Icicle Scroll. A Collection of Exquisite Prose from the 20th Century in China

Author: Lin Fei, Editor-in-Chief / Bing Xin
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-01-01
Features: Bing Xin (1900–) is a modern and contemporary female writer and children's literature author. Her original name is Xie Wanying, and her pen names include Bing Xin, Lady Bing Xin, and Mr. Bing Xin. She was originally from Changle, Fujian, and was born in Fuzhou. During her childhood, she was widely exposed to Chinese classical novels and translations. In 1918, she entered the preparatory department of Union Women's University and actively participated in the May Fourth Movement. In 1919, she began publishing the short story Two Families, and subsequently, she published works such as The Solitary and the Sorrowful and Leaving the Country, which explored life's issues in her "problem novels." Meanwhile, influenced by Tagore's Stray Birds, she wrote untitled free-verse poems. These crystal-clear, elegant, and graceful poems were later collected into Starry Sky and Spring Water, and were referred to as the "Spring Water Style." In 1921, she joined the Literary Research Association. The same year, she began publishing essays such as Laughter and Reminiscences. In 1923, she graduated from the liberal arts department of Yanjing University and went to Wellesley College in the United States to study British literature. During her journey and time in the U.S., she wrote the essay collection Letters from a Little Friend, which demonstrated her elegant, refined, light, and exquisite style, as well as her concise and fluent writing, showcasing high artistic expression and achieving greater success than her novels and poems. This unique style was later called the "Bing Xin Style" by contemporaries and had a wide influence. In 1926, after earning her master's degree in literature, Bing Xin returned to China and taught at Yanjing University and Tsinghua University. Subsequently, she wrote essays such as Return to the South, novels such as Division and Miss Dong'er, which reflected deeper social connotations. During the War of Resistance Against Japan, she engaged in creative work and cultural salvation activities in Kunming and Chongqing. In 1946, she went to Japan and served as a professor at Tokyo University. In 1951, she returned to China and served as a member of the editorial board of People's Literature, a council member of the Chinese Writers' Association, and vice chairman of the Chinese Federation of Literary and Art Circles. Her works include essay collections such as After Return, Letters to a Little Friend Again, We Awakened Spring, Ode to Cherry Blossoms, Notes on Gleaning, Evening Twilight, and Letters to a Little Friend for the Third Time, as well as novels such as Superman, Leaving the Country, and Miss Dong'er, and novel-essay collections such as Reminiscences and Return to the South. She also published an essay collection titled About Women, as well as The Complete Works of Bing Xin, The Collected Works of Bing Xin, and Selected Works of Bing Xin and Translations. Her works have been translated into multiple foreign languages.
List of Works:
Starry Sky (Poetry Collection) 1923, Commercial Press
Spring Water (Poetry Collection) 1923, New Tide Press
Superman (Novel and Essay Collection) 1923, Commercial Press
Letters from a Little Friend (Essay Collection) 1926, Northern Press
Reminiscences (Novel and Essay Collection) 1930, Open Press
Return to the South (Essay Collection) 1931, Northern Press
The Aunt (Novel Collection) 1932, Northern Press
The Complete Works of Bing Xin, Volume One—Bing Xin's Novel Collection 1933, Northern Press
The Complete Works of Bing Xin, Volume Two—Bing Xin's Poetry Collection 1932, Northern Press
The Complete Works of Bing Xin, Volume Three—Bing Xin's Essay Collection 1932, Northern Press
Idle Thoughts (Poetry and Essay Collection) 1922, Northern Press
Leaving the Country (Novel Collection) 1933, Northern Press
Travel Notes Along the Ping-Sui Railway (Essay Collection) 1935, Ping-Sui Railway Administration
Miss Dong'er (Novel Collection) 1935, Northern Press
The Complete Works of Bing Xin, Volume One—Bing Xin's Novel Collection 1943, Open Press
The Complete Works of Bing Xin, Volume Two—Bing Xin's Essay Collection 1943, Open Press
The Complete Works of Bing Xin, Volume Three—Bing Xin's Poetry Collection 1943, Open Press
About Women (Essay Collection) 1943, Tian Di
Selected Works of Bing Xin and Essays 1954, Human Press
Ta Qi's Summer Diary (Novel) 1956, Shanghai Children's Press
Notes on Returning Home (Essay Collection) 1957, Shanghai Children's Press
After Return (Essay Collection) 1958, Writers' Press
We Awakened Spring (Essay Collection) 1960, Baihua
Little Lantern (Novel, Essay, and Poetry Collection) 1960, Writers' Press
Ode to Cherry Blossoms (Essay Collection) 1962, Baihua
Notes on Gleaning (Essay Collection) 1964, Writers' Press
Evening Twilight (Novel and Essay Collection) 1980, Baihua
Letters to a Little Friend for the Third Time (Essay Collection) 1981, Children's Press
Notes on Writing (Creative Discussion) 1982, Human Press
Bing Xin on Creative Writing 1982, Shanghai Literature and Art Press
Selected Works of Bing Xin 1982, Children's Press
Selected Essays of Bing Xin 1983, Human Press
Bing Xin Selected Works (Volumes 1-2) 1983, Sichuan People's Press (not fully published)
Bing Xin Collected Works (Volumes 1-3) 1983, Shanghai Literature and Art Press (not fully published)
Bing Xin Complete Works (Volumes 1-8) 1994, Straits Literature Press
Translation Catalogue:
The Prophet (Prose Poetry) by Kahlil Gibran, Syria, 1931, Crescent Press
The Indian Fairy Tales by M. R. Anand, India, 1955, Youth Press
Gitanjali (Poetry) by Rabindranath Tagore, India, 1955, Human Press
Indian Folktales by M. R. Anand, India, 1955, Shanghai Children's Press
Selected Works of Tagore, Poetry co-translated with Shi Zhen, 1958, Human Press
Selected Plays of Tagore (4) 1959, Drama Press
Poetry Collection of Madhendra (Nepal) co-translated with Sun Yong, 1965, Writers' Press
The Lamp-Bearer (Poetry) by Anton Butigieg, Malta, 1981, Human Press