Mao Dun Literature Prize
1 appearances
-
Edition 5 (2000) Winner
Alai
アライ
Alai
Profile
- Gender
- Male
- Born
- 1959-01-01 （Barkam, Ngawa Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan, China）
- Nationality
- China
- Languages
- Chinese
Career
- Occupations
- Novelist, Poet, Editor
- Active Years
- 1982-
- Affiliations
- International Writing Program, University of Iowa (2013 participant)
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Normal College | — | — | — | — | China |
Normal College
Country:
China
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Mao Dun Literary Prize (5th) | Red Poppies | — | Mao Dun Literary Prize Committee | 受賞 |
| 2002 | Kiriyama Prize | Red Poppies | — | Kiriyama Prize Committee | 最終候補 |
Mao Dun Literary Prize (5th)
2000
Work:
Red Poppies
Organization:
Mao Dun Literary Prize Committee
Result:
受賞
Kiriyama Prize
2002
Work:
Red Poppies
Organization:
Kiriyama Prize Committee
Result:
最終候補
Awards & Nominations
Lu Xun Literary Prize
1 appearances
-
Edition 7 (2014) Winner
Works
Major Works
Red Poppies
1998 NovelSet in the decade before the 1951 ‘liberation’ of Tibet, the novel follows the Maichi family of Tibetan chieftains as narrated by the youngest, often called the 'idiot' son, portraying a feudal, romantic, and turbulent borderland society facing historical change.
Tibetan societyFeudal power structuresFamily sagaCultural change
Translations
- English translation: Red Poppies (trans. Howard Goldblatt & Sylvia Li-chun Lin, 2003)
Tibetan Soul: Stories
2012 Short storiesA collection of short stories drawing on Tibetan traditions and everyday life, notable for its narrative voice and ethnographic details.
Oral traditionEveryday lifeEthnic identity
The Song of King Gesar
2013 Epic/CompilationWork related to the Tibetan epic 'King Gesar'; in English editions translation was handled by Howard Goldblatt and others.
Epic talesOral literature
Bibliography
- Red Poppies (1998)
- Tibetan Soul: Stories (2012)
- The Song of King Gesar (2013)
Adaptations
- The Climbers (2019) - film
Translations of Works
- Red Poppies — English translation by Howard Goldblatt & Sylvia Li-chun Lin (2003)
- Tibetan Soul: Stories — English translation by Karen Gernant & Chen Zeping (2012)
- The Song of King Gesar — English translation by Howard Goldblatt & Sylvia Li-chun Lin (2013)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- Lyrical prose with elements of oral traditionEthnographic realism
- Recurring Motifs
- PoppiesMountain/highland landscapesLineage of chieftains and family treesOral tradition
Legacy
Alai is recognized for articulating Tibetan perspectives in Chinese; his novel Red Poppies earned the Mao Dun Literary Prize and established him as an important figure in contemporary Chinese literature. His works, drawing on oral and ethnographic elements, have received international attention through translations.
In Popular Culture
- Connection to the film The Climbers (2019)
Trivia
- Of Rgyalrong (Tibetan) descent, Alai composes his works in Chinese.
- Red Poppies (1998) won the 5th Mao Dun Literary Prize in 2000.
- Participated in the International Writing Program residency at the University of Iowa in 2013.