Lust, Caution: The Story

by 張愛玲 and Eileen Chang

Book Overview

A major motion picture (2007) from Oscar-winning director Ang Lee ( Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon; Brokeback Mountain ): an intensely passionate story of love and espionage, set in Shanghai during World War II. In the midst of the Japanese occupation of China and Hong Kong, two lives become intertwined: Wong Chia Chi, a young student active in the resistance, and Mr. Yee, a powerful political figure who works for the Japanese occupational government...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0307387445
• ISBN13: 9780307387448
• Release Date: September 2007
• Publisher: Anchor Books
• Length: 96 Pages
• Weight: 0.24 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.3" x 4.9" x 7.3"

Customer Reviews

Great, Tale

This thin book provides all you need to enhance your movie viewing experience. The movie is well directed and very well performed by the cast. But Eileen Chang's story is better than the movie in many subtle ways. It is certainly worth the read. Very few people will need to see the script and other information that is included in the larger book.

A fluid translation of a captivating tale

I read this book first in Chinese and then in English because I wanted to know how it was translated. Even for the Chinese reader Eileen Chang's original text could be hard to follow and necessitated rereading to fully grasp the details. Chang's writing is famously dense, lush, sensuous, and chock full of puns, symbolism and suggestion. She wrote with a vocabulary distinctive to her era and to her world. Her description of colors, for example, can be foreign to many contemporary Chinese readers. To translate her work will therefore inevitably strip the writing of that period flavor. Julia Lowell did an admirable job in presenting Chang's story in a very fluid and stylish manner in English, even if she could not adequately convey the mood that Chang evoked. In fact, it was easier to follow the plot by reading the English translation. Unlike her other fiction pieces, Chang's Lust|Caution was extremely spare. Though Chang had always been precise and terse with her language she never spared details. In Lust|Caution, however, she seemed to have deliberately skipped some descriptions. Chang provided the motive for the two central characters to become drawn to each other: Chia-chih and Mr. Yee chose their diametrically opposite paths during Japan's invasion of China but in the process both ended up emotionally repressed, insecure, and isolated. This void drew them together, but Chang only informed the readers that they had become intimate twice without further details. This was unlike her other novels/novellas that at least briefly described the seduction (Red Rose, White Rose) or what the character was thinking as she got intimate with her lover (Love in a Fallen City). Such deliberate omissions added to the mystique of Chia-chih's impulsive and fateful decision at the end, leaving readers lingering with imagination and postulation long after they finished the story. For Chang's fans, in particular, we wonder if the conciseness stemmed from Chang's reluctance to delve into a personal wound that inspired the story.

Lust, Caution The Story, The Screenplay, and The Making of the Film

I can recommend this expanded version of Lust, Caution to those who are interested in the adaptation of a novel to screenplay. It gives the reader insight into the mind of the seasoned screenwriter and how he goes about his work. I also found much information in the preface by director Ang Lee and the introduction by screenwriter James Schamus.

A really good story

The thing I liked the most about this book was that the story itself was interesting, it was based on real events, and it included a couple of surprising plot twists at the end that I enjoyed and that added considerably to the tale. I didn't care much for Ms. Chang's style of writing which, in my opinion, included too much attention to minute details that were not, in my opinion, relevant to telling of the story. But I can't complain too much about this because the story was so short that her dwelling on a few tedious details was not enough to bore me. Overall, I enjoyed this short story very much, and after reading this little book, I enjoyed watching the movie too.

Story will stay with you long after you close the book

(Afterword by film director Ang Lee and essay by James Shamus. Translated with a Foreword by Julia Lovell) Anchor Books has printed Eileen Chang's short story, Lust Caution, just as it is about to be released as a major motion picture. Talking place in Japanese-occupied Shanghai of the 1940s, this storyline is equal parts spy-thriller and love affair. Chang's vivid descriptions of decadent Shanghai are candy for the imagination, and yet it's the heart and mind of heroine Chia Chih that hold the imagination captive. Chia Chih's story is told in only fifty pages, and yet I think one could spend a lifetime trying to understand this complex heroine. Why did she decide to do it? Was it worth it? Though it is rich in character, I found this short story difficult to follow at first. Lust, Caution is incredibly terse. Eileen Chang packs quite a bit of punch in every single line of this short story. In fact, her word economy is so tight that I found myself confused in a few places. Anchor Books has helped out by packaging the short story along with an informative introduction by translator Julia Lovell, a reflection by film director Ang Lee, and a thoughtful essay by James Shamus. I highly recommend reading these extra features as they add clarity and depth to the reading experience. In fact, I think this book would be a good pick for a summer book club. The afterward and the essay pose some great discussion questions, and they help to illuminate some of the deeper complexities in the story. Lust, Caution is a short story that will sear itself into your memory for a long time. Thoughts of love, betrayal, trust, deception--these will all swirl around in your mind as you ponder the unexpected turn-of-events in this short story. Author Eileen Chang, who herself lived in occupied Shanghai, has succeeded in sifting out the human element from the revolutionary events of her day. Armchair Interviews says: A thought-provoking read worth your time.