THE CHINESE SHORT STORY IN 1979: AN INTERPRETATION BASED ON OFFICIAL AND NONOFFICIAL LITERARY JOURNALS DESMOND A. SKEEL Submitted for the PhD degree at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London 1995 ProQuest Number: 10731694 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a com plete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. uest ProQuest 10731694 Published by ProQuest LLC(2017). Copyright of the Dissertation is held by the Author. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States C ode Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106- 1346 A b s t ra c t The short story has been an important genre in 20th century Chinese literature. By its very nature the short story affords the writer the opportunity to introduce swiftly any developments in ideology, theme or style. Scholars have interpreted Chinese fiction published during 1979 as indicative of a "change" in the development of 20th century Chinese literature. This study examines a number of short stories from 1979 in order to determine the extent of that "change". The first two chapters concern the establishment of a representative database and the adoption of viable methods of interpretation. An important, although much neglected, phenomenon in the make-up of 1979 literature are the works which appeared in so-called "nonofficial" journals. In order to provide a more complete picture of the short story in 1979, the database is comprised of works from one "nonofficial" and two "official" literary journals. Differences and/or similarities between the two types of short story are highlighted. The main body of this study is divided into four further chapters, each of which concerns a separate aspect of the short stories. These chapters discuss each aspect with regard to literary development and sociohistorical influences. These aspects include the presentation of themes, subject matter and character; the use of imagery and language; narrative form and plot chronology; and the types of narrative mode explored by the writers. The study is concluded by an evaluation of the Chinese short story in 1979, emphasizing the degrees of continuity and/or innovation it exhibits. 1 Acknowledgements I shall be forever indebted to Dr. Ma Sen, formerly of SO AS, London University, for nurturing within me an interest in Chinese literature, and to Dr. Chen Xuening, of Nanjing University, for channelling that interest into a more focused form. I wish also to express the gratitude I owe many of my friends and colleagues, most especially my tonqxue Gita Beecroft and Birgit Teubner, whose unfailing support and advice have been invaluable in the completion of this thesis. To my wife, Ningli, I owe a special debt of gratitude which is hard to put into words. The sacrifices she has made and the inspiration she has provided in the conception, writing and revision of this thesis will be forever appreciated. I dedicate this thesis to her. London, June 1995 2 Table of Contents ABSTRACT.................................................. 1 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS.............................................. 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS............................................. 3 CHAPTER ONE: PRELIMINARIES: ESTABLISHING A SOC10-LITERARY CONTEXT AND A WORKABLE DATABASE 1.1 Preliminary Remarks..................................... 7 1.2 The Origins of a "New" Literature................. 8 1.3 1979: A Year in Socio-1 iterary Retrospect............... 20 1.4 The Short Story and its Role in Contemporary China...... 27 1.5 Establishing a Database: Types and Modes of Publication..36 1.5.1 Renmin wenxue: A Central Voice...................... 45 1.5.2 Zuopin: A Provincial Voice...........................46 1.5.3 Jintian: A Nonofficial Voice........................48 1.6 Conclusions............................................ 50 CHAPTER TWO: CONCEPTS OF CRITICISM: TOWARDS A METHOD OF INTERPRETATION 2.1 Interpreting Literature................................ 52 2.2 Chinese Literary Concepts: Realism and Marxism.......... 53 2.3 Chinese Literary Criticism in the Post-Mao Era.......... 67 2.4 Literary Generations................................... 80 2.5 Western Criticism of Post-Mao Chinese Literature........ 89 2.6 Suggested Methods of Interpretation..................... 95 2.7 Conclusions........................................... 100 3 CHAPTER THREE: PRESENTATION OF THE STORY: THEME, SUBJECT MATTER AND CHARACTERIZATION 3.1 Definition of Terms....................................102 3.2 The Sequelae of Recent History......................... 103 3.3 Interpersonal Relations................................ 