The Original Story of Mulan | Read the Ballad of Mulan in Chinese & English

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  • čas přidán 22. 07. 2024
  • Amidst the plethora of legendary figures in Chinese folklore and history, Mulan stands out. How does the original Ballad of Mulan compare to other famous adaptations, like Disney’s Mulan? In this video, we read through the rendition of The Ballad of Mulan from the 6th century.
    0:00 Introduction
    0:25 The setting of Mulan and historical evidence
    1:18 Disney's “Fa Mulan” and the meaning of her name
    2:05 Reading the Ballad of Mulan in Chinese
    2:50 Continuing the Ballad of Mulan in English
    5:23 Last lines of the Ballad in Cantonese
    5:36 Concluding thoughts
    References/sources:
    A more in-depth translation with the full Chinese poem and other references
    www.tsoidug.org/Literary/Mulan...
    English translation from The Flowering Plum and the Palace Lady: Interpretations of Chinese Poetry by Hans Fränkel
    afe.easia.columbia.edu/ps/chin...
    Chinese languages
    www.britannica.com/topic/Chin...
    Researchers Uncover New Evidence That Warrior Women Inspired Legend of Mulan
    www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-...
    Period of the Northern and Southern Dynasties (386-581)
    www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/nsd...
    Some clips from Disney's Mulan (1998) and Mulan (2020).
    Music:
    Track: Yuhui (Xun) NCM version
    Music provided by CZcams Free Music Library (NCM)
    Watch: • No Copyright Music,Chi...
    Track: Midsummer fruit (Guzheng) NCM version
    Music provided by CZcams Free Music Library (NCM)
    Watch: • No Copyright Music,Chi...
    #TheBalladofMulan #ReadWithMe

Komentáře • 60

  • @claralima1961
    @claralima1961 Před 3 lety +101

    I loved the historical aspect, the Cantonese reading, and the aesthetic of the video. Your videos are always amazing. Random fact: Mulan was always a favorite for me as in my city - Salvador - we have a statue of a female warrior who fought for Brazil’s independence and my father used to tell compare her history with Mulan’s as I was growing up, as a way of telling me that a woman could do anything, despite what people thought.

    • @msiew723
      @msiew723 Před 3 lety +1

      Nice comment! I too enjoyed the video, me thinks the channel deserved more subscribers and video more views

    • @klc9135
      @klc9135 Před 3 lety +1

      Your father and your are so nice

    • @JuzefaWingedCat
      @JuzefaWingedCat Před 3 lety +1

      Can you share the name of the statue? I would love to read the history behind it.

  • @seanchen9265
    @seanchen9265 Před 3 lety +48

    The word choice of Fa Mulan in the animated also tell a lot about what happen in the past ; This told us where Disney consulted while making the animated. The cantonese. So i personally actually felt okay with the minor mistake.

    • @Kpoper4life
      @Kpoper4life Před 3 lety +7

      From what Ive heard, they chose fa instead of Hua because they thought it would be easier for American audiences to pronounce.

    • @tamhuy10
      @tamhuy10 Před 3 lety +1

      mulan in cantonese is muklan tho ?

    • @Kpoper4life
      @Kpoper4life Před 3 lety +1

      @@tamhuy10 Fa is the Cantonese pronunciation of Hua though.

    • @tamhuy10
      @tamhuy10 Před 3 lety

      @@Kpoper4life yeah the name disney used was half half, Fa being cantonese and MuLan madarin fo the same reason you said

    • @Jowa._53_.W
      @Jowa._53_.W Před měsícem

      @@tamhuy10 yes correct

  • @hondoklaatu1904
    @hondoklaatu1904 Před 3 lety +34

    Thank you for this video. It was really interesting to hear the original source.

  • @user-ow4oq9pb4g
    @user-ow4oq9pb4g Před 2 lety +5

    Kinda sad that the Original Author or poet of Ballad of Mulan is still Unknown. She or he is a legend ❤

  • @chandrawagner4061
    @chandrawagner4061 Před 3 lety +17

    Would you look at that. No witches/shapeshifters, no chi, no pheonix, no prior training. It's almost as if disney didnt actually care about realism and historical accuracy at all 🤷‍♀️
    Great video btw!

  • @YasuTaniina
    @YasuTaniina Před 3 lety +3

    My mom is both a book and history nerd, so I grew up with an english translation in the house. It was cool to hear it in the original language.

  • @1MarmadukeFan
    @1MarmadukeFan Před 3 lety +15

    Great work. You might consider making a "highlight" video of just the English and Chinese readings as separate videos. The intro is good for people who want historical context, but a lot of people might want to just hear the poem itself.

  • @snowprincess6430
    @snowprincess6430 Před 3 lety +2

    Thanks for making this video. I really like the way you shared the history and detail of this story.👍

  • @cleista_silvermoon5047
    @cleista_silvermoon5047 Před 3 lety +1

    This is exactly what I've been looking for!!!! Thank you for the attention to detail ❤

  • @arjunabetta4572
    @arjunabetta4572 Před 3 lety +5

    It seems like the poem has like same rhymes at the end of each line if it is read in Cantonese. Beautiful indeed. I usually listen to Mandarin pronunciation of the poem but Cantonese pronunciation is beautiful too!

