CHEN RUOXI, A.K.A. CH’EN JO-HSI (1938– ). Born and raised in rural Taiwan, Chen Ruoxi spent her childhood years under the in- fluence of a patriotic father who refused to learn Japanese when the island was under Japanese occupation and who instilled in his young daughter a strong sense of pride in the Chinese culture. At the National Taiwan University where she was a student in the Foreign Languages Department, Chen began to write fiction and was a cofounder of the journal Xiandai wenxue (Modern Literature). Her exposure to Western modernism led her to adopt some of its artistic visions and narrative techniques in her own writing. In general, however, her works are much more indebted to realism, grounded in true-to-life characters, a simple language, and indigenous cultural traits. Her literary style can be traced to her rural upbringing. She has a deep feeling for the countryside and for the traditions that sustain its continued survival. One of the stories she wrote in her college days, “Zuihou yexi” (The Last Evening Show), laments the decline of the local culture through the accounts of the fall of a Taiwanese opera star’s popularity. In 1961, Chen went to study in the United States, where the views of the People’s Republic of China were not nearly as negative as in her native Taiwan. Echoing the dissident sentiments felt by Taiwanese intel- lectuals against the high-handed policies of the Nationalist government, Chen became an ardent supporter of Maoist China. At Johns Hopkins University, she met her future husband, Duan Shiyao, a Ph.D. student in fluid mechanics. The young idealistic couple decided to expatriate to China. They arrived in Beijing in October 1966, at the outbreak of the Cultural Revolution. Instead of being welcomed by the Communists, they were suspected of being imperialist spies sent by America to sabo- tage socialist China. While Duan was sent to a farm to be reeducated, Chen remained in their home at the Hydraulic Engineering College in Nanjing, taking care of children whose parents, like Duan, were under- going labor reform in the countryside. Disillusioned with communism, the couple left China in 1973 with their children and subsequently set- tled in Hong Kong. Chen’s first story, “Yin Xianzhang” (The Execution of Mayor Yin), was published in 1974 and was followed by more “Cul- tural Revolution stories.” These stories were enthusiastically received in Hong Kong and Taiwan, where they were taken as anti-Communist, a message the author insisted was unintended. After moving to the United States in 1979, Chen published several books about Chinese immigrants trying to survive and succeed in their 22 • CHEN RUOXI, A.K.A. CH’EN JO-HSI new country. Notable among them are Zhi hun (Marriage on Paper), which relates how a phony marriage between a woman from Shanghai and an American man turns into a true and caring partnership, Tuwei (Breakout) about the problems faced by well-eduated Chinese im- migrants in San Francisco, Yuanjian (Foresight), which describes the pursuit of the American dream and its heavy toll on the individuals and their families, and Er Hu (Two Men Named Hu), which portrays two Chinese American couples. In 1995, Chen returned to her native Tai- wan. Inspired by the charitable work done by Buddhist women there, Chen wrote Hui xin lian (The Lotus of Kindness), depicting the journey of three nuns from one family. CHEN YINGZHEN, A.K.A. CH’EN YING-CHEN, PEN NAME OF CHEN YONGSHAN (1937– ). Fiction writer. Chen Yingzhen attended Tamkang University and graduated from the National Taiwan Univer- sity. He began his literary career in 1959 and has published mostly short stories portraying life in small villages and towns of Taiwan. In 1968, Chen, accused of “pro-communist activities,” was found guilty and sen- tenced to seven years in prison. As a literary figure, Chen is a leading voice in the nativist literary movement in Taiwan. Going against the modernist trend promoted by his professors and fellow students at the Foreign Languages Department of the National Taiwan University, Chen chose to adhere to the realist tradition by writing about the harsh realities of rural poverty. Treating literature as an outlet of social and moral conviction, Chen depicts the sufferings and alienation of Taiwanese farmers who are forced into in- solvency by encroaching modernization and an unscrupulous business class. Chen also takes jabs at Taiwan’s attempt to Americanize and the devastating effect it has on local culture. “Jiangjun zu” (Generals), one of his best-known stories, about a local drum and gong band that plays at funerals, laments the loss of a close-knit, traditional community in industrializing Taiwan. In Chen’s writings, there is often the opposition between idealism and materialism. A politically engaged writer, Chen is often believed to have represented the social conscience of Taiwan during the repressive reign of Chiang Kai-shek. CHEN ZHONGSHI (1942– ). Fiction and prose writer. Fame came to Chen Zhongshi late in life. Prior to the publication of Bai lu yuan (The White Deer Plain), which won the Mao Dun Literature Prize, he was an obscure writer leading a quiet life in Xi’an in northwestern China. The CHEN ZHONGSHI • 23 novel changed