Lust, Caution

"Lust, Caution" (zh-cp|c=色，戒|p=Sè, Jiè) is a novella by the Chinese writer Eileen Chang, that was first published in 1979. It is set in Shanghai during World War II. Reportedly, the short story "took Chang more than two decades to complete." ["the Spy Who Shagged Yee; Ang Lee's sexed-up thriller is neither sexy nor thrilling." Robert Wilonsky. OC Weekly (Orange County, California). October 11, 2007.]

Characters

* Wang, Jiazhi alias Mrs. Mak
* Mr. Yee
* Mrs. Yee
* Mr. Mak
* Kuang Yu Min
* Old Wu
* Lai Shu Jin

Plot summary

In China, during the Japanese occupation in WW II, young woman Mak is a member of a resistance group who plot to kill a Japanese collaborator, Yee. Mak starts a love affair with Yee for this purpose. However, she really falls in love with him, and just before her comrades try to kill him she warns him. He escapes and has the whole group executed, including Mak.

Major themes

English translations

Lust, Caution was not published in English until 2007.

# Lust, Caution (色，戒) Translated by Julia Lovell. New York: Anchor Books, 2007. ISBN 978-0-307-38744-8
# Lust, Caution: The Story, The Screenplay, and the Making of the Film. Translated by Julia Lovell. New York: Pantheon Books, 2007. ISBN 978-0-375-42524-0

References