Flowers of Literature Series - Modern Part: Selected Prose of Zhu Ziqing

Author: Zhu Ziqing
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-08-01
Features: Zhu Ziqing was a master of prose in the history of modern Chinese literature and made outstanding contributions to the development of modern Chinese prose, exerting a profound influence. Zhu Ziqing's prose was diverse, including essays, travelogues, sketches, and miscellaneous writings. The author used them to narrate stories and express emotions, to depict objects and landscapes, to discuss literature and learning, or to critique current affairs and comment on social trends. Zhu Ziqing's excellent prose often combined elements of narration, emotion, description, and argumentation. In his later years, Zhu Ziqing's prose primarily took the form of satirical essays. Some of his essays written in the 1920s already bore the characteristics of satirical essays. For example, Civilization in a Boat delivered a sharp critique of the so-called "civilized" practice of men and women sitting separately, Travel Notes satirized warlords, and Sea Journey Notes cursed imperialism. These works were incisive, biting, and penetrating. In the late 1940s, during the liberation war period, he more consciously used satirical essays as a weapon for struggle. Zhu Ziqing once commented on satirical essays of his time: "As the direction of the era gradually becomes clear, collective demands grow stronger, and the pressure of reality tightens, satirical essays become like only swallows of spring. Starting with sharp satire of individual events, they gradually broaden their scope, engaging in serious discussions on various aspects of life. The reach of the pen becomes deeper and broader, and its influence lasts longer."