The Legend of the Condor Heroes

The Legend of the Condor Heroes

Cover of a 1960s edition of the 1st volume of the novel
Author	Jin Yong
Original title	射鵰英雄傳
Country	Hong Kong
Language	Chinese
Series	Condor Trilogy
Genre	Wuxia
Publisher	Hong Kong Commercial Daily
Publication date	1 January 1957
Media type	Print
Followed by	The Return of the Condor Heroes

The Legend of the Condor Heroes is a wuxia novel by Jin Yong (Louis Cha). It is the first part of the Condor Trilogy and is followed by The Return of the Condor Heroes and The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber. It was first serialised between 1 January 1957 and 19 May 1959 in Hong Kong Commercial Daily.^[1] Jin Yong revised the novel twice, first in the 1970s and later in the 2000s. The English title is imprecise since neither species of the condor, the Andean condor and Californian condor, is native to China. A more accurate translation is Story of the Eagle-Shooting Hero. In February 2018, a translation of the first volume (out of four) was published with the title A Hero Born.^[2]

Plot

The story is set during the Jin–Song Wars. Yang Tiexin and Guo Xiaotian are sworn brothers and Han patriots who loathe the Jurchen invaders. They pledge that their unborn children will become either sworn siblings (if both are of the same sex) or a married couple (if they are of opposite sexes).

After Guo Xiaotian's death and Yang Tiexin's disappearance, Guo Xiaotian's son Guo Jing grows up in Mongolia under the care of Genghis Khan. He learns martial arts from the "Seven Freaks of Jiangnan" and Ma Yu of the Quanzhen School, as well as archery skills from Jebe. The Chinese title of the novel is derived from an incident in Guo Jing's youth when he shot two eagles with a single arrow. Yang Tiexin's son, Yang Kang grows up as a Jurchen prince's son. Although he is mentored by Qiu Chuji of the Quanzhen Sect, he also secretly learns the evil "Nine Yin White Bone Claw" from Mei Chaofeng.

Guo Jing is honest, loyal and righteous, but slow-witted. Yang Kang is clever, but scheming and treacherous. They eventually meet each other and their respective lovers, Huang Rong and Mu Nianci. The main plot follows Guo Jing and Huang Rong's adventures and their encounters with the Five Greats. Meanwhile, Yang Kang plots with the Jurchens to conquer his native land, the Song dynasty. Yang Kang refuses to acknowledge his Han Chinese ethnicity and is strongly driven to acquire wealth, fame and glory. His treachery is slowly unveiled throughout the novel in the encounters he has with the protagonists.

With Guo Jing's assistance, the Mongol army conquers the Jin dynasty and subsequently turns its attention towards the Song dynasty. Guo Jing is unwilling to aid the Mongols in attacking his native land so he leaves Mongolia. Guo Jing returns to the Song dynasty and helps his fellow Han Chinese counter the impending Mongol invasion. On the other hand, Yang Kang dies from poisoning after attempting to kill Huang Rong with a palm strike, but ends up hitting her spiked soft armour, which was stained with poison. He leaves behind Mu Nianci and their unborn son, whom Guo Jing named Yang Guo. In the meantime, the Mongol invasion temporarily stops when Genghis Khan dies unexpectedly.

Characters

Adaptations

References