116 3.4 Contemporary Sociopolitics............................. 123 3.5 Modernization......................................... 130 3.6 War Stories........................................... 132 3.7 Methods of Characterization............................ 135 3.8 Conclusions........................................... 151 CHAPTER FOUR: STYLISTICS: DICTION AND IMAGERY 4.1 Defining Stylistics....................................154 4.2 The Dominance of "Maoist Discourse".................... 156 4.3 Diction: The Use of Language........................... 169 4.4 Reprinting Works: "Maoification" of Literary Language... 185 4.5 Imagery: Uses of Figurative Language................... 190 4.5.1 Images of Weather and Natural Phenomena............ 191 4.5.2 Images of Light and Dark........................... 195 4.5.3 Images of Trauma: Scars and Ruins.................. 199 4.5.4 Barriers and Bridges...............................209 4.6 Conclusions........................................... 213 4 CHAPTER FIVE: NARRATIVE STRUCTURE 5.1 Form and Structure.................................... 215 5.2 Continuity of Traditional Narrative Forms.............. 218 5.3 Tales within Tales: The Embedded Narrative............. 235 5.4 Chronology of Plot.................................... 240 5.4.1 Analepsis......................................... 241 5.4.2 Montage........................................... 249 5.5 Sectional Division.................................... 260 5.6 Conclusions........................................... 266 CHAPTER SIX: AUTHORIAL PRESENCE AND NARRATIVE MODES 6.1 The Author and the Narrator............................270 6.2 Markers of Authorial Presence.......................... 274 6.2.1 The Authorial Voice in Chinese Literature.......... 276 6.2.2 Authorial Presence in Short Stories from 1979...... 280 6.2.3 The Use of Pseudonyms..............................291 6.3 Modes of Narrative Discourse...........................296 6.3.1 Narrative Modes in Chinese Fiction................. 300 6.3.2 Narrative Modes in Short Stories from 1979......... 306 6.4 Conclusions........................................... 321 CONCLUSION: The Chinese Short Story in 1979............................326 5 APPENDIX: List of Short Stories in the Database....................... 336 BIBLIOGRAPHY................................................ 341 6 Chapter- One : Prelimrnaries: Establishing s l Socio — literary Context and a Workable Database 1.1 PRELIMINARY REMARKS The year 1979 was both a confused and confusing period in Chinese literature. It was a year in which many writers sought greater leeway within - and in certain cases outside - officially established cultural limits. It was also a year which was important for "the opening up of possibilities" in the literary realm.3- Yet what did these "possibilities" represent? Was the literature published during 1979 indicative of a continuity in literary forms established in 20th century China, especially those of the Maoist era? Or was it indicative of a new direction for Chinese literature, one marked by innovation and experimentation? An examination of the Chinese short story from 1979 should provide an answer to these questions. In the post-Mao period the short story was undoubtedly in the vanguard of literary creation and publication. An official definition of the time described the short story as literature's "light cavalry" (crinq gibing) and "shock brigade" (tujidui).2 Western critics also attached importance to the role of the short story in the years directly 1W.J.F. Jenner, "1979: A New Start for Literature in China?," China Quarterly, 86, Summer 1981, p.301. ^Xinshiqi wenxue liunian 1976.10-1982.9 (Six Years of New Period Literature October 1976 - September 1982), Beijing: Zhongguo shehui kexue chubanshe, 1985, p . 143. 7 succeeding the Cultural Revolution. For example, writing in late 1978, Geremie Barme claimed that the short story was "the most promising field of cultural activity since 1976.113 In order to conduct an examination of short stories from 1979, certain parameters need to be established. Before outlining precisely how this examination is to be conducted, exactly what is to be examined requires clarification. This necessitates a narrowing down of parameters from the general to the particular. The year 1979 should be placed in a historical context, emphasizing both its position in the development of Chinese literature and also the sociopolitical events which influenced the development of literature during that year. Secondly, the short story should be set against this background. This should be coupled with an explanation