Yu Dafu -- The Autumn of the Old Capital

Author: Fu Daifu
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-07-01
Features: Classics are the treasures left behind by time, portraits and annotations of human nature. The significance of classics lies in their freshness with repeated readings, remaining an unchanging landscape on the bookshelves of readers regardless of how time flows. In the ever-changing space and time, in the irreversible process of life, classics are the words, sounds, and expressions that have defeated time. Those sincere statements, those fearless cries, those reflections on the human spirit, awaken our past hopes, inspire our current courage, and prevent us from being empty, vain, and skeptical of the future. These images of wise people and their timeless words purify our souls, shake our spirits, and teach us what can be missed but not erased, and what is fleeting yet precious. Indeed, every era should have its own literature. But classic literature does not belong solely to its own time; it also belongs to later generations of readers who can appreciate and share an artistic connection with it. Tracing the footsteps of modern Chinese prose in the 20th century, whether it is the early "Yushi School," the "Lunyu School," Bingxin's prose praising maternal love, Xu Zhimo's "Wild Horse Running" prose, or the prose of Yang Shuo, Qin Mu, and Liu Baiyu, who were once hailed as new classics, or even Yu Guangzhong on the other side of the strait who vowed to "" (cut off the of prose), or the recent "big cultural prose" or "small woman prose," at least in one aspect they are consistent: "I write with my own hand, I speak with my own mouth." Regardless of the style, whether it is the rigid critique of current politics leaning toward essays or the soft, melodramatic, and self-pitying, or the sorrowful and tearful, prose, in a certain sense, can exist as a sanctuary for the soul or a refuge for the spirit. Art is independent, and prose must be individualistic. Fu Daifu was a great patriot, and patriotism was the spiritual pillar of his life. He was known for his lack of petty concerns, but when it came to major principles, he was unyielding to death. In the 1920s and 1930s, he was closely associated with Zhou Zuoren, and Zhang Zhiping was also an initiator of the Creation Society alongside him. However, when he learned that Zhou and Zhang had surrendered to the enemy, his attitude was resolute. He was upright, innocent, but also stubborn, willful, and unsophisticated, lacking understanding of worldly affairs or politics. He had a deep passion for love, for close friends, and especially for his homeland. Passionate love is the highest form of love, and the word "" (zhi) carries no negative connotation. The line "" (A generation of extraordinary elegance, a generation of extraordinary passion) is perfectly fitting for Fu Daifu. "The Autumn of the Old Capital" expresses his boundless longing and attachment to the autumn scenery of the northern region. In the text, five scenes are deliberately depicted, though they lack clear temporal or spatial relationships, yet they are all comparable. Narrative, description, lyricism, and argumentation alternate in the writing. On the surface, they seem unrelated, but they are cleverly connected, enhancing the emotional depth of the author's portrayal of the old capital's autumn and expressing the autumn colors, autumn sentiments, and the essence of autumn in a profound and thorough manner. It reflects the author's dedication to autumn but also his love for life.