May Fourth: Walking Between Ideals and Reality

Author: Zhong Guisong
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-10-01
Features: This is a character-focused book that highlights historical photographs and image materials. It is said that we are now in an era of images, and this is quite true. Regardless of television, film, CDs, and other media dominating cultural consumption and reading trends, the 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 from historical images. Indeed, individual life scenes, portraits, and even pages of manuscripts often contain richer and more unique content than textual descriptions, making them more engaging for readers and sparking their imagination. As a master of modern Chinese literary history, Mao Dun was born in a water town called Wuzhen in northern Zhejiang. The death of his father and the decline of his family motivated this precocious teenager to study diligently, showing early literary talent. By chance, Mao Dun joined the Commercial Press after completing his pre-university studies, which led him to the path of literary creation. This book not only narrates the motivations, development process, and resulting literary works of Mao Dun's journey into literary creation but also focuses on showcasing his unique political acumen through his clever interactions with Sheng Shicai, the governor of Xinjiang, and his use of political wisdom to protect himself or his friends during various political storms. In addition, the book is richly illustrated with over 100 images, allowing readers to immerse themselves in the colorful present while reminiscing about the black-and-white photographs of the early 20th century alongside the smooth-flowing text.