Selected Prose Works of Wang Tongzhao

Author: Wang Tongzhao
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-08-01
Features: Wang Tongzhao (1897-1957), styled Jian San, once used the pen name Wang Xunru, and also went by names such as Jian Xian, Jian Xian, Jian Xian, Ronglu, Xunzi, Hongmeng, Tixi, Aijian, and TC. He was from Xiangzhou Town, Xiangzhou Village in Zoucheng City, a renowned writer and poet. Tongzhao came from a landlord family and lost his father at the age of seven. His mother hired a teacher to educate him, and at the age of thirteen, he entered the county high school, where he began to study mathematics, history, geography, and other new subjects. In his spare time, he enjoyed reading novels such as Fengshen Yanyi (The Investiture of the Gods), Jin Gu Qi Guan (Strange Stories from Ancient and Modern Times), and Liaozhai Zhiyi (Strange Tales of Liaozhai). After graduation, in 1913, he enrolled in Jinan Yuying Middle School. In 1916, to commemorate the first anniversary of the overthrow of the monarchy and the restoration of the republic, he wrote and directed the play Yunnan Uprising, playing the role of Cai E himself. That same year, his short story The Stray Hair was published in The Women's Magazine, marking his first published work. In the summer of 1918, Wang Tongzhao came to Beijing and enrolled in the British Literature Department of China University, where he began reading progressive publications like New Youth and met figures such as Zheng Zhenduo and Geng Jizhi. During the May Fourth Movement, he participated in the patriotic actions of burning Zhaojialou and beating traitors, and actively engaged in the New Culture Movement. In January 1921, he co-founded the Literature Research Association with Zhou Zuoren, Shen Yanbing, Zheng Zhenduo, Qu Shiyi, Jiang Bili, Ye Shaojun, Zhu Xizu, Geng Jizhi, Guo Shaoyu, Sun Fuyuan, and Xu Dishan, serving as a key member from the beginning. He poured his political enthusiasm for opposing imperialism and feudalism into his works. In the Monthly Novel and Literary Weekly of the Literature Research Association, he published short stories such as Echoes of the Past and The Fire of Life and Dreams of Youth as new poems. In 1922, he published poems such as Shadows of the Future and A Turbulent Heart River in the Poetry magazine founded by the Literature Research Association. That same year, he graduated from China University and published his first full-length novel, A Leaf, in October. In January 1923, he published his second full-length novel, Twilight. In January 1924, he published the short story collection Spring Rain at Night. His novels were known for their delicate prose and were well-received by readers, though they did not offer readers a clear path forward. However, they strongly opposed the old society and old systems and had a certain influence in the early stages of the New Culture Movement. That same year in August, he became a professor at China University and the head of the publishing department. In January 1925, he published his first full-length poetry collection, Childlike Heart. In July 1926, Wang Tongzhao resigned from Beijing due to his mother's illness and returned to his hometown. In 1927, he moved to Qingdao and taught at Qingdao Railway Middle School and later at Municipal Middle School. In March 1931, at the invitation of friends, he traveled to Northeast China, which was on the brink of the "September 18th Incident." Witnessing Japanese imperialist aggression, he wrote the reportage collection Spring in Northeast China, describing the suffering of the people under the enemy's iron hooves. In 1933, his masterpiece and one of the most famous novels of the New Culture Movement, Mountain Rain, was published, followed by the poetry collection This Era. After its publication, Mountain Rain was well-received by readers and critics but also offended the Guomindang reactionaries. The Central Committee of the Guomindang's Propaganda Department warned him for "containing class struggle consciousness" and ordered the prohibition of its distribution, listing Wang Tongzhao as a "dangerous figure." In 1934, Wang Tongzhao traveled abroad to Europe. He first went to London, where he read and copied materials at the British Museum, then studied literature at Cambridge University, and later traveled to Africa, visiting Egypt before returning to Italy. Later, his travel writings were compiled into Notes on a European Journey, published in 1937. In the spring of 1935, Wang Tongzhao returned to China after his European tour, and in the autumn of 1936, he went to Shanghai to take over as the editor-in-chief of the major literary journal Literature. That same year in October, as the situation in North China worsened, he signed a declaration with Ba Jin, Mao Dun, Guo Moruo, and Lu Xun, calling for unity against aggression and freedom of speech. In December, he joined the Shanghai Cultural Salvation Council. That year, he published the novel Spring Flowers. In June 1937, he edited and published A Collection of Wang Tongzhao's Short Stories. After the outbreak of the War of Resistance Against Japan, Wang Tongzhao continued his literary activities with Xu Guangping, Zheng Zhenduo, and Tang Tao. In 1938, he taught at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music and served as a professor in the Chinese Department of Jinan University, while also editing the supplement July for the British Evening News and writing for the supplement Century Wind of the Wenhuibao. In December 1941, with the outbreak of the Pacific War, Japanese troops stormed the Shanghai concession in the morning, and Wang Tongzhao gave his students their last lesson, urging them to "have ambition and the spirit to break through the darkness." From then on, he hid in Shanghai under the pen name Wang Xunru, translating and writing in poverty. In 1945, he returned to Qingdao and became the editor-in-chief of the supplement Yiwen for the Min Yan Newspaper. In August 1946, he became a professor and the head of the Chinese Department at Shandong University. In 1947, he was dismissed for openly supporting students' struggles against hunger, civil war, and persecution. In July 1949, he attended the National Congress of Literary Workers in Beijing and was received by central leaders such as Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai,ing as a member of the National Federation of Literature and Arts and a council member of the Literary Association. In September, he attended the second session of the People's Representatives Conference in Qingdao and was elected as a member of the presidium and the standing committee. That same autumn, he was appointed as a professor and the head of the Literature Department at Shandong University. In 1950, he became the deputy director of the Shandong Provincial Department of Education and a member of the Shandong Provincial People's Government. In 1951, he was elected as the chairman of the Shandong Provincial Federation of Literature and Arts, and in 1952, he became the director of the Shandong Provincial Bureau of Culture. He was also elected as a member of the first and second National People's Congresses, a member of the National Federation of Literature and Arts, a council member of the National Writers' Association, a central committee member of the China Democratic League, and the director of the Jinan branch of the China Democratic League. Wang Tongzhao passed away on November 29, 1957, in Jinan. His main works after the liberation include the poetry collection A Collection of Poems from and the literary criticism collection Literary Talks by the Hearthside. This book selects twenty-seven essays written by Wang Tongzhao from the early 1920s to the late 1940s.