There is a common belief in China and the West that "the Chinese" have no concept of privacy, although there is a well-established tradition of private property and privacy values in China. In the twentieth century, especially in the PRC, rhetoric on the public good prevailed over individualism and subjectivity, but both privacy and private property have been reevaluated in the post-Mao era. In the 1990s, writing about private life became associated with fiction and journalism by women, and privacy became publishers' shorthand for sexual revelations. By the end of the century, interest in the public at large showed a wider appreciation of the values and functions of privacy. At the same time, the status of private property in the constitution and in law was restored to precommunist respectability. This article analyzes the meanings and function of privacy in writing by women in the 1990s and comments on gender aspects of privacy as well as the relationships between authors, publishers, and readers in the late twentieth century.The association of women and privacy, and especially writing by women in genres thought to be private, has a long history in China and in other countries. 1 In traditional societies, women who worked outside the home (farming, marketing, prostitution) were seen to be driven by necessity, since women's domain was within. However, this domain was the private possession of the males in the family: women had no privacy within the family unit. Only in societies where there are laws and prosecutions to prevent domestic abuse and marital rape do women have rights of privacy that exclude the dominant male figures in the household. In other words, women were objects of male privacy and not themselves free privacy agents. The association of women and privacy has been imposed on women by male domination in both public and private realms. china INFORMATION
Despite a common belief that ‘the Chinese’ have no concept of privacy, there is a well‐established tradition of private property and privacy values in traditional and modern China. In the twentieth century, rhetoric on the public good generally prevailed over individualism and subjectivity, but privacy practices, especially within the family, persisted despite the state's intrusions into private life. Both privacy and private property were re‐evaluated in the post‐Mao era, giving rise to a new appreciation of privacy functions and values.
The profound silence that followed immediately after the 4 June massacres in 1989 was short-lived. As it became clear that the regime would stay in power, writers reacted as opportunity and circumstances allowed. Dissident writers associated with the protest movement were in danger of arrest and imprisonment: Duo Duo only just managed to get his flight to London on 4 June, joining those like Bei Dao who were already abroad and had no choice but to remain. Writers in high positions were also vulnerable: Wang Meng was forced to resign as Minister of Culture in 1989 and dropped from the Party's Central Committee at the 1992 Party Congress. Less prominent writers waited for a more propitious time to publish; younger writers barely paused.
The starting point of this article is the concern shown by Chinese writers, academics, and cultural officials in regard to the status and reception of contemporary Chinese literature. One factor often overlooked is the necessity, at this moment in history, for Chinese literature to be translated for the global market. The relative success of contemporary Chinese literature in French, German, and Japanese markets is evidence that the Anglophone market is resistant to foreign literature in general; the relative success of traditional Chinese literature, from Confucius to the 19th century, even in the Anglophone markets is evidence that English-language readers are not prejudiced against Chinese-language literature in general. From these premises, the article looks at ways in which the translation of Chinese literature and its publication for readers outside China can be improved.Keywords Contemporary Chinese literature Á Global culture Á Literary translation Á Traditional Chinese literature in translation Á Contemporary Chinese literature in translationThe word 'culture' is open to many definitions and shades of meaning, one of the simplest referring to any activity or product related to the arts. 1 The concept that
The writings of Mao Zedong have been circulated throughout the world more widely, perhaps, than those of any other single person this century. The “Talks at the Yan’an Conference on Literature and Art” has occupied a prominent position among his many works and has been the subject of intense scrutiny both within and outside China. This text has undoubted importance to modern Chinese literature and history. In particular, it reveals Mao’s views on such questions as the relationship between writers or works of literature and their audience, or the nature and value of different kinds of literary products. In this translation and commentary, Bonnie S. McDougall finds that Mao was in fact ahead of many of his critics in the West and his Chinese contemporaries in his discussion of literary issues. Unlike the majority of modern Chinese writers deeply influenced by Western theories of literature and society (including Marxism), Mao remained close to traditional patterns of thought and avoided the often mechanical or narrowly literal interpretations that were the hallmark of Western schools current in China in the early twentieth century. Many of the detailed discussions on the “Talks” in the West have been concerned with their political and historical significance. However, since Mao is a literary figure of some importance in twentieth-century China, McDougall finds it worthwhile to follow up his published remarks on the nature and source of literature and the means of its evaluation. By better understanding the complex and revolutionary ideas contained in the “Talks,” McDougall suggests we may acquire the necessary analytical tools for a more fruitful investigation into contemporary Chinese literature.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
customersupport@researchsolutions.com
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.