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Taiwan 2001 |
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Literature |
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Modern Chinese Literature
The New Literature MovementAfter attempts by the Western powers, Japan, and Russia to carve up or annex China in the late 19th and early 20th century, several professors at Peking University initiated the New Culture movement with the founding of the monthly magazine Hsin Ching-nien 新青年 (La Jeunesse; New Youth). New Youth criticized traditional culture and welcomed the arrival of "Mr. Democracy" and "Mr. Science" from the West. The new literature heralded social reform. Hu Shih 胡適 raised the curtain for the literary revolution with his 1917 essay, "A Modest Proposal for the Reform of Literature." In another essay, "On a Constructive Literary Revolution," Chen Tu-hsiu 陳獨秀, Chien Hsuan-tung 錢玄同, and Hu Shih advocated "...a literature in the national language, and a national language of literary quality." They hoped that a nation with more than 2,000 different dialects could adopt a unified "national language" 國語 and that the written literary language of the scholarly class could be discarded in favor of this national language as the basis for writing (see Language). In his History of Vernacular Literature, Hu Shih reevaluated the Chinese literary tradition and attempted to raise the vernacular literature of the people from its previous position as a subbranch of literature to the mainstream. His goal was for vernacular literature to replace the classical literature of the scholars, which he pronounced "dead writing." The early period of new literature was fraught with contradiction: individual freedom was encouraged so as to oppose traditional society, but was at the same time to be abandoned in the name of social justice, social concern, and the building of modern organizations. Rejecting the traditional culture and literature of the scholars, the reformers insisted that vernacular literature was the only living literature. Yet, because vernacular literature grew out of the professional storytelling tradition, they also viewed it as backward and primitive. With the exception of a few great works rich in cultural criticism, they also adopted a largely negative attitude towards the vernacular tradition because it had originated as popular entertainment. Chou Tso-jen 周作人 and others faced the dilemma of advocating a vernacular literature while being unable to identify with either the form or content of traditional Chinese vernacular literature. To solve this dilemma, Hu Shih, Chen Tu-hsiu, and others proposed using the genres, forms, and spiritual consciousness of Western literature as models for imitation. Translation became a required intermediary in the creation of the new literature. The first translators had no scruples about remolding the Chinese language along European lines, and the foreign flavor of their writing became one of its major characteristics. Thus, a deliberate "horizontal transfer" of literature was advocated as part of the movement to modernize China. Actual literary works of the time, however, were not simply imitations of foreign models. Lu Hsun's 魯迅 story, Diary of a Madman 狂人日記, for example, was obviously influenced by Gogol, but the thrust of its content--such as its denunciation of the overly severe and demanding ethics of traditional culture--was an expression of a uniquely Chinese situation. Its style approached that of the fables of Chuang Tzu, Lieh Tzu, Han Yu, and Liu Tsung-yuan. The Early Period of the New LiteratureThe new literature experimented with different genres and drew on varied sources, and as a result was eclectic and multifaceted in nature. Works such as Lu Hsun's novella The True Story of Ah Q 阿Ｑ正傳 and Lao She's 老舍 novel Rickshaw Boy 駱駝祥子 were told in a satirical tone filled with sorrow and pity. Both of these works recalled stories from the early vernacular short story tradition and described the fickle fate of the lower classes, in contrast to the entertainment-oriented themes of the "Beauty-Scholar," itinerant swordsman, or detective-officials fictional works popular in the 17th and 18th centuries. These early works of modern fiction were also influenced to a certain degree by left-wing Western thinking and the tradition of Confucian scholars of pleading to the emperor on behalf of the people. The neat five- and seven-syllable lines of traditional poetry were replaced
