Chinese-Inspired Literary & Genre Classics That Rejected 'Yellow Peril' Fearmongering

Asian and Asian-inspired works of fiction have experienced a renaissance in the English-speaking world in recent years as readers have discovered a new literary and cultural frontier to explore. In this video I highlight several Western authors who helped blaze the trail by penning works inspired by Chinese history, literature and mythology at a time when 'Yellow Peril' scaremongering was common in the 19th and 20th centuries. Their works helped to inoculate readers against the fear and prejudice of that movement and to foster greater interest in the West's engagement with China over the past century. Some of the works I discuss are more than a hundred years old, while others date back just a few decades. The literary, mystery, fantasy and thriller genres are represented, celebrating the spirit of the Chinese people, paying homage to Chinese literary pioneers, and emulating some of the fantastical elements of the Chinese storytelling tradition. They're books that deserve to be read and not forgotten. 1:10 Rural Peasant Striving 5:35 A Mystery Genre Pioneer 12:03 Ghostly Inspirations 14:09 The Lazy Bard 18:06 An Ancient China That Never Was 22:12 Retrotech Thriller...with Dragon? I have a Ko-Fi.com page if you enjoy my videos and would like to buy me a cup of coffee: https://ko-fi.com/thelibraryladder #fantasy #classics #booktube Media credits: Robert Van Gulik Kaja Foglio Fred Nguyen Khan Judge Dee's Mystery The Grapes of Wrath Constancy Part 2 - The Descent by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... Eastern Thought by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... Ghost Processional by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... Long Road Ahead by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... Asian Drums - Vadodara by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... Hidden Agenda by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/...