Preservation of Rare Books in Republican China/Honglou meng (The Story of the Stone)
Sophie Volpp, Professor
Comparative Literature
Applications for Spring 2025 are closed for this project.
I am engaged in two projects. One concerns attempts to preserve China's cultural heritage by saving rare books from capture by the Japanese army during the Sino-Japanese war. Since English-language sources are somewhat limited, reading knowledge of Chinese or Japanese is a big plus. The undergraduate students work in a team with me to collect materials, engage in translation of documents and compile a bibliography.
The other project concerns my book on Cao Xueqin's novel The Story of the Stone (Honglou meng). This semester I will be focused on minor characters and also on the confiscation list of chapter 105.
Qualifications: Reading knowledge of Chinese is necessary. A background in comparative literature, English, art history, history or any other related field is desirable although not necessary.
Hours: 3-5 hrs
Arts & Humanities