Balzac Soundtrack Project (pp. 62-63) Natasha Bedingfield – “Unwritten”: This song expresses renewal and rejuvenation‚ which Luo‚ the narrator and the Little Seamstress experienced throughout the entire novel after reading Luo’s forbidden books. The lifting‚ upbeat tempo and serene voice of Natasha Bedingfield fits perfectly for the scene where Luo reads passages of Balzac written down in the sheepskin coat to the Little Seamstress for the first time. The chorus: “live your life with arms wide open/
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PAGE TO SCRREEN Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress Jessica Allardyce Words (Without Quotes) : 1200 Daj Sijie’s novel Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress‚ and the film of the same title‚ are both set against the historical background of the Great Cultural Revolution of China. This campaign‚ which ran from 1966 to 1976 by Chairman Mao‚ aimed to re-educate young intellectuals by the poor peasants of China. Specifically‚ Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress follows the story
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Chinese Communist leader Mao Zedong’s implemented the Cultural Revolution and spread perpetual fear of death during his rule in China. Educated citizens faced humiliation‚ exile‚ beatings‚ and millions of youths had no choice‚ but to relocate to the countryside for their “re-education.” He classified books as propaganda and the owners as traitors who should suffer severe consequences. In Dai Sijie’s Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress‚ the narrator and Luo risk getting caught with novels in
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Balzac and the Seamstress "Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress" by Dai Sijie is one of those special books‚ moving and delicately twisted and full of insights about life under communism. It gives us a glimpse into a frighteningly oppressive world where learning and reading are political crimes punishable by death. The book is a fictionalized account of the author’s own experience of surviving Chinese communism and in particular Mao’s Cultural Revolution. The Cultural Revolution was Mao’s
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A coming of age story is one that resonates with us and we can empathize with it. In Balzac and the Little Seamstress the author Dai Sijie presents a bildungsroman through the maturity of the protagonist/narrator after reading books by Western authors that changed his perspective in life. The protagonist’s maturity can be seen through how he learns about the ideals of individualism‚ his emotional maturity when handling a pregnancy and discovering parts of himself like his sadistic part. The narrator
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The effect had been so strong that even the village headman who‚ for all his harshness‚ couldn’t hold back the years pouring from his eyes. When Luo was sick with malaria‚ the little Seamstress brings four sorceresses to help Luo recover. To keep the sorceresses awake and watching over Luo the narrator recounts ‘The Little Flower Seller’. When the narrator told the story‚ the sorceresses weren’t too engaged and did not show any sign of influence. Luo wakes up in time to say the final line ‘The saying
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Balzac and The Little Chinese Seamstress What is the ironic result in his success in making the Little Seamstress more Sophisticated? What does this suggest about attempting to change others to ones beliefs or desires? Communism came to power in China in the year 1949 and was dictated by Mao Zedong‚ who later ordered for all educated men and women of China to be reeducated in the countryside. Lou and the narrator were just two of many thousands to be sent off to be reeducated. Lou and the
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Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress An overview of the book and political propaganda at the time By Sujatha Changolkar 10-1‚ Liz Heit 10-2‚ and Cristelle Fremont 10-2 Main Characters: The narrator (nameless) He is a seventeen-year-old violin player‚ and once is referred to in the novel as "the fiddler. His name in English translates as‚ “Horse Sword Bell.” In the original version of the book‚ the narrator goes by the name Ma. Luo He is the narrator’s best friend and son of a famous
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Little SeamSTRESS-ED Butterflies in some cultures symbolize change‚ a “new self;” while butterflies in Chinese culture symbolize “new love.” A character who is a protagonist will change the most out of any character in a book. Throughout the book‚ Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress‚ we follow the narrator and his best friend‚ Luo‚ through their adventures of thievery and dangerous jobs. But‚ neither of them are the protagonist. The Little Seamstress is the protagonist‚ because like a butterfly
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Books might not seem like a big factor in today’s society‚ but they can play a big role on the change of how someone perceives one another’s life. One of the main ideas in Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress is how the French Novels affect Ma‚ Luo‚ the village tailor and the Little Chinese Seamstress. Before Ma and Luo find these books they live in a normal everyday life like the rest of the people living in their village. While Living in this enclosed environment it’s hard to resist not finding
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