  • @mariannebrouillette4301
    @mariannebrouillette4301 Před 3 lety +1

    Thank you, this was my favorite video about the history of Hua Mulan :)

  • @agu-man6065
    @agu-man6065 Před 3 lety +11

    I love this video and the analysis.
    Since I been reeading the novels and different stories of Mulan and her true origin.
    I will share this around with everyone.

  • @JCResDoc94
    @JCResDoc94 Před 3 lety +7

    *☼ best entry on this topic on all of yt!*

  • @JohnSmith-hv6ks
    @JohnSmith-hv6ks Před rokem +2

    the 3 versions i know actually has her gender hidden until she reveals it herself. it always gets found out to create dramatic effect

  • @ingridmilliken3063
    @ingridmilliken3063 Před 3 lety +2

    I love this channel

  • @tomsouzas
    @tomsouzas Před 3 lety +2

    Muito bom... adorei a explicação!!! Thanks!!

  • @kasiopeeya
    @kasiopeeya Před 2 lety

    I love this history. Thank you.

  • @unaanguila
    @unaanguila Před 3 lety +1

    Thanks for sharing!

  • @StarShadow9009
    @StarShadow9009 Před 3 lety +12

    Awww i really wanted to know what it sounded like in Chinese. I know English.

    • @Vivian8Wong
      @Vivian8Wong Před 3 lety +5

      Gautham StarShadow I TOTALLY agree! We can read the English. The Cantonese was beautifully read. I wish I could hear this read entirely in Cantonese and Mandarin, with the same Chinese traditional characters and English.

  • @izabelasales.
    @izabelasales. Před rokem

    could someone tell me the translation of the first image where the mulan figure appears in the Gathering Gems of beauty?

  • @ilovehorses38
    @ilovehorses38 Před 3 lety +3

    Under the Khan dynasty, women were accepted in the army and trained alongside the men. They were the Mongolian warriors and they fought against the Hans and every other Empire. It's funny how China and Disney corrupted the setting to make it look like she was on the side of the Hans when she wasn't.

    • @Zz7722zZ
      @Zz7722zZ Před 3 lety +3

      Hua Mulan was Xianbei, not Mongolian. The xianbei people were largely (but not all) assimilated into Han in the following centuries. The Rouran have a greater claim to being forebears of Mongolians than the xianbei.

    • @wharris381
      @wharris381 Před 2 lety +4

      You confused huns with han. hans was a nomadic people,one of Mongolian ancestors., which was Rouran in the north of the Northern Wei Dynasty at that time. hun is a chinese race. Xianbei in the Northern Wei Dynasty was also originally nomadic people, but after dominating the Central Plains, they were self sinicized.Xianbei Emperor changed Xianbei's surname to Han's surname , stipulating that xianbei spoke Chinese and wore han cloth, so later most of xianbei became Han .therefore whether Mulan is Han Chinese or not, she is definitely Chinese and definitely represents Chinese culture.

    • @wharris381
      @wharris381 Před 2 lety +2

      A special point in the poem is that it was "Khan" at the beginning, after Mulan returned ten years later, "Khan" became the "son of heaven"(天子), which also symbolized the process of Xianbei rulers's self-sinicization.

  • @rogerlynch5279
    @rogerlynch5279 Před 2 měsíci

    EXCELLENT !!
    But there is a small contradiction. IF the Emperor asks the Veterans AFTER TEN YEARS for their wishes for their dutyfull service how comes her comrads in arms had served with her for TWELVE YEARS. as stated at the end.
    I guess the poem had survived the cultural cleansing in China when the DAO of Konfuzius became the State´s Philosophy because it helped to justify the costs for maintaining the GREAT WALL.

  • @janet0613.
    @janet0613. Před 2 lety

    The Woman Warrior is such a good book

  • @sabrinawong8165
    @sabrinawong8165 Před 3 lety +1

    My dad says I look like mulan- he is Cantonese and likely has heard of that story.... does that mean I’m brave,beautiful,witty etc?

  • @yky6835
    @yky6835 Před 3 lety +1

    While the beginning does feel like it is better in Cantonese( or perhaps the one who wrote it speak Cantonese), but the end doesn't, especially 雄雌, cause in Cantonese it is often use 雌雄 instead.

  • @tayyihcheung7450
    @tayyihcheung7450 Před 3 lety

    Certain translation is not correct: not "~no use for the •••post", but "does/do not want ~~"

  • @kawazoeasuk
    @kawazoeasuk Před rokem

    Why is Mulan poetry pronounced in Cantonese?

  • @dakotamartinez8310
    @dakotamartinez8310 Před 3 lety

    This sounded much more interesting. I would like to see a movie more accurate to it.

  • @hvuu1628
    @hvuu1628 Před 3 lety +5

    lost in translation. lol the english translation is lacking.

    • @angelomendoza6666
      @angelomendoza6666 Před 3 lety

      From 0-100%, how accurate would you rate the english translation?

