Outlaws of the Marsh: A Somewhat Less Than Critical Commentary
In 1996, I found myself with a lot of spare time in the evenings and I decided to brush up on some classics of world literature that I had never read. I began with Tolstoy's War and Peace and Cervantes Don Quixote. Of course, everyone acknowledges these novels as masterpieces of world literature. I read them and I also acknowledged them as masterpieces. Next, on a whim, I picked up Outlaws of the Marsh, which I had never heard of before, because it was a thick book that could consume a lot of time and because it was old. I figured that if the book was still around after 600 years it ought to have some merit to it. Much to my unexpected pleasure, I found Outlaws of the Marsh to be every bit the equal of the other world masterpieces, which I had recently read. From my own experience, I found that, in reading Outlaws of the Marsh for the first time I had some difficulty keeping up with the many characters in the novel. For this reason, I put together a list of 108 heroes to jog my memory when one of the 108 reappeared after an absence of 20 or 30 chapters. Later, when I encouraged others to read Outlaws of the Marsh, I passed along the list of heroes, which I was told proved useful. Therefore, I have posted it as a kind of reading aid. Hopefully, it may prove of some slight benefit to another reader discovering this classic of world literature. Otherwise, it is simply an inutile by-product of an excessive penchant for applying scholarly techniques to my leisure activities.
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Based solely on his skill at football, Gao Qiu, the principle villain of Outlaws of the Marsh becomes a confidante of Prince Duan, who becomes Emperor Hui Zong in 1101 A.D. |