Liu Baiyu

Liú Báiyǔ ( Chinese刘白羽 / 劉白羽, Wade-Giles Liu Pai-yu or Liu Pai-yü ) (born September 2, 1916 in Běijīng ; † August 24, 2005 ibid) was a Chinese writer and cultural politician . In more than 60 years of writing, he has published over 50 works and, along with Yáng Shuò , Qín Mù and Wèi Wēi, is one of the most important essayistsof contemporary Chinese literature. Liú Báiyǔs work runs like a red thread through the deep love for open and heroic people, his essays are characterized by profound philosophical thoughts.

Life

Liú Báiyǔ was born as Liú Yùzàn (刘玉 赞) in Běijīng and grew up there. After graduating from middle school in 1936 , he went to Nánjīng and began writing there. His first story 《冰天》 (bīngtiān; about: ice sky ) was published in March of that year in the journal 《文学》 (wénxué; literature ) published by Bā Jīn . His first collection of short stories 《草原 上》 (cǎoyuánshàng; on the prairie ) appeared in 1937.

In February 1938 he went to Yán'ān to support the resistance against the Japanese occupation, where he became acquainted with Máo Zédōng and joined the Chinese Communist Party ; there in Yán'ān he also wrote the biography Zhū ​​Dés《朱德 将军 传》 (Zhū Dé jiāngjun zhuàn) and brought u. a. the collections of short stories 《龙 烟 村 纪事》 (Lóngyāncún jìshì; The Chronicle of the Village of Lóngyān ) and 《幸福》 (xìngfú; happiness ). In 1942 he took part in the consultation on questions of literature and art in Yán'ān, which were to be of far-reaching importance for the cultural development in the PRC. His famous stories 《日出》 (rìchū; sunrise ) and 《长江 三 日》 (Chángjiāng sān rì; Three days on Chángjiāng ) are typical examples of how supposedly apolitical subjects were also used to politically mobilize the people after this consultation; In view of the anti-Japanese war, description of nature primarily fulfills the function of awakening patriotism among the youth.

In 1944 Liú took over the editing of the supplement to the 《新华 日报》 (Xīn huá rìbào; New Chinese Daily Newspaper ) in Chóngqìng , and he also wrote a large number of stories dealing with life in the liberated areas. As an employee of the Xīnhuá news agency , he took part in the liberation of northeast and central China and wrote several short stories and novellas about it. He let his experiences from the war flow into the script for the film 《中国 人民 的 胜利》 (Zhōngguó rénmín de shènglì; the victory of the Chinese people ), for which he received the Stalin Prize . During the Korean War , he went to the front twice and wrote reports and short stories about his experiences such as 《朝鲜 在 战火 中 前进》 (Cháoxiǎn zài zhànhuǒzhōng qiánjìn; Korea advances in the flames of war ) and 《朝鲜 和平 宣誓 》ng. Xu hépíng ; Oath to Peace ).

After 1955 he was mainly active as a cultural politician. a. Vice Chairman of the Chinese Writers' Association and Deputy Minister of Culture. Only when after the end of the Cultural Revolution the artistic possibilities were no longer so narrow did he go public again with his own works, he wrote a lot of prose. Liú Báiyǔ's work was still shaped by his military past, for example in the novel 《第二 个 太阳》 (dì'èr gè tàiyáng; the second sun , 1987) , which was highly praised for its linguistic brilliance .

Until 1994 the very old Liú Báiyǔ published the 52-volume series 《世界 反法西斯 文学 书 系》 (shìjiè fǎnfǎxīsī wénxué shū xì World Anti-fascist literature series ). On February 2, 1994 , the day before the Chinese New Year, his wife, the journalist Wāng Qí (汪 琦), with whom he had been connected since the days in Yán'ān, suddenly passed away. She had supported him with all her might in writing his last award-winning work, 《心灵 的 历程》 (xīnlíng de lìchéng; Emotional processes ) and also selected the title of the book. Liú dedicated the final work and the preparation for printing to her memory. After the death of his longtime companion, he wrote another book, the novel 《风风雨雨 太平洋》 (fēngfēng-yǔyǔ Tàipíng Yáng; Stormy Pacific ), which appeared in 1998 , after which he put the pen down.

Most recently, Liú Báiyǔ was Deputy Chairman of the Chinese PEN ( Bā Jīn has chaired it since 1980 ), he was also a member of the Presidium of the Chinese Writers' Association and a committee member of the All China Federation of Cultural Workers.