    • @cccfsr
      @cccfsr Před 3 lety +5

      the meaning is almost correct but the "feeling" is what's lacking. I'd say the translation is decent enough for ppl to understand the general story of the original ballad.

    • @hvuu1628
      @hvuu1628 Před 3 lety

      @@cccfsr nope. not quite. its an ethnic language thing. some languages hold a mean that other non native speakers would never comprehend completely even with the tried fail throughly explanation.

    • @hvuu1628
      @hvuu1628 Před 3 lety

      @@angelomendoza6666 1% and that is with a grain of salt.

    • @cccfsr
      @cccfsr Před 3 lety +1

      @@hvuu1628 yes but I don't think the Ballad of Mulan is that delicate. 李白杜甫李商隐辛弃疾长恨歌你可以这么说,但木兰辞本来就挺白话的。诸如东西南北市场买买买也没啥难以翻译的深刻文学内涵吧。

  • @taurantnguyen1664
    @taurantnguyen1664 Před 3 lety

    木蘭辭 muk lan zsi
    In Reconstructed Middle Chinese Pronunciation
    czcams.com/video/QR1sqnXYe-o/video.html
    Comparing to Sino-Vietnamese pronunciation
    Mộc Lan từ
    Tức tức phục tức tức, Mộc Lan đương hộ chức, Bất văn cơ trữ thanh, Duy văn nữ thán tức. Vấn nữ hà sở tư, Vấn nữ hà sở ức. Nữ diệc vô sở tư, Nữ diệc vô sở ức. Tạc dạ kiến quân thiếp, Khả hãn đại điểm binh; Quân thư thập nhị quyển, Quyển quyển hữu gia danh. A gia vô đại nhi, Mộc Lan vô trưởng huynh, Nguyện vi thị yên mã, Tòng thử thế gia chinh. Đông thị mãi tuấn mã, Tây thị mãi yên tiên, Nam thị mãi bí đầu, Bắc thị mãi trường tiên. Đán từ gia nương khứ, Mộ túc Hoàng hà biên, Bất văn gia nương hoán nữ thanh, Đãn văn Hoàng hà lưu thuỷ thanh tiễn tiễn. Đán từ gia nương khứ, Mộ túc Hắc sơn đầu, Bất văn gia nương hoán nữ thanh, Đãn văn Yên sơn Hồ kỵ thanh thu thu. Vạn lý phó nhung cơ, Quan sơn độ nhược phi, Sóc khí truyền kim thác, Hàn quang chiếu thiết y. Tướng quân bách chiến tử, Tráng sĩ thập niên quy. Quy lai kiến thiên tử, Thiên tử toạ minh đường, Sách huân thập nhị chuyển, Thưởng tứ bách thiên cường. Khả hãn vấn sở dục, “Mộc Lan bất dụng thượng thư lang, Nguyện tá minh đà thiên lý túc, Tống nhi hoàn cố hương.” Gia nương văn nữ lai, Xuất quách tương phù tương; A tỷ văn muội lai, Đương hộ lý hồng trang; Tiểu đệ văn tỷ lai, Ma đao hoắc hoắc hướng trư dương. Khai ngã đông các môn, Toạ ngã tây các sàng; Thoát ngã chiến thì bào, Trước ngã cựu thì thường; Đương song lý vân mấn, Đối kính thiếp hoa hoàng. Xuất môn khán hoả bạn, Hoả bạn giai kinh hoàng: Đồng hành thập nhị niên, Bất tri Mộc Lan thị nữ lang! Hùng thố cước phác sóc, Thư thố nhãn mê ly, Lưỡng thố bàng địa tẩu, An năng biện ngã thị hùng thư?

  • @AssassinsCr2
    @AssassinsCr2 Před 3 lety +1

    Very nice video with great explaining. I believe the story of Mulan is a myth, during those years women were no allowed to fight, and I doubt they could with such heavy weapons. Nonetheless, it's good to have such stories and myths cause there are still men that feel superior due to a woman's relative physical disadvantage, especially Muslims I believe.

  • @dodo-eu6ox
    @dodo-eu6ox Před rokem

    这首诗怎么可能用粤语读啊😅 这首诗描述的场景和流传的地方都是北方,唧唧复唧唧这段用粤语你不觉得绕嘛

  • @piglettang
    @piglettang Před 3 lety +2

    Nice! Someone noticed it. It's extremely important to hold on to these details of a language. CCP is erasing a culture from a language, a language from the details.

  • @mechannel7046
    @mechannel7046 Před 3 lety

    Cantonese is among the worst sounding languages/dialect in the world. Recite the poem in proper (i.e., Mandarin) already

    • @skraskraa._.5371
      @skraskraa._.5371 Před 3 lety +5

      You have no taste.

    • @askovtk4834
      @askovtk4834 Před 3 lety

      I guess you skip that part where the video explain the poem rhyme more in Cantonese than Mandarin

    • @CafeDeDuy
      @CafeDeDuy Před 2 lety +3

      Sounds a little… racist right here.
      Cantonese existed far long before Mandarin did. The notion that Mandarin is the proper language is racist honestly.
      Everyone speaks different languages. No one is proper or better than the other.
      Maybe learn speaking other languages than being ignorant and insulting.