You might observe that our new Chinese syllabus has integrated the Four Great Classic Novels. But why is that the case? With these stories all being so dated, how are they still relevant to our learning in the modern day society? These classic tales actually influenced the majority of Chinese culture today, having a great impact not only on Chinese literature but also general storytelling!
现在我们的华语教学大纲一直在尝试引入四大名著的故事，但是为什么呢？ 这些故事都那么古老了，它们与我们现代的学习还有什么关系呢？ 这些经典故事实际上影响了当今大多数中国文化，不仅对中国文学而且对整个讲故事都产生了巨大影响！
Well, how so? Despite these stories having a Chinese origin, they explore many of the universal themes we are all so familiar with today, things like love, loyalty, honour and ambition are ever so prevalent in these novels. Still not convincing enough? Maybe you could take a look at the small titbits of one of the novels down below and hopefully then I’ll be able to change your mind.
嗯，怎么会这样呢？ 尽管这些故事起源于中国，但它们探讨了许多我们今天所熟悉的普遍主题，诸如爱情、忠诚、荣誉和野心等东西在这些小说中如此普遍。 还是不够有说服力？ 也许你可以看看下面故事的小花絮，希望我能够改变你的想法。
Journey To The West: First Of The 4 Classics | 西游记
You probably heard of this novel already and it’s none other than the Journey To The West. The story goes that the Monkey King was quite literally born out of a rock and had immense power, however the things this guy did with his powers were less than desirable to say the least.
你可能已经听说过这本小说，它就是《西游记》。 故事说，美猴王确实是从岩石中生的，拥有巨大的力量，然而，这家伙用他的力量所做的事情至少可以说是不太理想的。
He was wreaking havoc and causing chaos in heaven, abusing the power he was born with. As his punishment, I kid you not, he was literally trapped underneath a mountain for rebelling against the celestial order.
他滥用了与生俱来的力量，在天界肆意破坏、制造混乱。 作为对他的惩罚，我没有骗你，他因反抗天命而被困在山下。
Meanwhile the monk known as Xuan Zang is tasked with retrieving Buddha scriptures from India and bringing them back to China. Xuan Zang is provided with disciples known as Zhu Ba Jie the pig demon and Sha Wu Jing the water ogre.
与此同时，玄奘和尚的任务是从印度取回佛经并将其带回中国。 玄奘有弟子，猪八戒、水妖沙悟净。
However, Xuan Zang feels his team is incomplete and despite numerous warnings by others not to do so, he frees the Monkey King who he promises absolution and companionship to should he join them on their mission.
然而，玄奘觉得他的团队并不完整，尽管其他人多次警告不要这样做，他还是释放了孙悟空，并承诺如果孙悟空加入他们的任务，他会得到赦免和陪伴。
Given the choice to leave his prison the Monkey King of course accepts this offer. But knowing how mischievous the Monkey King can be will he really keep to his end of the deal? Or will he betray Xuan Zang and the rest of the crew later on once he is freed?
既然选择离开监狱，孙悟空当然接受这个提议。 但知道美猴王有多么顽皮，他真的会遵守约定吗？ 或者一旦他被释放，他会背叛玄奘和其他船员吗？
What If I'm Not Interested In This Story? | 如果对这个故事不感兴趣怎么办？
Maybe this story is too fictional for your liking or maybe you aren’t into the type of humour in this story and that’s totally fine! Perhaps you may be more interested in a love story like Dream Of A Red Chamber, or a story of grandeur and strife like Romance Of The Three Kingdoms, or maybe even a tale of justice and rebellion like the Water Margin.
也许这个故事太虚构，不适合您的喜好，或者您不喜欢这个故事中的幽默类型，这完全没问题！ 也许你可能对《红楼梦》这样的爱情故事更感兴趣，或者《三国演义》这样的宏伟与冲突的故事，甚至《水浒传》这样的正义与叛逆的故事更感兴趣。
I’m just here to try and pique your interest in these stories as I feel that the themes they cover truly have a lot of meaning and application in our society today, and being honest these stories are just really fun to read. Hopefully I managed to make you just a little more interested in these novels and that’s all from me!
我来这里只是想尝试激起您对这些故事的兴趣，因为我觉得它们所涵盖的主题在我们当今的社会中确实具有很多意义和应用，而且说实话，这些故事读起来真的很有趣。 希望我能让你对这些小说更感兴趣，这就是我的全部！
