Speaker

Chen Heng

Host

Tang Xiaolin

Introduction

Lu Xun has always been known for his fierce anti-traditional attitude. His first vernacular novel, ‘Diary of a Madman’ (1918), described traditional Chinese history as ‘man-eating’, and was seen as a manifesto for the New Culture Movement. In addition, he responded to the ‘Youth must Read’ column with a blank volume in the ‘Peking Gazette Supplement’ (1925), instructing young people not to read traditional Chinese books. Therefore, most theorists often regard Lu Xun’s attitude towards Chinese history as nihilistic; however we also notice that in Lu Xun’s works, the  appropriation and use of history can be found everywhere. In addition to writing, Lu Xun also spent much of his life teaching the history of Chinese literature. Cai Yuanpei even says that his approach to learning was ‘entirely Confucian’. Regarding this seemingly ‘contradictory’ mentality, J. Levenson believed that the intellectuals of the May Fourth generation were only intellectually anti-traditional, while being emotionally attached to tradition. Lin Yusheng believes that the fierce attitude of the May Fourth figures towards tradition is in fact rooted in the monistic modes of tradition itself. Although Lu Xun’s ‘spiritual power’ penetrated  the ‘intellectual’ and ‘moral’ values of tradition, it still failed to surpass the overall rejection of tradition.

I disagree with Levinson and Lam’s conclusions. My research focuses on the tension between Lu Xun and history, as well as his familiarity and application of historical  resources in his own writing. By close-reading a series of Lu Xun’s minor texts, such as his popular lecture ‘The Wei And Jin Demeanor And The Relationship Between Literature, Drugs And Wine’ (1927) included in ‘And That’s That’, and his historical novel ‘Forging the Swords’ (1927) included in ‘Old Tales Retold’, I hope to discuss Lu Xun’s complex and subtle view of history, and it’s influence on his textual strategies.