Новая молодежь: Китайский литературный журнал 1915-1926 годов

Chinese counter cultural literary magazine published from 1915 to 1926

New Youth or La Jeunesse (; ) was a Chinese literary magazine founded by Chen Duxiu and published between 1915 and 1926. It strongly influenced both the New Culture Movement and the later May Fourth Movement.

Chen Hengzhe published her short story “Raindrops" (Chinese: 小雨点) in September 1920. She was the first female writer to use the new vernacular style. It was the first Chinese children's story. She also published a collection of her works entitled, Raindrops, in 1928. Chen was among the first ten women to study overseas on government scholarships. She graduated from Vassar College and the University of Chicago. The first vernacular Chinese fiction was her short story "One Day" (Chinese: 一日), published 1917 in an overseas student quarterly (Chinese:《留美学生季报》). This was a year before the publication of Lu Xun's "Diary of a Madman", which has often been incorrectly credited as the first vernacular Chinese fiction.

Hu Shih was one of the early editors. He published a landmark article "Essay on Creating a Revolutionary `New Literature" (Chinese: 建设的文学革命论) in the April 18, 1918 issue. He wrote that the mission of this language revolution is "a literature of the national language (Guoyu, Chinese: 国語), a national language of literature" (Original Text: 国语的文学，文学的国语。). Hu then goes on to reason that for thousands of years, the written language was bound by scholars using Classical Chinese, a dead language of past generations. On the other hand, the vernacular is living and adapts to the age. He urged authors to write in the vernacular in order to describe life as it is. He further reasoned that Chinese literature had a limited range of subject matter because it used a dead language. Using a living language would open up a wealth of material for writers. Finally, he argued that massive translations of western literature would both increase the range of literature as well as serve as examples to emulate. This was a seminal and prescient essay about the modern Chinese language. Hu Shih was an important figure in the transformation of the modern Chinese written and printed language. In the July 15 issue, Hu published an essay entitled, "Chastity" (Chinese: 贞操问题). In the traditional Chinese context, this refers not only to virginity before marriage, but specifically to women remaining chaste before they marry and after their husband's death (Chinese: 守贞). He wrote that this is an unequal and illogical view of life, that there is no natural or moral law upholding such a practice, that chastity is a mutual value for both men and women, and that he vigorously opposes any legislation favoring traditional practices on chastity. (There was a movement to introduce traditional Confucian value systems into law at the time.) Hu Shih also wrote a short play on the subject (see Drama section below). These are examples of Hu Shih's progressive views. They were quite radical at that time, which was only a short six years after the overthrow of the Chinese imperial system. That epic event, the Xinhai Revolution, developed two branches in the 1920s, the Nationalist (Kuomintang) and Chinese communist parties. He tried to focus the editorial policy on literature. Chen Duxiu and others insisted on addressing social and political issues. Hu was a lifelong establishment figure in the Nationalist government and left "La Jeunesse" when its communist direction became clear.

Lu Xun was an important contributor to the magazine. His first short story "Diary of a Madman" (Chinese: 狂人日记) was published in "La Jeunesse" in 1918. Li Dazhao was the magazine's chief collaborator in the Chinese Communist Party, and published, among other things, an introduction to Marxist theory in the May 1919 issue of New Youth. In it, he also argued that China, while not possessing a significant urban proletariat, could be viewed as an entire nation that had been exploited by capitalist imperialist countries.

Mao Zedong, the founding father of the People's Republic of China, in his youth contributed articles against the oppression of women under Confucianism and on the importance of physical fitness.

Liu Bannong was an important contributor to the magazine starting from 1916, invited by Chen Duxiu. His article "My View on Literary Reform: What is literature?" (我之文學改良觀) was published in "La Jeunesse" in 1917. He suggested both on the content and the form of literary reform.

On January 1, 1917, Volume 2, Number 5, Hu Shi published "Wen xue gai liang chu yi", which put "not avoiding vulgar words and phrases" at the end, with the purpose of "solemnly putting forward my proposition of vernacular literature", and ultimately came to the conclusion that "vernacular literature will be the authentic literature of China", which became the "fuse" that ignited the "Literary Revolution". Wen xue gai liang chu yi was published in New Youth, Vol. 2, No. 5, and the correspondence between Hu and Chen in Vol. 2, No. 2, already reveals the mystery. Hu Shih's letter briefly mentions his proposed literary revolution, which "must begin with eight things," which are, in order, not to use diction, not to use stereotyped phrases, not to speak of counterpoints, not to avoid vulgar words and phrases, and to emphasize the structure of grammar, not to make a sickly speech, and not to be excessively sentimental, not to use classical expressions, and to be meaningful". In addition to his slight doubts about the fifth and eighth items, Chen Duxiu said, "The rest of the six things, they all join hands in admiration". A Madman's Diary aesthetically creates a rhetoric of freedom contrary to the eight legged literary style, introducing elements of modernity into the expression of the mother tongue in strangeness and tearing. Rather than closing off the mother tongue, it reopens the door to it. Traditional meaningful forms wormed their way to life under its pen.

