Wang Tao

Wang Tao (1828–1897), originally named Wang Libin and styled Lanqing, was a native of Changzhou, Jiangsu (present-day Suzhou). He was a late Qing thinker, political commentator, and journalist. In 1849 he joined the Shanghai Mohai Library to take part in translation work. In 1862, after his letter to the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom was exposed, he fled to Hong Kong, where he assisted James Legge in translating Chinese classics. In 1874 he founded the Xunhuan Daily to advocate reform and self-strengthening, and later served as president of the Shanghai Gezhi Academy. The collection includes 22 of his works, represented by the various volumes of Songyin Manlu, along with classical literature and Eastern philosophy; his writing combines the imagination of supernatural tales with the realistic concerns of late Qing scholars, making it important material for understanding modern classical Chinese fiction and intellectual change.