his career almost overnight. Noted for its stylistic clarity and memorable characters, the novel addresses the issue of morality in Chinese society, particularly the role Confucianism plays in rural com- munities. In the view of the May Fourth generation, Confucianism was seen as the culprit responsible for China’s decline; it was blamed for having emasculated the Chinese nation, turning it into “the sick man of the Orient.” This verdict held sway decades after the May Fourth Move- ment. It is no surprise that when the root-seekers began their search for cultural heritage in the 1980s, they opted to overlook this most im- portant tradition. Chen set out to rectify the situation. In Bai lu yuan, a novel about the sweeping changes taking place in northwestern China’s countryside during the 20th century, Chen attributes the disintegration of social order to the abandonment of Confucian values. In his effort to reevaluate the role Confucianism plays in Chinese society, Chen pres- ents the ancient teaching as a positive force in building and maintaining social stability and in serving as an indispensable moral compass. In ad- dition to Bai lu yuan, Chen has written many short stories and essays. CHENG FANGWU (1897–1984). Poet, fiction writer, and playwright. One of the founders of the Creation Society, Cheng Fangwu spent his formative years (1910–1921) in Japan, where he teamed with Guo Moruo, Yu Dafu, and other Chinese students to promote radical changes in China’s political, social, and literary institutions. After he returned to China, Cheng moved to Guangzhou, the center of politi- cal activities at the time, and taught at Guangdong University and the Huangpu Military Academy. In 1927, after the alliance between the Na- tionalists and the Communists fell apart, Cheng fled to Paris, where he joined the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and became the editor for Chi guang (Red Light), an internal magazine published by the party’s Berlin and Paris branches. Upon his return to China in 1931, Cheng was assigned to key posts within the CCP, including party secretary of Hong’an County, director of the Central Party School, and president of United University of Northern China. After 1949, Cheng worked exclu- sively in higher education, serving as a university president. Cheng’s literary career was rather short, with a small output of writ- ings mostly published in the 1920s when he was actively involved in the Creation Society. He wrote short stories and poems, promoting a “revolutionary literature” with the explicit purpose of effecting politi- cal and social change. Later when he was working in the Communist 24 • CHENG FANGWU headquarters in northern Shaanxi, he wrote plays and songs to boost morale in service to the Communist cause. In his last years, he published memoirs about his revolutionary career such as Changzheng huiyi lu (A Memoir of the Long March), adding to the long list of personal accounts written by veteran Communists about this important chapter in the CCP history. More influential than his creative works are his commentaries and critical essays, which represent the mainstream Marxist tradition of the Chinese literary establishment. See also LEFT-WING ASSOCIA- TION OF CHINESE WRITERS; SPOKEN DRAMA. CHENG NAISHAN (1946– ). Novelist. Born in Shanghai, Cheng Naishan moved to Hong Kong with her family in 1949, but returned to her birthplace in 1956. She graduated from the Shanghai College of Education and taught English at a high school for 10 years before moving back to Hong Kong in the 1990s. Cheng’s literary career is closely tied to Shanghai, which provides material and inspiration for her works. Many of her writings about the city deal with wealthy families, similar to her own, who remained in the city after the Com- munist victory. A member of this once privileged class, Cheng knows intimately how they have fared throughout the decades of political vicissitudes. Lan wu (The Blue House) focuses on the family of the former owner of Shanghai’s largest steel mill and how their lives change in the aftermath of the revolution. Along the same line, Cheng planned to write a trilogy about an influential business tycoon and his descendents. The first book, Jinrongjia (The Banker), published in 1993 and based on her own grandfather’s life, is set against the back- ground of the Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) during which the protagonist tries to avert a financial disaster by maneuvering among his business rivals, the puppet Chinese government, and the Japanese occupiers. The novel also introduces the banker’s five children, set- ting the stage for the events that will unfold in the sequels. A recurring theme in Cheng’s works is the clash of social classes. In Tiaoqin shi (The Piano Tuner), Cheng tells about the relationship between the son of a piano tuner and the daughter of a former capitalist who find themselves separated by an invisible wall despite their physi- cal proximity. Her most recent work, Shanghai tange (Shanghai Tango), recounts the glorious days of old Shanghai with its vibrant commercial culture revolving around clubs, bars, cafés, sumptuous banquets, horse races, and other grand entertainment. CHENG NAISHAN • 25 CHI LI (1957– ). Novelist. A popular writer whose works deal with daily lives of Chinese urbanites, Chi Li lives in Wuhan in central China and writes about the city and its residents. Her works are realistic portray- als of life in China today, addressing issues such as love and marriage, jobs, housing, children’s education, food, sickness, and so on. Her style is simple and straightforward. Among her publications are Butan aiqing (Apart from Love) and Kouhong (Lipstick). CHI ZIJIAN (1964– ). Fiction writer. Chi Zijian is native to China’s north- east, which she considers “the soul” of her creative imagination. Since she published her first story in the mid-1980s, Chi has produced several collections of stories and essays and a number of novels. Growing up in the remote mountainous region of Heilongjiang, Chi prefers quiet, simple country living to the thrill of urban life, a sentiment reflected in her writings. She writes in a plain but sensual language, telling stories based on her observations of life around her, particularly the folklores and customs of her hometown. She appreciates the small pleasures of what nature has to offer. Like a poet, she picks out the imperceptible bits and pieces of life and turns them into aesthetic moments. Because of the pronounced features of sentimentality, intimacy, melancholy, and nostalgia, Chi’s stories often read like romantic poems. Even her novels bear characteristics of lyrical poetry; Mangmang qiancheng (Uncertain Prospects) and Chen zhong xiangche huanghun (Morning Bells Ring through Dusk) are some examples. Wei Manzhouguo (The Puppet State of Manchuria), on the other hand, marks a radical departure from her previous endeavors. Instead of the usual concern over the individual life in contemporary rural north- east, Chi turns her attention to an important period in the region’s and the nation’s history. The book does not directly treat the armed resis- tance against the Japanese during World War II, but deals with the daily lives of the characters, from historical figures such as Emperor Puyi and guerrilla general Yang Jingyu to fictional characters who represent the ordinary folks who had to carry on with their lives under the Japanese occupation. The novel also contains references to regional customs such as the drum dance and the river lantern festival. Another ambitious novel, E’erguna He you an (On the Right Bank of the Argun River), an epic story narrated in the voice of a 90-year-old woman, the head of an Oroqen tribe living at the Sino-Russian border, is about the century-old history of how a traditional community tried to survive and maintain 26 • CHI LI its lifestyle and human spirit under the pressure of outside forces. Ch- uanyue yunceng de qinglang (Sunshine Through Clouds), told from the perspective of a dog, is one of her rare acts of experimentation with a different form of narration. See also WOMEN. CIVIL WAR (1945–1949). The ideological split between the Kuomin- tang (KMT), also known as the Nationalist Party, and the Chinese Com- munist Party (CCP) went back to 1927, when their cooperation during the Northern Expedition, whose purpose was to defeat the northern war- lords and unify China, proved to be short-lived. Sensing the danger of the Communist influence within the ranks of his army, General Chiang Kai-shek broke away from the alliance and began a campaign to purge the CCP members and the leftists within the KMT. Afterward, the two parties fought intermittently, with the weaker CCP driven underground in urban areas and to the countryside to fight guerrilla wars. When the Sino-Japanese War broke out, the two sides formed an alliance for the second time. After the Japanese surrender, the confrontation between the KMT and the CCP resumed in a full-scale war. Fueled by a growing discontent in the nation about rampant government corruption and hyper- inflation, the CCP, now better armed and with bases in rural China more consolidated, won the Civil War and gained control of the mainland (plus Hainan Island), while the KMT managed to retain the territories of the island of Taiwan, the Pescadores (Penghu), and several small islands off the coast of Fujian. To this day, the two sides remain divided. The impact of the Civil War on modern Chinese literature was pro- found, not in the sense that the war was a subject matter for Chinese lit- erature but that the ideological and political split between the National- ists and Communists allowed Chinese literature written from the 1950s to the 1970s to have a freer and less controlled development in Taiwan, particularly with the modernist experiments, while the mainland pre- occupied itself with ideological writings guided by the principles of socialist realism. CREATION SOCIETY (CHUANGZAO SHE). Founded in 1921, the Creation Society was an influential literary organization. Its members included Guo Moruo, Yu Dafu, and other prominent names. In its early stage, it endorsed authentic expression with an emphasis on subjective, personal, and romantic sentiments. After 1925, as the Communist ideol- ogy gained popularity among Chinese intellectuals, the Creation Society promoted a form of “revolutionary literature,” which influenced an entire CREATION SOCIETY • 