Most important works

• 1936 《冰天》 (bīngtiān, ice sky )
• 1953 《为 祖国 而 战》 (wèi zǔguó ér zhàn; Fight for the Fatherland )
• 1955 《战斗 的 幸福》 (zhàndòu de xìngfú; luck of the fight )
• 1956 《政治 委员》 (zhèngzhì wěiyuán; the political commissioner )
• 1959 《早晨 的 太阳》 (zǎochen de tàiyáng; morning sun )
• 1983 《红 玛瑙 集》 (hóngmǎnǎo jì; carnelian collection )
• 1987 《第二 个 太阳》 (dì'èr gè tàiyáng; the second sun )
• 1990–1994 《心灵 的 历程》 (xīnlíng de lìchéng; mental processes ; trilogy)
• 1998 《风风雨雨 太平洋》 (fēngfēng-yǔyǔ Tàipíng Yáng; Stormy Pacific )

Awards

• 1950 Stalin Prize for First Class Literature for the screenplay for 《中国 人民 的 胜利》 (Zhōngguórénmín de shènglì; the victory of the Chinese people )
• 1989 Prize for an outstanding essay (优秀 散文 奖) for the essay collection 《芳草 集》 ( fāngcǎojí )
• 1991 Máo Dùn Literature Prize for 《第二 个 太阳》 (dì'èr gè tàiyáng; the second sun )
• 1986–1994 Golden Cup for Folk Literature
• 1990–1994 Chinese Prize for Outstanding Biographical Works (中国 优秀 传记 文学 作品 奖, Zhōngguó yōuxiù zhuànjì wénxué zuòpǐn jiǎng) for 《心灵 的 历程》 (xīnlíng de lìchéng; Emotional processes , 3 volumes)

Work editions

Single issues

• 刘 晨 (主编): 《刘白羽 代表作》, 北京: 华夏 出版社, 1999, ISBN 7-5080-1550-9
• 刘白羽: 《散文 选集》, 天津: 百花 文艺 出版社, 1993, 2004 印, ISBN 7-5306-1089-9
• 刘白羽: 《第二 个 太阳》, 北京: 人民 文学 出版社, 1987, 2005 印, ISBN 7-02-004887-0
• 刘白羽: 《心灵 的 历程》 (新版), 北京: 解放军 文艺 出版社, 1994, 2003 印, ISBN 7-5033-1620-9
• 刘白羽: 《风风雨雨 太平洋》, 北京: 华艺 出版社, 1998, ISBN 7-80142-071-3

Complete edition

• 刘白羽: 《刘白羽 文集》, 北京: 华艺 出版社, 2000, ISBN 7-5080-2165-7 (10 volumes)

Translations

• Lju Bai-jü: Flames on the Yangtze , transl. By Walter Eckleben, Berlin: Dietz, 1957
• Drums Like Spring Thunder , Tr. Sidney Shapiro , Chinese Literature 7 (1960): 71-75
• Flames Ahead , Beijing: Foreign Languages ​​Press, 1954
• The Glow of Youth , Tr. Gladys Yang and Yang Hsien-yi. Chinese Literature 11 (1959): 5-57
• A Heart-warming Snowy Night , Tr. Sidney Shapiro, Chinese Literature 2 (1959): 3-13. Also in I Knew All Along and Other Stories By Contemporary Chinese Writers , Peking: Foreign Languages ​​Press, 1960, 147-57
• Landmark , Chinese Literature 9 (1960): 17-32
• The Most Marvelous Day in Her Life , Tr. Gladys Yang, Chinese Literature 12 (1964): 54-61.
• Night on the Grassland , Tr. Gladys Yang, Chinese Literature 12 (1964): 54-61.
• On the Dusty Highway , Tr. Tang Sheng, Chinese Literature 3 (1955): 52-59. also as On the Dusty Road in: Kai-yu Hsu (ed.): Literature of the People's Republic of China , Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1980, 125-32.
• Six AM and Other Stories , Beijing: Foreign Languages ​​Press, 1953.
• Sunrise , Tr. Gladys Yang. Chinese Literature 11 (1960): 33-37.
• Typhoon Tr. Sidney Shapiro, Chinese Literature 5 (1960): 3-11.

• Fajrolumo en la fronto , Ŝanhajo: Ŝanhaja esperantista ligo, 1951.

• Lieou Pai-Yu: Six heures du matin : nouvelles, Pékin: Editions en langues étrangères, 1953

Secondary literature

• Chen Tan-chen: Liu Pai-yu's Writings in: Chinese Literature 3 (1963), 88-94
• Charles Laughlin: Incongruous Lyricism: Liu Baiyu, Yang Shuo and sanwen in Chinese Socialist Culture in: Martin Woesler (ed.): The Modern Chinese Literary Essay: Defining the Chinese Self in the 20th Century , Bochum: Bochumer Universitätsverlag, 2000, 115– 129, ISBN 3-934453-15-5

Web links

• Literature by and about Liu Baiyu in the catalog of the German National Library
• 《第二 个 太阳》 as full text (Chinese)

Note: This article places the family name before the person's first name. This is the usual order in Chinese. Liu is the family name here, Baiyu is the first name.