François Cheng
Author of Green Mountain, White Cloud: A Novel of Love in the Ming Dynasty
About the Author
Image credit: François Cheng à Paris le 26 juin 1997, France
Works by François Cheng
In Love with the Way: Chinese Poems of the Tang Dynasty (The Calligrapher's Notebooks) (2000) 58 copies, 3 reviews
Associated Works
19 Ways of Looking at Wang Wei: How a Chinese Poem is Translated (1987) — Translator — 322 copies, 10 reviews
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Other names
- Chéng, Bàoyī
程, 抱一 - Birthdate
- 1929-08-30
- Gender
- male
- Education
- Ecole pratique des hautes études
Université de Nankin - Occupations
- academician
writer
poet
calligrapher - Organizations
- Académie française (2002)
- Awards and honors
- Académie française ( [2001])
Commandeur des Arts et des Lettres (2002)
Grand prix de la francophonie de l'Académie française (2001) - Relationships
- Cheng, Anne (daughter)
- Short biography
- François Cheng, de l'Académie française, est à la fois poète (Entre source et nuage, 1990 ; Le Livre du vide médian, 2004), romancier (Le Dit de Tianyi Prix Femina 1998, L'Eternité n'est pas de trop 2002, Quand reviennent les âmes errantes 2012) et essayiste (Cinq méditations sur la beauté 2006, L'un vers l'autre 2008, Cinq méditations sur la mort autrement dit sur la vie, 2013, Assise, 2014). Le dernier livre que nous ayons publié de lui est la série de ses Entretiens avec Françoise Siri (2015, en coédition avec France-Culture.
- Nationality
- China (birth)
France - Birthplace
- Nanchang, Jiangxi, People's Republic of China
- Places of residence
- Paris, France
- Associated Place (for map)
- Nanchang, Jiangxi, People's Republic of China
Members
Reviews
François Cheng was born in China, in 1929, in Nanchang, in Jiangxi province. He moved to France at the age of 19, in 1948. Une longue route pour m'unir au chant français describes this journey. It is a book that is both an autobiography, and a guide to his work and the interplay of cultural influences both Chinese and French. Particularly the first part is of interest, as it shows even at a young age François Cheng was at the forefront of the literary scene in China, aware of and involved show more with budding modernism in literary circles in China before the Pacific War and before the Communist Revolution. François Cheng also shows how the fabric of classical Chinese culture and poetry is part of his upbringing and education in China, which he experienced and absorbed consciously as a teenager in China.
The larger part of Une longue route pour m'unir au chant français describes the genesis of his work and his style, while living in France, and writing in French. Although François Cheng has both written prose, novels and essays, he is best known for his poetry. Besides, he is also active as a calligrapher.
Une longue route pour m'unir au chant français is an excellent introduction to François Cheng and his work. Embedded in the text are fragments of his poems, and the text refers to other books by Cheng which illustrate his thinking and his ideas. Naturally, the interplay of references to China and Chinese culture permeates the narrative. show less
The larger part of Une longue route pour m'unir au chant français describes the genesis of his work and his style, while living in France, and writing in French. Although François Cheng has both written prose, novels and essays, he is best known for his poetry. Besides, he is also active as a calligrapher.
Une longue route pour m'unir au chant français is an excellent introduction to François Cheng and his work. Embedded in the text are fragments of his poems, and the text refers to other books by Cheng which illustrate his thinking and his ideas. Naturally, the interplay of references to China and Chinese culture permeates the narrative. show less
Excellent. Written like poetry. Beautiful language, wistful, romantic sans sap, thoroughly enjoyable...converted me to Cheng fanaticism.
La bellezza esiste senza che la sua necessità appaia a prima vista evidente."[...] la bellezza si regge sul principio della vita. Perciò, al di là di tutti i criteri possibili, un solo fatto è il garante della sua autenticità: la vera bellezza è quella che procede nella direzione della Via, intendendo per «Via» nient'altro che l'inarrestabile cammino verso la vita aperta, verso un principio di vita in grado di mantenere aperte tutte le sue promesse."
In Love with the Way: Chinese Poems of the Tang Dynasty (Calligrapher's Notebooks) by François Cheng
One of the best, and best produced books on Calligraphy, I have come across, added to the fact that the calligraphy is complemented by the addition of poems of the Tang Dynasty really puts the book in a higher class. Take into account that there are a further five books in the series, and it makes calligraphy heaven! Shambala have done a magnificent job in producing this short series. Pity they're now out of print, but I'm glad I bought my set beforehand.
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Awards
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Associated Authors
Statistics
- Works
- 62
- Also by
- 2
- Members
- 1,009
- Popularity
- #25,560
- Rating
- 3.9
- Reviews
- 32
- ISBNs
- 155
- Languages
- 8