27 generation of writers and readers. When it was finally closed down by the Nationalist government, many of its members joined the Left-wing Association of Chinese Writers. See also CHENG FANGWU; FENG NAICHAO; TIAN HAN; YANG HANSHENG; YE LINGFENG. CRESCENT SOCIETY (XIN YUE PAI/SHE). Named after the journal, Xin yue (Crescent), which published writings by liberal-minded intel- lectuals, the Crescent Society represented an influential trend in 20th- century intellectual development. In social thought, it embraced human- istic and moderate reforms; in literature, it promoted modernist innova- tions, epitomized by Xu Zhimo, whose Romantic poems transformed Chinese poetry. All of its prominent members had been educated in Great Britain and the United States and were professors at Beijing’s major universities, including Hu Shi, Wen Yiduo, and Lin Huiyin. Largely confined to academia, its influence began to diminish when Xin yue ceased publication in 1933. CULTURAL REVOLUTION (WENHUA DA GEMING), FULL NAME: THE GREAT PROLETARIAN CULTURAL REVOLU- TION (1966–1976). In the aftermath of his failed economic policies of the Great Leap Forward in the late 1950s, Mao Zedong was forced to stay on the political sidelines. Unsatisfied with the lost power and uneasy about the “antisocialist” tendencies within the Chinese Com- munist Party (CCP), Mao launched in the mid-1960s an offensive in an attempt to “purify” the CCP and regain control of the state. Mao believed that in a socialist society there always existed class struggle and the possibility of the return of capitalism and imperialism; hence the need for continuous revolutions. Mao’s theory sparked two different interpretations within the party. The moderates perceived class struggle to be in the lower stratums of society where the enemies were those al- ready overthrown: the rich peasants, the counterrevolutionaries, and the bourgeois intellectuals. The radical faction, on the other hand, wanted to extend class struggle to the highest levels of the government and to expose enemies among those still in power—the “capitalist roaders.” In order to eliminate his political opponents, Mao sided with the radical faction during the beginning years of the Cultural Revolution. The Red Guards, all young students, were encouraged by the left-wing radicals to bring down government authorities in Beijing and in the provinces, which resulted in serious civil disorder, total collapse of the economy, and massive destruction of cultural institutions. 28 • CRESCENT SOCIETY The aborted coup mounted by Mao’s appointed successor, Lin Biao, in September 1971, eroded the influences of the left-wing radicals and led to the rehabilitation of disgraced former party lead- ers, including Deng Xiaoping, who was reinstated as a vice premier in April 1973. In 1976, three of the most senior party leaders passed away: Premier Zhou Enlai in January, Zhu De (then chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress) in July, fol- lowed by Mao Zedong in September. The country was also visited by an unprecedented natural disaster in that year: an earthquake devastated the city of Tangshan in Hebei Province, confirming the popular Chinese belief that the “mandate of heaven” was withdrawn from the rulers. In less than a month after Mao’s death, the radical Gang of Four, led by Mao’s wife Jiang Qing, were arrested, bringing the Cultural Revolution to an end. In 1981, the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party officially condemned the Cultural Revolution as a “serious national disaster launched and led by Mao Zedong and exploited by Lin Biao and Jiang Qing and their counter- revolutionary cliques.” During the Cultural Revolution, literary activities nearly came to a halt, with veteran writers thrown in the labor camps as in the case of Ding Ling, tortured to death as happened to Zhao Shuli, driven to sui- cide such as Lao She, or in most cases, forced to put down the pen due to the harsh political atmosphere. Very few came out of it unscathed. Those who managed to remain afloat were required to write politically mandated works. The so-called proletarian art in the form of revolution- ary model operas, produced under the direct guidance of Mao’s wife Jiang Qing, influenced the literary field in a number of ways: works were often created by a group of people and therefore bore no individual authorship; radical ideological themes, particularly class struggle, and larger-than-life heroes such as those portrayed in such novels as Ouyang Hai zhi ge (The Song of Ouyang Hai) and Huanghai hong shao (The Red Sentry of the Yellow Sea) were the only mode of expression. One of the handful of writers who emerged during the Cultural Revolution as standard-bearers of the era was Hao Ran, the most celebrated writer at the time. His novels about class struggle and enlightened peasants in the countryside were widely promoted by the authorities. Jinguang da dao (The Golden Road), Yanyang tian (The Bright Clouds), and Xishao ernü (Sons and Daughters of Xisha) were among the very few novels allowed on the shelves of bookstores. CULTURAL REVOLUTION • 29 When the Cultural Revolution ended, the serious damage it had done to the country’s political and cultural