In 1919, Vol. 6, No. 1, Chen Duxiu published "Zui an zhi da bian shu", and the "Da bian shu" contained the following passage:

"My fellow citizens were originally innocent, but it was only because of their support for Mr. Democracy and Mr. Science that they committed these monstrous sins. To support Mr. De one has to oppose Confucianism, ritual, chastity, old ethics, and old politics; to support Mr. Sai, one has to oppose old art and old religion; to support Mr. Deand Mr. Sai, one has to oppose the national essence and old literature. If you think about it carefully and calmly, do you know if there are any other crimes in this magazine apart from supporting Mr. De and Mr. Sai? If not, please do not to make special difficulties for this magazine, but to have the strength and courage to oppose Mr. De and Mr. Sai is the only way to be considered a good man, the only way to be considered fundamental." This passage has been quoted repeatedly by later historians. A closer look at Chen's argument suggests that support for Mr. De and Mr. Sai was the basic position of the New Youth, and that opposition to old ethics, old politics, old art, old religion, old literature, and other specific ideas were all based on this principle. As a matter of fact, since the late Qing Dynasty, the concepts of democracy (civil rights, constitutionalism, republicanism) and science have been repeatedly advocated by the people of China (with different emphasis in different periods), and have become the mainstream discourse of the intellectual circles in the May Fourth Period. Chen Duxiu wrote "Zui an zhi da bian shu", in which he frankly admitted the world's accusation that the New Youth had "undermined propriety and religion," among other things. He believed that only Mr. De (Democracy) and Mr. Sai (Science) could save China from all the darkness in politics, morality, academics and ideology. On behalf of the magazine, Chen Duxiu swore, "If I support these two gentlemen, I will not shirk all government oppression, social attacks and ridicule, or even the breaking of my head and the shedding of blood". The so called New Youth "at first advocated literary revolution, but later turned to communism", he was an early group of intellectuals who carried out the dissemination of Marxism. The social trends after the May Fourth Movement and the increasing radicalization of the academic world made it difficult for the leading newspaper New Youth to be confined to university campuses. Published on September 1, 1920, New Youth, Vol. 8, No. 1, was reorganized as the organ of the Shanghai Initiation Group of the CCP. The new era created by New Youth refers to the era of democratic science. In 1936, Mao Zedong recalled: "I started reading this magazine (referring to New Youth) when I was studying in Normal University. I admired the articles of Hu Shih and Chen Duxiu very much. They replaced Liang Qichao and Kang Youwei who had been abandoned by me. It became my role model for a while." New Youth had a huge appeal to the young Mao Zedong, primarily due to the fact that it promoted and advocated democratic science. Zheng Zhenduo recalled in Chinese New Literature Series·Literary Debate Collection·Introduction that it was a youth magazine that advocated "moral, intellectual and physical" education, and was indifferent from other ordinary magazines at that time. In fact, apart from asking young people to establish a correct outlook on life, there is not much practical content. It can be said that in the early days, New Youth was a truly ordinary magazine with a younger generation as its intended readers. Bei jing Xin bao reported that: "Recently, Peking University faculty members Chen Duxiu, Hu Shizhi, Liu Bannong and Qian Xuantong advocated a new Chinese literature, advocating a change to the vernacular style, and for China's 2,000 years of obstacles to the cultural shackles of the most thought of Confucianism and Mencius, and the parallelism of the Pianwen prose style. For the doctrinal analysis." In 1926, Ge Gongzhen wrote China's first History of Chinese Newspapers. The timing of his book coincided with the final publication of New Youth. The book's introduction to New Youth was very brief: "At first it advocated literary revolution, but later it turned communist." After May Fourth Movement, New Youth turned to socialism, and in September 1920 it was reorganized as the organ of the Shanghai Communist Group. In 1923 1926, it became the theoretical journal of the CCP Central Committee. Ge Gongzhen saw the whole process of the development of New Youth. formally confirming the self expectation and self positioning of the New Youth's colleagues. self positioning. From then on, commenting on New Youth from the perspective of the history of ideas became the mainstream discourse in the academic world, while the literary revolution, which was the most popular concern and the one with the most actual achievements, gradually faded out of the historians' view.