Songs of Gold Mountain: Cantonese Rhymes from San Francisco Chinatown [Paperback]

Marlon K. Hom (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 27, 1992 | ISBN-10: 0520081048 | ISBN-13: 978-0520081048

Marlon Hom has selected and translated 220 rhymes from two collections of Chinatown songs published in 1911 and 1915. The songs are outspoken and personal, addressing subjects as diverse as sex, frustrations with the American bureaucracy, poverty and alienation, and the loose morals of the younger generation of Americans. Hom has arranged the songs thematically and gives an overview of early Chinese American literature.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A good introduction to the Chinese American experience and literature through the songs of a particular area. . . . It would make an exciting text." -- David R. Mayer, Asian Folklore Studies

"An enjoyable and informative work which will be of value to anyone studying the Chinese experience in America." -- Jeannette L. Faurot, Journal of the American Oriental Society

"Dispels once and for all stereotypes of Chinese immigrants as the 'heathen Chinese' -- the foreign, docile, illiterate, and sexless character popularized in American literature of the nineteenth and early twentieth century." (Judy Young, Amerasia Journal

Language Notes

Text: English, Chinese (translation)
Original Language: Chinese --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: University of California Press (November 27, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0520081048
• ISBN-13: 978-0520081048
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #406,166 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #44 in Books > Literature & Fiction > World Literature > Chinese

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars unique window into early Chinese-American life, December 14, 2007

By 

Joel Fetzer (Los Angeles, CA, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Songs of Gold Mountain: Cantonese Rhymes from San Francisco Chinatown (Paperback)

Hom, a scholar of Asian-American studies and an amazing linguist, collected these written-Cantonese poems originally printed in early Chinese-language newspapers from San Franciso, translated them into English, and annoted them with historical and cultural information. Where the written Cantonese differs from standard (Mandarin) written Chinese, he also provides Chinese footnotes translating the expression into Mandarin. Excellent both for historians studying Chinese Americans and for advanced-level students learning Cantonese. Chapters cover various aspects of the life of first-generation Chinese immigrants, from longing for home to dealing with abusive immigration officials.