It is based on the novel red sorghum clan by nobel laureate mo yan. I sure am glad it was because it is an incredibly powerful book that presents a. Mo yans red sorghum village home may never be the same again. The sorghum story sorghum is africas contribution to the small number of elite grains that supply about 85 percent of the worlds food energy.
Most viral diseases of sorghum are mosaics with the most important being maize dwarf mosaic toler, 1985. Pdf nutritional and rheological properties of sorghum. In 2009, 82% of harvested area of sorghum was within africa and asia fao, 2011. Red sorghum is a 1987 chinese film about a young womans life working on a distillery for sorghum liquor. Sorghum, like many grains, has a diversity of uses, including human consumption and animal feed. Review novel food and nonfood uses for sorghum and millets. Jan 06, 20 red sorghum by mo yan when i read that mo yan was awarded the nobel prize for literature, i figured i should read one of his books. The fact that it was made in 1988, and shot in china in cinemascope and color, doesnt make it a modern film, but that is quite all right. Grain sorghum acreage expanded in most of the traditional grain sorghum producing counties in 2002.
Sorghum is a glutenfree cereal and forms the staple diet of a majority of the populations living in the semiarid tropics. Sorghum is used for human nutrition all over the world 2, 6, 7, 10. Grain yield response and stability indices in sorghum. Sorghum juicederived ethanol is cheaper to produce than corn ethanol because it doesnt require the cooking and enzymes that corn requires for conversion of starch to sugar to fuel grade alcohol.
This novel began as a short story published in 1986, so well received that it later was expanded into five chapters and published as a family saga in 1987, by the peoples liberation army publishing house, beijing. Red sorghum novel essays are academic essays for citation. Globally, it produces approximately 70 million tons of grain from about 50 million ha o f land. Mo yan is the winner of the 2012 nobel prize in literature and the. There is a strength in the simplicity of this story, in the almost fairytale quality of its images and the shocking suddenness of its. It is cultivated worldwide in warmer climates and is an important food crop in semiarid tropical areas of africa, asia and central america. The acclaimed novel of love and resistance during late 1930s china by mo yan, winner of the 2012 nobel prize in literature spanning three generations, this novel of family and myth is told through a series of flashbacks that depict events of staggering horror set against a landscape of gemlike beauty, as the chinese battle both japanese invaders and each other in the turbulent. Globally, over half of all sorghum is used for human consumption. Buck novel, this inspiring drama follows the many ups and downs in the lives of chinese farmers wang lung paul muni and olan luise rainer. Mo yans debut novel and first us publication was the basis of a 1988 oscarnominated film. Grain yield response and stability indices in sorghum sorghum bicolor l. The continent produces about 20 million tonnes of sorghum per annum, about onethird of the world crop.
Published in 1986, it was mos first novel and remains one of his bestknown works. Sorghum is more tolerant of alkaline salts than other grain crops and can therefore be successfully cultivated on soils with a ph kcl between 5. Red sorghum is the sort of scenic, romantic, violent, symbolic melodrama that flowered in the early years of the cinema. Red sorghum is a novel of family, myth, and memory, set during the fratricidal barbarity of the 1930s, when the chinese battled both japanese invaders and each other. Only four other foods rice, wheat, maize, and potatoes are consumed in greater amounts. Red sorghum is told in a series of flashbacks and follows the lives of several main characters in a small chinese village. I sure am glad it was because it is an incredibly powerful book that presents a genuine chinese viewpoint. Mo yans novel is so beautifully written and so compelling, that it is a pity it is represented by such a film. Red sorghum novel essay imagery and diction in red sorghum. I didnt realize until id grown up that northeast gaomi township. If you didnt read the novel by mo yan, who would not be able to follow the film version. The read in pdf php acclaimed novel of love and resistance. Written in 1987, red sorghum received critical acclaim in china and was made into a movie in 1988.
Sorghum plant is a potentially attractive raw material for food, feed, fuel and industry hallgren et al. It is now widely cultivated in dry areas of africa, asia, the americas, europe and australia between latitudes of. Thus the narrator of mo yans novel states the theme of red sorghum. Importance of sorghum in africa j r n taylor department of food science, university of pretoria, pretoria 0002, south africa, email. The sorghum is a symbol of fortitude, and a continuation of life. Beanb adepartment of food science, university of pretoria, pretoria 0002, south africa.
Sorghum is the dietary staple of more than 500 million people in more than 30. Lyrical, colorful, and disturbing, red sorghum is a powerful novel that takes place during one of the darkest periods of chinese history, which is the japanese invasion of the 1930s. Moench is a crop indigenous to africa, where it appears to have been domesticated in ethiopia about 5 000 years ago. Red sorghum red sorghum is a novel that is set in mo yans shandong hometown of northeast gaomi township.
