Retro (7): Spine or cover has flaws

Author: Liu Ruilin
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-03-01
Features: Humans have always lived within the shadows of history. The shadows of history are both distant and near—distant, like the faint footsteps of primitive ancestors as they moved toward civilization; near, like events that just happened yesterday. We need to reminisce because of our forgetfulness, and the purpose of reminiscing is to gain something new from it. From Reminiscing, careful readers can sense exactly what kind of reminiscing we truly need. Confucius once said, "By reminiscing, one learns something new." Though simple in words, it was like an awakening. Reminiscing is a serialized publication on historical and cultural topics. It is released in four issues each year. Reminiscing looks back at and examines the past from today's perspective, providing a reference for current survival and future development. This is the essence of "reminiscing to learn something new." This book expresses a longing for past human existence, an examination and reflection on history, and a revisiting of historical and cultural relics and remaining texts.
The second reason I admire Lu Xun is that the old master was playful. In terms of literature and character, he was one of the most playful people in China over the past century. The word "playful" may seem frivolous—it's a buzzword among today's young people—but is it appropriate when describing Lu Xun? I've thought about it, and I believe Lu Xun might even agree with this term. What does "playful" mean when applied to Lu Xun? Let me try to explain and see if I can make sense of it. The old master passed away nearly seventy years ago. In the past seventy years, those who revered Lu Xun have called him a warrior, a brave man, a pioneer, a mentor, and a revolutionary. They say he was fierce, passionate, and indignant, someone who "had no trace of servility." Those who disliked him, however, accused him of being narrow-minded, intolerant, vindictive, and lacking in gentleness and kindness. In short, both positive and negative impressions and evaluations confirm that Lu Xun was a very stern, severe, and unsympathetic person.
So, who was Lu Xun really? In the past two decades, "Lu Xun studies" have become more grounded, placing him back in his historical context and removing the thick ideological coatings once applied to him. Upon closer examination, it's clear that many people around him, both before and after, could be called warriors, pioneers, mentors, or revolutionaries. For example, Zhang Taiyan fought against Yuan Shikai, and Lu Xun highly admired him; countless martyrs of the 1911 Revolution, which founded the Republic, were also pioneers and mentors. Regardless of their success or failure, figures like Liang Qichao, who promoted the republic; Sun Yat-sen, who established the Three Principles of the People; Chen Duxiu, who founded the Communist Party of China;, who pioneered academic freedom; Hu Shih, who advocated for democracy; and Liang Shuming, who personally worked on rural reconstruction, all qualify as pioneers and mentors in modern Chinese history. Their achievements far surpass those of Lu Xun.
Even among the "middle-left" faction of that era, such as the "Seven Gentlemen," Yang Xinfu, Li Gongpu, and Wen Yiduo, not to mention the vast number of left-wing revolutionaries and communists who truly rebelled, were even braver, more action-oriented, more selfless in their dedication, and more heroic in their sacrifices than Lu Xun. Even in the right-wing camp—or, to use modern terms, those who dared to challenge the highest authorities within the Nationalist "system" without hesitation—there were many, such as Fu Sinian and Lei Zhen. It is said that Fu Sinian single-handedly brought down two finance ministers during the Republic of China era. He ate dinner with Chiang Kai-shek, the "Generalissimo," and even when the Generalissimo greeted him, Fu Sinian refused to yield, daring to use his own head to pressure him. The Generalissimo was helpless against him. Lu Xun, however, never did such a thing, nor would he have. We've never heard of Lu Xun dining with any high-ranking official from the Republic of China.
Or perhaps Lu Xun was simply not a politician but a scholar, writer, and thinker—this might be true or false. The Republic of China was an era where "every man had a share in the fate of the nation." Scholars engaged in politics and even interfered in it frequently, such as Fu Sinian, whose primary job was a professor. Lu Xun, like many scholars of the Republic of China, constantly shouted about national and global affairs, yet he neither joined the Communist Party or the Kuomintang nor held any official position. But if you call him a scholar, he privately associated closely with the "rebels" of the time and even joined the "Left League." Even considering the fact that Lu Xun was constantly under arrest, comparing him to a politician isn't entirely inappropriate.