Female friendship, solidarity at the centre of new novel
Above all else, Tales of Ming Courtesans is about the strength of female friendships. After becoming ‘obsessed’ with the topic while researching her new book, Vancouver author Alice Poon says she was eager to highlight this area of emotional bonding. Alee
For those who aren’t familiar, what is Tales of Ming Courtesans about?
It is a historical novel set in the transition period straddling the Ming and Qing dynasties (17th-century China), which tells the tragic stories of three of the era’s most beautiful and artistically talented courtesans, highlighting their struggle for survival and dignity in a deeply misogynistic society — and how they transcend their challenges to create goodness around them.
Q How would you describe it in three words?
A Glimmer in darkness.
Q What made this the right time to write this story?
A I think for a lot of historical novelists, myself included, the tendency is to write on subjects and historical periods that interest
QAus most, that we feel impassioned about, rather than to be concerned with catching the right time to write a novel. When I finished reading the research materials in the spring of 2018, the tragic stories of Liu Rushi, Chen Yuanyuan and Li Xiangjun made me obsessed with a particular story theme, and that is the theme of female friendship and solidarity. At that time, while I was aware of the #Metoo movement gaining momentum, I wasn’t, in fact, mulling on its relevance to my novel.
Fast forward to the scheduling earlier this year for my novel’s publication, one day my publisher hinted to me that the experiences of the three protagonists rhyme with those of the present-day #Metoo victims. It then dawned on me that both groups of victims, albeit four centuries apart, suffer in a similar manner unspeakable humiliation and affliction at the hands of patriarchal predators, but still find the strength and moral courage to soldier on; both groups inspire those around them while trying to seek justice; both groups look for female solidarity as a major psychological prop. In this sense, I guess my novel is coming out at the “right” time.
The book highlights strong female bonds. What more can you share about this — and why was this important to you?
By chance, the three protagonists of my novel are thrown into each other’s company and they, sharing a common fate of being orphaned in childhood and having no siblings, are able to forge a strong bond which becomes their lifeline in moments of excruciating suffering as they struggle against a cruel patriarchy. Inspired by the customary
QApractice among courtesans in that era to form sworn sisterhood by exchanging handkerchiefs as a token, calling themselves “kerchief sisters,” I imagined it would only be natural for my protagonists to go through the same ritual in their moment of desperation, as they have little else to make life worth living for them. The sisterly pledge would make them feel familial warmth and love, which is sorely lacking in their lives, and endow them with strength and desire to soldier on. In real life, Liu Rushi and Chen Yuanyuan were indeed intimate friends.
The book is set in 17th-century China. What was it about this period that made you want to highlight it in your latest book? The period in question is one that straddles two ruling regimes: the Ming and the Qing dynasties. I have a particular interest in this period because, growing up, I had learned from books, operas, movies and TV dramas about some intriguing and poignant human stories of love, sacrifice, divided loyalties and patriarchal tyranny that took place in that stretch of history.
QAAs a grown-up, I’ve found that these stories are highly relatable and mirror our present-day human condition.
Is there anything about this book that might surprise readers?
Readers, especially Western readers, may not be familiar with the historical fact of human trafficking and slavery prevalent in certain parts of China in the time period in question. Procurers of slave girls were commonly called “thin-horse breeders” and the business of buying and selling slave girls was referred to as the “thin-horse trade.”
Lastly, what do you hope readers take away from this book?
I hope the book sends a positive message: that tenacity and hope will ultimately triumph over adversity. And that compassion always trumps oppression.
aharris@postmedia.com
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