Ep. 206 | Robert van Gulik and Judge Dee
In this episode, Laszlo introduces the great Nederlander Robert van Gulik. In his relatively short life, van Gulik made a name for himself as a scholar, diplomat, and writer. His sixteen detective novels featuring the “stern but fair-minded” Judge Dee offered his world-wide readership a peek into 7th century Tang China society.
Judge Dee was based on the historical person Di Renjie, an important official during the reign of Empress Wu Zetian. Van Gulik was fascinated with the Chinese “gong’an detective novel” genre of literature and brought it to a worldwide audience.
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Terms in Episode
| Pinyin/Term | Chinese | English/Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Andy Lau | 刘德华 | Longtime Hong Kong superstar singer, actor and a whole lot more |
| Báimǎ Sì | 白马寺 | The White Horse Temple, built in 68 CE. Oldest Buddhist temple in China |
| Bāo Zhěng | 包拯 | Justice Bao, a Northern Song era scholar official of great renown for his judicial wisdom and incorruptibility. He lived 999 to 1062 |
| Bǐ, Mò, zhǐ, yǎn | 笔墨纸砚 | The components of the Four Treaures: Brush, Ink, Paper and Inkstone |
| Carina Lau | 刘嘉玲 | Another great and longtime famosa in Hong Kong and Greater China cinema |
| Chongqing | 重庆 | Municipality in China, once part of Sichuan province. Capital of the Rep. of China during the war |
| Dí Gōngàn | 狄公案 | The Chinese name given to the Ming era book translated by van Gulik |
| Dí Rénjié | 狄仁杰 | Judge Dee, also known as Detective Dee |
| Dí Rénjié zhī sìdàtiānwáng | 狄仁杰之四大天王 | Detective Dee and the Four Heavenly Kings |
| Gāo Luópèi | 高罗佩 | Robert Hans van Gulik 1910-1967 |
| Gāozōng | 高宗 | Son and successor of Taizong. Lived 628-683. His second wife was Wu Zetian (Judge Dee's boss) |
| Gōng’àn Xiǎoshuō | 公案小说 | The Chinese detective novel genre |
| gǔqín, qín | 古琴，琴 | The Qin is a seven-stringed zither type instrument |
| Hoong Liang | Sergeant Hoong, Judge Dee's trusty right hand | |
| Huáyì Brothers | 华谊兄弟 | Huayi Brothers Media Corp. |
| Hàn Gāozǔ | 汉高祖 | Han Dynasty founder, reigned from 202-195 BCE |
| Irene Tsu | 諸慧荷 | Shanghai born actress known for her role in Flower Drum Song and many other TV and movie roles |
| James Hong | 吴汉章 | Minneapolis-born prolific and talented actor and activist who has appeared in many great films. |
| Jūnzǐ | 君子 | A gentleman, as Confucius would have reckoned |
| Keye Luke | 陸錫麒 | 1904-1991, best known as Charlie Chan's #1 Son. A man with a thousand talents. |
| Khigh Dhiegh | Born the same year as Robert van Gulik, 1910-1991. One of the best known Yellowface actors of 1950-1980 Hollywood | |
| Liù Yì | 六艺 | The Six Arts: Rites, Music, Archery, Charioteering, Calligraphy, Mathematics |
| Luòyáng | 洛阳 | Ancient capital of several dynasties, located on the Yellow River in Henan province |
| Ma Joong, Chiao Tai, Tao Gan | The other three blokes who made up Judge Dee's crime fighting/investigating team | |
| Mako | 1933-2006, Kobe, Japan-born Hollywood actor known for his raspy voice. | |
| Manchukuo | 满洲国 | The puppet state in Manchuria setup by the Japanese military |
| Ming | 明朝 | The Ming Dynasty 1368-1644 |
| Mukden Incident | 九一八 | September 18, 1931...an incident created by the Japanese military as a pretext for an invasion of Manchuria |
| pànguān | 判官 | Chinese magistrate during the Tang |
| Qing | 清朝 | The Qing Dynasty 1644-1911 |
| quán | 拳 | Chinese boxing |
| Sammo Hung | 洪金宝 | Hong Kong superstar actor, martial artist and a personal fave of Laszlo |
| Shǔi Shìfāng | 水世芳 | Robert van Gulik's wife and mother to his four children |
| Song Dynasty | 宋朝 | Dynasty that ran 960-1279 |
| Sānhuáng wǔdì | 三皇五帝 | The mythical Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors from China's pre-history |
| Tsui Hark | 徐克 | One of Hong Kong's greatest film directors (born in Vietnam) |
| Tàiyuán, Shānxī | 山西太原 | Taiyuan is the capital of Shanxi Province |
| Táng Tàizōng | 唐太宗 | Second emperor of the Tang Dynasty and one of the co-founders. Lived 598-649 |
| Táng yīn bǐ shì | 棠阴比事 | "Parallel Cases from under the Pear Tree" - A 13th century Manuel of jurisprudence and detection. Translated by van Gulik |
| wénfáng sìbǎo | 文房四宝 | The Four Treasures that were always on the desk of any Junzi's library. See below |
| Wǔ Zétiān | 武则天 | The one and only Empress Wu - 624 to 705 |
| Wǔ Zétiān Sì Dà Qí Àn | 武则天四大奇案 | "Four Curious Cases from the time of Empress Wu", the Ming-era detective novel translated in part by van Gulik |
| Yángzǐ | 扬子江 | The Yangtze River, longest one in China |
| Zhou Dynasty | 周朝 | Successor to the Shang Dynasty. Ran from 1046 to 256 BCE |
| Zhōngguó Gǔdài Fángnèi Kǎo | 中国古代房内考 | A Preliminary Survey of Chinese Sex and Society from 1500 BC to 1644 AD |
| Zhōu Dynasty | 周朝 | That's right...two appearances in the same list. This was the "Zhou" Dynasty founded by Wu Zetian that ran 690-705 |
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