Ma Yuan 1953-

Born in Jinzhou, Liaoning province. After a compulsory stint in the countryside during the Cultural Revolution, Ma studied at Liaoning University, majoring in Chinese literature. Upon graduation in 1983, he moved to Tibet. During his seven years in Lhasa, Ma Yuan wrote the stories that established him as the first postmodernist in Chinese literature. In 1989 he developed medical problems from the effect of the Tibetan altitude and left Tibet. He now teaches at Tongji University, Shanghai.

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