center for Chinese Studies