Lao She: The Vanished Taihu Lake: The Vanished Taihu Lake

Author: Li Hui
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2000-09-01
Features: This series of books adopts a combination of text and images, presenting a rich and vivid interplay between words and pictures. Concise text explains the images, while abundant images annotate the text. Those frames of famous people's life snapshots, those precious old photographs from the past, hold meanings that words alone cannot fully convey. If there were only images without text, it would be like a silent movie." It is through these concise texts that the images are better interpreted, further sparking readers' imagination and stimulating their interest in reading, giving them a three-dimensional sense of the characters and making them more real, vivid, and well-rounded. As the saying goes: "Images are the eyes of text, and text is the voice of images." This book series" achieves just this effect—words gain authenticity through images, and images become more vivid through words, complementing and enhancing each other. In terms of writing style, the author has also broken free from the conventional biographical approach of following a person's growth in order. Using a "focus" approach, the author captures the most brilliant and pivotal moments in the lives of these figures to highlight their character traits. Additionally, relevant remarks from the subjects and comments from others are interwoven as needed, presenting the characters in a multi-faceted and multi-layered manner. For example, in reading The World of Ding Cong Unfolds Like a Scroll, the author begins with a poetic of memories of Ding Cong in an autumn rain, recalling the old Shanghai lane where he lived from the age of eight or nine. Using a cinematic montage style, the author takes us back into Ding Cong's life world. Reading the text and viewing the images, it feels as if they have stepped out of the book and into our midst. I found that reading this series of books is quite enjoyable, as it not only enhances people's literacy and quality of life but is also relatively light-hearted and engaging.
The times are changing rapidly. As we cross the river of history and look back at the century's home, we discover that the figures in this book series"—Huang Yongyu, Liang Sicheng, Deng Tuo, Lao She, Ba Jin, Yang Xianyi, Wang Shichang, Ding Cong—are outstanding representatives of intellectuals in the 20th century, all cultural elites of their time. Examining them is, in essence, examining contemporary intellectuals themselves." They are all meant to highlight the living conditions of different figures in the historical scene." (Preface) This book series can inspire people to reflect on history, deepen their thoughts on the present, and pay closer attention to contemporary intellectuals, especially the elite of their time. By observing the thoughts, lives, and pursuits of these figures in art and truth throughout their lives, we can see a common thread: they all faced hardships, risks, and tribulations, yet they faced them with a smile, embracing life's challenges with the positivity of a wise person and a simple heart. They transformed suffering in the crucible into a joyful way of life, living humorously and optimistically, leaving a colorful and brilliant legacy. From this, we gain insight into the essence of life, absorbing a fresh breeze and maintaining a sense of peace and freedom in our own lives.
Especially when reading those precious old photographs" preserved for decades, it is as if we are witnessing a burst of life's spark. These old photographs" are the most vivid and brilliant parts of their lives, exerting a strong visual impact. This creates a special effect when we understand the meaning of life expressed by these figures, evoking profound reflections on the times, history, and survival. They leave a very real and vivid impression, clearly revealing the diverse souls and figures of these cultural icons of the era, who placed great emphasis on integrity, character, academic style, personal conduct, and the art of living. They also allow us to gain a deeper and more authentic glimpse into their inner world, their loyalty to others, their dedication to learning, their devotion to family, and their patriotism. Reading this book series" will undoubtedly give you great enlightenment, insight, wisdom, and benefit.
This is a series of books that focuses on historical photographs and visual materials. It is often said that we are living in an image-driven era. This is quite true. Regardless of television, film, CDs, and other media dominating cultural consumption and reading trends, the sudden rise of old photographs, old cartoons, and old illustrations as historical relics is enough to show that people are no longer satisfied with experiencing life and history through text. They are increasingly willing to read about people and history through historical images. Indeed, each living scene, each portrait, and even each page of manuscript often holds more appeal for readers and sparks their imagination than descriptive text. This book is part of the Elephant Figures Focus Series, which presents an inspiring life of Lao She through concise text and rich images. In addition to the main text, excerpts from the subject's self-narratives and others' comments are included. The captions for the images are designed to break from conventional patterns, making them more lively and meaningful. This allows the life of a single individual to be presented in multiple layers and from multiple perspectives, vividly and dynamically. The author places particular emphasis on Lao She's deep connection to old Beijing." The secular and kind nature of old Beijing, especially its sense of self-respect, is vividly reflected in Lao She. His final suicide by drowning in Taihu Lake was also because old Beijing rejected him so harshly, shattering the perfect image he had of it in his mind.