institutions and the devastating effects it had on the the Chinese national psyche have been extensively explored in literature, first in the so-called scar literature represented by Liu Xinwu, Lu Xinhua, and others, and later by writers exiled to the Chinese frontier or labor camps, such as Wang Meng and Zhang Xianliang, and most prominently by the large number of educated youths sent to the countryside, such as Ah Cheng, Zhang Chengzhi, Liang Xiaosheng, Han Shaogong, and Wang Xiaobo. See also BEI DAO; CAN XUE; CHEN RUOXI; DENG YOUMEI; FENG JICAI; GAO XIAOSHENG; GAO XINGJIAN; GU CHENG; GU HUA; HE LIWEI; JING FU; KE YUNLU; LAO SHE; LI GUANGTIAN; LI- ANG XIAOSHENG; LU WENFU; LU XING’ER; MANG KE; SHEN RONG; SHIZHI; SU TONG; TIAN HAN; WANG ANYI; XIAO JUN; YAN GELING; YAN LIANKE; YANG JIANG; YANG LIAN; YE ZHAOYAN; YU HUA; ZHANG JIE; ZHANG KANGKANG; ZHENG YI. – D – DAI WANGSHU (1905–1950). Poet. Born in Hangzhou, Dai Wangshu studied literature and French in college and became one of the foremost modern Chinese poets. His first poem “Ninglei chu men” (Leaving Home in Tears) appeared in the inaugurating issue of Yinluo (A Jade Necklace), a literary journal he founded with his friends. Dai spent three years in France and was influenced by French symbolist poets, especially Paul Verlaine, whose style appealed to Dai’s classical sensibilities. In 1929, his first collection of poetry, Wode jiyi (My Memories), was pub- lished and one of the poems, “Yu xiang” (A Rainy Alley), became an instant favorite among both critics and readers and remains one of the beloved modern poems. Other works, such as “A Dream Seeker” and “Bird of Paradise,” helped elevate Dai to the ranks of China’s leading poets. Disillusionment and melancholy are signature themes of his early poetry, expressed in a sentimental voice and a colloquial language inter- spersed with rhythms commonly found in classical Chinese poetry. A significant contributor to the development of modern vernacular poetry, Dai showed an unwavering attention to form, which he consid- ered to be the essence of poetry. He succeeded in creating a new poetic 30 • DAI WANGSHU form that draws from both classical Chinese tradition and modern West- ern styles such as those used by the English Romantics and the French symbolists. He edited Xiandai shi feng (Modern Poetic Styles) and was a founder of Xin shi (New Poetry), platforms for Chinese experimental poetry and translations of Western works. Credited with introducing many French writers to the Chinese public, he was also an avid reader and translator of Spanish and Russian literature. Dai died of illness the year after the People’s Republic of China was established. See also MODERNISTS. DENG YOUMEI (1931– ). Novelist. Though a veteran writer, Deng Youmei did not come to prominence until the early 1980s when he published a series of stories based on folklore and old traditions of Beijing. “Huashuo Taoran Ting” (Talking about Taoranting Park), Nawu (Nawu), Yan hu (Snuff Bottles), and “Xunzhao Hua’r Han” (Looking for Han the Forger) are among his best-known works. The- matically and aesthetically, these stories opened a new direction for post-Mao literature. Instead of writing directly about the destructive Cultural Revolution, a popular literary trend that was later given the name scar literature, Deng found inspiration in the old customs of Beijing formed by centuries of history as the political and cultural capital of the country, and particularly through the Manchu influences of the Qing dynasty. The main character in Nawu is a descendant of Manchu nobility who is an expert in many things, from cockfights and dog races to Peking opera and ancient art, everything except for the basic skills that could help him make a living at the time. “Xun- zhao Hua’r Han” portrays the vicissitudes in the life of an antiques connoisseur. “Huashuo Taoran Ting” is set against the political backdrop of the 1970s, but the focus is on four old men practicing tai chi in the park. Deng makes good use of traditional institutions and objects, such as theaters, old academies, antiques, paintings, and cal- ligraphies through which his characters interact with one another to form social connections. For his effort in searching for the old ways of life characteristic of a specific locale, Deng is considered one of the forerunners of the root-seeking movement in the post-Mao era. He took as models classical Chinese literature and art, such as Hong lou meng (A Dream of Red Mansions), Shuihu zhuan (The Water Margin), and the painting “Qingming shanghe tu” (The Scene of the Upper River at Qingming), which focus on presenting multiple facets DENG YOUMEI • 31 . in October 1 966 , at the outbreak of the Cultural Revolution. Instead of being welcomed by the Communists, they were suspected of being imperialist spies sent by America to sabo- tage socialist. Bank of the Argun River), an epic story narrated in the voice of a 90-year-old woman, the head of an Oroqen tribe living at the Sino-Russian border, is about the century-old history of how. the mainstream Marxist tradition of the Chinese literary establishment. See also LEFT-WING ASSOCIA- TION OF CHINESE WRITERS; SPOKEN DRAMA. CHENG NAISHAN (19 46 ). Novelist. Born in Shanghai,