The Carnal Prayer Mat (Rou Putuan)

CRITIQUE

Whereas at the begi

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Li Yu was a renowned essayist, novelist, short-story writer, playwright, and critic. The Carnal Prayer Mat was first published in 1657.

ABOUT THE TRANSLATOR

Educated in New Zealand and England, Patrick Hanan is a professor of Chinese literature at Harvard University. Among his books is a study of the author of The Carnal Prayer Mat entitled The Invention of Li Yu (Harvard University Press, 1988). Mr. Hanan is a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and has received numerous awards for his research and translation projects.

[96] The quotation is adapted from Mencius, where Confucius is described as defending his composition of The Spring and Autumn A