in this period by the cadences of spoken Chinese, modeled after the line
patterns of Western poems. Even more notable was the discord that resulted
from Prose writers such as Lin Yu-tang 林語堂 and Liang Shih-chiu 梁實秋, who were intimately acquainted with the Western tradition, wrote informal essays in the style of Montaigne and Lamb. Except for their use of the colloquial language, they generally followed the classical prose style of the ninth through 12th centuries, mixing reason with emotion, and musing on minor events of daily life. Chu Tzu-ching 朱自清, Hsia Mien-tsun 夏丏尊, Feng Tzu-kai 豐子愷, and Hsu Chih-mo 徐志摩 were all masters of this genre of writing. The impassioned critiques of Liang Chi-chao 梁啟超, the cogent lucidity of Hu Shih, and the caustic wit of Lu Hsun were often expressed in "wars of the pen." Standing in contrast to this high level of social involvement were writers such as Chou Tso-jen and Lin Yu-tang, who rediscovered the informal essays of the 16th and 17th centuries. They advocated an easygoing humor and the savoir-vivre of sipping tea and copying old books; but were at the same time conversant with Freud and D.H. Lawrence. Although both types of essays were written in the colloquial language, their spirit was still rooted in the old culture of the scholar. The writers themselves, however, were not government officials, but college professors, publishing house editors, journalists, and high school teachers. Leftism in the New LiteratureOwing to continued internal turbulence and constant power struggles among the warlords, a number of writers (mainly members of the Creation Society 創造社 literary group) followed up the literary revolution with a call for a "revolutionary literature," advocating that literature should serve the revolution. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) set up the League of Leftist Writers 左聯. By the eve of the War of Resistance against Japan, the CCP had, through the power of organized party struggle, effectively stifled creativity and freedom of expression in many writers. Following the Japanese invasion, literature became totally subservient to the war effort, and the vigor and diversity of the early period of modern literature drew to a halt. In the process of fanning the flames of patriotism and nationalistic fervor during the War of Resistance, a higher reassessment was made of traditional Chinese culture and literature. Many writers began adopting methods from folk drama and storytelling in their propaganda campaigns, presaging the literature of workers, peasants, and soldiers later espoused by the Chinese communists. Immediately following the Japanese surrender, China was plunged into all-out civil war. After the Chinese mainland fell into Chinese communist hands, socialist realism and Mao Zedong's talks on art and literature at Yen'an set the narrow confines within which writers on the mainland could operate. At the same time, the withdrawal of the ROC government to Taiwan began a new chapter in modern Chinese literature. Further Reading (in English unless otherwise indicated): Birch, Cyril, ed. Anthology of Chinese Literature. New York: Grove Press, 1965. --- tr. Stories From a Ming Collection. New York: Grove Press, 1958. Chang Chien 張健, ed. Chung-kuo wen-hsueh pi-ping lun-chi 中國文學批評論集 (A Collection of Chinese Literary Criticism; in Chinese). Taipei: Heavenly Lotus Publishing Company, 1979. Chen Jo-hsi 陳若曦. Spirit Calling: Tales about Taiwan. Taipei: Heritage Press, 1962. ---The Execution of Mayor Yin 尹縣長 and Other Stories from the Great Cultural Revolution. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1978. ---[Chen Ruoxi]. The Old Man 老人 and Other Stories. Renditions paperback. Hong Kong: Chinese University of Hong Kong, Research Centre for Translation, 1986. Chen Ying-chen 陳映真. Exiles at Home: Stories by Chen Ying-chen. Trans. Lucien Miller. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan, Center for Chinese Studies, 1986. Chi Pang-yuan 齊邦媛, ed. An Anthology of Contemporary Chinese Literature. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1989. Chung-kuo ku-tien wen-hsueh lun-tsung: tse-erh, wen-hsueh pi-ping yu hsi-chu chih pu 中國古典文學論叢：冊二，文學批評與戲劇之部 (Essays on Chinese Literature: Vol. 2, Literary Criticism and Drama; in Chinese). Taipei: Chung Wai Literary Monthly, 1976. Chung-kuo ku-tien wen-hsueh yen-chiu tsung-kan: san-wen yu lun-ping chih pu 中國古典文學研究叢刊：散文與論評之部 (Essays on Classical Chinese Literature: Prose and Criticism; in Chinese). Taipei: Chu Liu Book Company, 1979. Chung-kuo wen-hsueh chiang-hua 中國文學講話 (On Chinese Literature; in Chinese). Taipei: Chu Liu Book Company, 1982. 