Ru Zhijuan
Ru Zhijuan (Chinese: 茹志鹃; 1925–1998) was a female Chinese writer.[1]
She was born in Shanghai, the daughter of migrants from Hangzhou, Zhejiang province. While she was still young, her mother died and her father left; she and a brother were raised by a grandmother. She was educated in various schools including Christian missionary schools. She taught school for a short time in 1943 before joining the propaganda division of the New Fourth Army. In 1944, she married Wang Xiaoping, who had left China to live in Singapore but returned to fight the Japanese. In 1947, she joined the Communist Party of China. In 1955, she became the editor of the Monthly for Literature and Art,[2] retiring in 1960 to write full time.[3]
Her short stories from the 1950s include:
- Sisters-in-law (Zhuoli) (1955)
- Before Daybreak (Liming qiang de gushi) (1957)
- Lilies (Baihehua) (1958)
- Tall White Poplars (Gaogao de baiyangshu) (1959)
- On the Banks of Cheng River (Chenghe bian shang) (1959)
- The Warmth of Spring (Chunnuan shijie) (1959)
Lilies was criticized by some for its "bourgeois sentimentality"[3] but became popular after it was praised by Minister of Culture and author Mao Dun. Many of her stories of this period were intended to show the popular support for the revolution and the communist party. She also dealt with the changes in Chinese society from traditional values. She did not publish any work from 1962 to 1965, because it was felt at the time that her work dealt with the worries of everyday people rather than more important issues.[2]
She regained favour when the values from the Cultural Revolution were being reconsidered. Her stories from this period include:
- Ice Lanterns (Bingdeng) (1978)
- A Story in Wrong Order (Jianje chuale de gushi) (1979)
- A Path on the Grass Land (Caoyuan shang de xiao lu) (1979)
- Household Affairs (Jiawushi) (1980)
- Honors List (San bang zhi qiang) (1980)
- Winter Landscape in Warm Colors (Zhao nuanse de xuedi) (1981)
- Boats without Steering"' (Diule duo de xiao chuan) (1981)
They are generally critical of earlier policies and promote the new social norms.[2]
She served as party secretary for the Shanghai Writer's Association. She died in Shanghai at the age of 73.[3]
Her daughter Wang Anyi is also a writer.
References
- ↑ Hong, Zicheng (2007). A History of Contemporary Chinese Literature. pp. 133–35. ISBN 9004157549.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Lee, Lily Xiao Hong (2003). Biographical Dictionary of Chinese Women: The Twentieth Century, 1912-2000. pp. 432–34. ISBN 0765607980.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Ying, Li-hua (2010). The A to Z of Modern Chinese Literature. pp. 161–62. ISBN 1461731879.