Shenghua is the chemist's word for sublimation, a solid turning straight into vapour. In Chinese reviews and comments it means lifting something to a higher plane: a personal story raised into one about country, history or sacrifice. It can be praise or, said dryly, a complaint that a show has dressed itself in a big theme. Viewers of The Lament of Autumn said its war ending elevated the whole drama, turning a troubled romance into a story of family and country.
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Beyond Subtitles
The Lament of Autumn Killed Its Hero, and Viewers Say That Settled His Account
When The Lament of Autumn ended by killing its hero in a war, viewers in China and abroad described the death as the payment for his early cruelty. The loudest grief was for the husband, and the heroine is left holding it.