6 vols. Crump, J.I. Chinese Theater in the Days of Kublai Khan. Tucson: The University of Arizona Press, 1980. Ho Chi-peng 何寄澎, ed. Chan-hou wu-shih nian tai-wan wen-hsueh kuo-chih hsueh-shu yan-tao-hui lun-wen-chi: wen-hua, ren-tung, she-hui pian-chien 戰後五十年臺灣文學國際學術研討會論文集:文化,認同,社會變遷 (Essays from the International Conference on Postwar Taiwan Literature: Culture-Identity-Social Change; in Chinese). Taipei: Council for Cultural Affairs, 2000. Hsieh Wu-liang 謝無量. Chung-kuo fu-nu wen-hsueh shih 中國婦女文學史 (History of Chinese Women's Literature; in Chinese). Taipei: Chung Hwa Book Company, 1973. Hu Shih 胡適. Pai-hua wen-hsueh shih 白話文學史 (A History of Chinese Vernacular Literature; in Chinese). Tainan: Tunghai Publishing Company, 1981. Hu Yu-huan 胡毓寰. Chung-kuo wen-hsueh yuan-liu 中國文學源流 (The Origins of Chinese Literature; in Chinese). Taipei: Commercial Press, 1967. Huang Chun-ming 黃春明. The Drowning of an Old Cat 溺死一隻老貓 and Other Stories. Trans. Howard Goldblatt. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1980. Hwa Yen 華嚴. Lamp of Wisdom 智慧的燈. Taipei: Woman Magazine, 1974. Ke Ching-ming 柯慶明, Lin Ming-te 林明德, ed. Chung-kuo ku-tien wen-hsueh yen-chiu tsung-kan: hsiao-shuo chih-pu 中國古典文學研究叢刊：小說之部 (Essays on Classical Chinese Literature: Novels; in Chinese). Taipei: Chu Liu Book Company, 1979. Kuo, Gloria Liang-hui 郭良慧. Taipei Women. Hong Kong: New Enterprise Company, 1983. Lau, Joseph S.M., ed. Chinese Stories from Taiwan, 1960-1970. New York: Columbia University Press, 1976. Li Ang 李昂. The Butcher's Wife 殺夫: A Novel by Li Ang. Trans. Howard Goldblatt and Ellen Yeung. San Francisco: North Point Press, 1986. Lin Hai-yin 林海音. Green Seaweed and Salted Eggs 綠藻與鹹蛋. Taipei: Heritage Press, 1963. Lin Wen-keng 林文庚. Chung-kuo wen-hsueh fa-chan Shih 中國文學發展史 (The Development of Chinese Literature; in Chinese). Taipei: Ching Liu Publishing Company, 1976. Liu Chen-lu 劉振魯, ed. Tang-chien Tai-wan so-chien ke-sheng Liu Wu-chi, ed. An Introduction to Chinese Literature. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1966. --- ed. Sunflower Splendor: Three Thousand Years of Chinese Poetry. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1975. Lo Lien-tien 羅聯添, ed. Chung-kuo wen-hsueh shih lun-wen hsuan-chi 中國文學史論文選集 (Essays on the History of Chinese Literature; in Chinese). Taipei: Student Book Company, 1985.5 vols. Ma, Y.W. and Joseph S.M. Lau, eds. Traditional Chinese Stories, Themes and Variations. New York: Columbia University Press, 1978. McNaughton, William, ed. Chinese Literature: An Anthology from the Earliest Times to the Present. Rutland: Charles E. Tuttle Company, 1974. Mulligan, Jean, tr. The Lute, Kao Ming's Pi-pa chi. New York: Columbia University Press, 1980. Nieh, Hua-ling 聶華苓, ed. Eight Stories by Chinese Women. Taipei: Heritage Press, 1962. ---Mulberry and Peach 桑青與桃紅: Two Women of China. London: Women's Press, 1986, c1981. Nienhauser, William H., ed. The Indiana Companion to Traditional Chinese Literature. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1986. Pai Hsien-yung 白先勇. Wandering in the Garden, Waking ---Crystal Boys 孽子: A Novel by Pai Hsien-yung 白先勇 Trans. Howard Goldblatt. San Francisco: Gay Sunshine Press, 1990. Peng Ko 彭歌. Black Tears 黑色的淚, Stories of War-Torn China. Trans. Nancy Ing. Taipei: Chinese Materials Center Publications, 1986. Shih, Shu-ching 施叔青. The Barren Years 那些不毛的日子 and Other Short Stories and Plays. Trans. John M. Mclellan. San Francisco: Chinese Materials Center, 1975. Tseng Yung-i 曾永義. Shuo hsi-chu 說戲曲 (On Drama; in Chinese). Taipei: Linking Publishing Company, 1976. Yeh Ching-ping 葉慶炳. Chung-kuo wen-hsueh shih 中國文學史 (The History of Chinese Literature; in Chinese). Taipei: Student Book Company, 1987. 2 vols. Yip Wai-lim 葉維廉, ed. Chung-kuo hsien-tai wen-hsueh pi-ping hsuan-chi 中國現代文學批評選集 (An Anthology of Contemporary Chinese Literary Criticism; in Chinese). Taipei: Linking Publishing Company, 1976. Wang Chiu-kuei 王秋桂, ed. Chung-kuo wen-hsueh lun-chu yi-tsung 中國文學論著譯叢 (Essays on Chinese Literature; in Chinese). Taipei: Student Book Company, 1985. Wang, Wen-hsing 王文興. Family Catastrophe 家變. Trans. Susan Dolling. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1995. ---Backed Against the Sea 背海的人 Trans. Edward Gunn. Ithaca: Cornell East Asia Program, 1993.
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