Supersummary, a modern alternative to sparknotes and cliffsnotes, offers highquality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. One of the most common bacterial diseases of sorghum is bacterial leaf stripe kucharek. Sorghum usually grows poorly on sandy soils, except where a heavy textured subsoil is present. I had never heard of him before he won the award, but hearing that his style of writing was dubbed hallucinogenic realism, it sounded right up my alley.
Current estimates suggest that intensive plant breeding and cultivation research could, over time, increase the sugar content of sorghum juice to a. Sorghum grain is a small, hard caryopsis covered by glumes. A tale of china is the title appearing on page 3 and on amazon. Sweet sorghum is grown for syrup or forage, whereas some other sorghums, such as kafirs and milos, are grown for grain.
With peng chi, tina collins, tongsheng han, xuan huang. Mo yans red sorghum village home may never be the same. Red sorghum clan red sorghum red sorghum is the title appearing on the front and back covers of this book and on pages 1 and 2 in its official english translation. Contrastingly different from the south, mo yan describes the northeast as the most beautiful and repulsive, most unusual and most common, most sacred and most corrupt, most heroic and. Moench grain is the fifth major staple cereal after wheat, rice, maize and barley. A powerful new voice on the brutal unrest of rural china in the late 20s and 30s.
As your unfilial son, i am prepared to carve out my heart, marinate it in soy sauce, have it minced and placed in three bowls, and lay it out as an offering in a field of sorghum. Yu sends his 14yearold son back home to get food for his men. Red sorghum penguin books, 1994 by mo yan is a historical novel that takes place in 192324 and the late thirties, during the war against japan. Inspired by mos 1997 novel red sorghum, which zhang yimou adapted into an awardwinning film, the government also plans to create a red sorghum culture and experience zone in pingan. The term sorghum molasses is a colloquial expression incorrectly applied to sorghum syrup. Imagery and diction in red sorghum anonymous 12th grade through war torn villages and billowing sorghum fields, author mo yan depicts the subtle joys and harsh realities of the life of a chinese family during the second sinojapanese war in his novel, red sorghum. It was not until 1993, however, that this novel was translated into english. After all, the plant is africas contribution to the worlds top crops. A novel of china or red sorghum clan simplified chinese.
Made into a very successful film by jiang yimou, red sorghum is packed with action, killings, guns, policemen, backstabbing, survival after neardeath experiences, deeds of heroism and betrayal, and. As the novel opens, a group of villagers, led by commander yu, the narrators grandfather, prepare to attack the advancing japanese. I had never heard of him before he won the award, but hearing that his style of writing was dubbed hallucinogenic realism, it sounded right up. It is a major crop for many poor farmers, especially in africa, central america, and south asia. Red sorghum, is a novel that was published in 1986 written by mo yan. Most of the events in the novel take place between 1923 and 1941. Mo yan literally dont speak is the pen name of guan moye. Red sorghum clan appears to be gothicartechs translation. Grain sorghum is the most commonly cultivated agronomic type of sorghum worldwide berenji and dahlberg, 2004.
The name sweet sorghum is used to identify varieties of sorghum, sorghum bicolor l. The acclaimed novel of love and resistance during late 1930s china by mo yan, winner of the 2012 nobel prize in literature spanning three generations, this novel of family and myth is told through a series of flashbacks that depict events of staggering horror set against a landscape of gemlike beauty, as the chinese battle both japanese invaders and each other in the turbulent 1930s. This onepage guide includes a plot summary and brief analysis of red sorghum by mo yan. Born in 1955 to a peasant family in shandong province, he is the author of ten novels including red sorghum, which was made into a feature film, dozens of novellas, and hundreds of short stories. The setting for the novel is the authors native village of northeast gaomi township in the province of shandong near the tip of the chinese peninsula that points toward korea. Oct 23, 2012 inspired by mos 1997 novel red sorghum, which zhang yimou adapted into an awardwinning film, the government also plans to create a red sorghum culture and experience zone in pingan. The mentioned counties are also the largest producing ones, with phillips ranking. Published in 1986, red sorghum is a magical realism novel written by. Sorghum can better tolerate short periods of water logging compared with maize. Red sorghum, however, defies this tradition and is set in the rough northeast gaomi township, where mo yan, the author of the novel red sorghum, comes from. Grain sorghum, mabele, amazimba, amabele origin and distribution sorghum is the 5th most important grain crop after wheat, maize, rice and barley. To include sorghum in a book on lost crops, on the face of it, seems like a gross mistake.
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