Liú Dōng Wàishǐ 留東外史 (第三部)
An Unofficial History of Sojourners in Japan (Part 3) by 不肖生 (撰)
About the work
KR4k0297 contains part 3 (dì sān bù 第三部) of Liú Dōng Wàishǐ 留東外史, specifically chapters 61–70 of the third installment of this multi-part novel by 不肖生 (Xiàng Kǎirán 向愷然, 1889–1957). The Kanripo catalog entry’s “author” field reads “第三部” (dì sān bù, “Part Three”), which is not a person’s name but a volume designation: this file represents the third part of the same work as KR4k0296. The catalog designation reflects the original serialized publication format, in which each “part” (bù 部) of the novel was issued as a separate volume. For full background on the author and the work, see KR4k0296.
About the work
The text of KR4k0297 begins directly in the narrative at chapter 61, continuing the social world of Chinese sojourners in Japan depicted in parts 1–2. Chapter 61 opens: “作兒女語一對可憐蟲 / 論國民性許多無恥物” (“Speaking lovers’ words — a pitiable pair / Discussing the national character — many shameless specimens”), maintaining the satirical tone of the earlier sections. The narrative continues to follow recurring characters from the earlier parts — Zhèng Shàotián 鄭紹畋, Huáng Wénhàn 黃文漢, Sū Zhòngwǔ 蘇仲武, Méizi 梅子 — navigating the social and romantic entanglements of the Tokyo expatriate community. Episodes in part 3 include a “Double Ten” (Guó Qìng Jié 雙十節, the October 10 national day of the Republic) celebration, drinking parties in the city’s outskirts, and continued intrigues. The section references “Dàidàimù” (代代木, Yoyogi), a Tokyo neighborhood, indicating the geographic specificity Xiàng maintained throughout the serial.
Tiyao
No tiyao found in source.
Abstract
The full Liú Dōng Wàishǐ was published in multiple installments by the Shìjiè Shūjú 世界書局 between 1916 and approximately 1922. The Kanripo corpus preserves two separate files representing different parts of this multi-volume serial: KR4k0296 (chapters 1–90, parts 1–2) and the present file KR4k0297 (chapters 61–70 of part 3, overlapping in numbering with the main sequence, reflecting independent volume pagination in the original edition). The novel was sufficiently popular that Xiàng Kǎirán also produced a Liú Dōng Wàishǐ Bǔ 留東外史補 (Supplement to the Unofficial History), extending the fictional world further.
John Christopher Hamm’s The Unworthy Scholar from Pingjiang (Columbia University Press, 2019) documents that Liú Dōng Wàishǐ was serialized and published between 1916 and 1922, making Xiàng Kǎirán one of the first professional fiction writers in the Shanghai literary marketplace. The novel predates his wǔxiá fiction career, which began with Jiānghú Qíxiá Zhuàn 江湖奇俠傳 (1923–1930).
Translations and research
- Hamm, John Christopher. 2019. The Unworthy Scholar from Pingjiang: Republican-Era Martial Arts Fiction. Columbia University Press.
Links
- 平江不肖生 — Wikipedia (Chinese)
- See also: KR4k0296 for full bibliographic information on the parent work.