China Essay Annual Rankings (2000-2001)

Author: Wang Jianbing
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-05-01
Features: The annual selection of China's prose rankings began in 1998, when The Anthology of Prose underwent a major overhaul, or what might be termed a reform. The prose community held high hopes for The Anthology of Prose, expecting it to serve as a trendsetter or information hub for the development of Chinese prose. To summarize the state of Chinese prose creation each year, The Anthology of Prose, after consulting relevant experts, decided to invite influential writers, critics, and editors to form the China Prose Rankings Selection Committee. This committee would select prose works published publicly in newspapers and magazines across the country. Finally, The Anthology of Prose assigned dedicated personnel to rank the selected works according to the criteria and publish the rankings. The selection criteria for the prose rankings were roughly as follows: works that demonstrated personal strength, the value of life, and intellectual brilliance; sincere, vivid, philosophical, and humorous expressions of humanistic spirit; delicate portrayals of life scenes and sensitivity to psychological journeys; fresh, pure, and elegant; and those that showed creative and innovative approaches in expression and language use.