My Red-Black Era

Ji XianlinZhejiang People's Publishing House · ChinaDec 2024

Rating 3.9
Word count
145K words
Chapters
40
ISBN
9787213074929

Tags

Classic Works Personal HistoryScholarly IntegrityCow Shed LifeFate of IntellectualsTranslation PerseveranceEra ReflectionMemoirSuffering NarrativeTurbulent TimesCultural Revolution Memory

Summary

Mainly collects Ji Xianlin's writings recalling the "Cultural Revolution," centered on Recollections from the Cowshed, with some recollective essays touching on experiences of that period. The content covers the socialist education movement, "mass criticism sessions," life in the "cowshed," and secretly translating the Indian epic Ramayana—acclaimed in world literary circles—while working as a gatekeeper... To today's readers these experiences seem like sheer fantasy and are breathtaking; yet they are the indelible memories the author preserved after deep reflection, observation, perplexity, and expectation. As the author says, recalling this past is only to hope that later generations can learn from it and avoid repeating the old path. The red and black backgrounds form a sharp, striking contrast, symbolizing blood and fire, the struggle and ordeal of a world turned upside down—the dark phase of Ji Xianlin's life.

Editor's review

My Red-and-Black Age is an important autobiographical collection from Ji Xianlin's later years, gathering his recollections and reflections on a special historical period. Unlike the linear narrative of ordinary memoirs, this book sketches in essayistic style the spiritual trajectory of intellectuals caught in the tide of the times. Ji's writing seems plain and restrained, yet contains profound insight into human nature and cultural destiny. The book records personal experiences and also examines collective national memory, displaying the courage of an older-generation scholar to uphold cultural conscience in adversity. As testimony from a witness to history, its value lies not only in recording the truth but in showing how intellectuals maintained independent thought amid spiritual hardship. Readers should note that Ji Xianlin's narrative style is understated and his emotional expression extremely restrained; patience is required to savor the historical weight and human warmth behind the words.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Not a good fit for

Reading tips

  1. Read in comparison with Ji Xianlin's other memoir works
  2. Read the endnotes and explanations first to understand the background
  3. Best read in segments in a quiet setting, savoring the tension of the writing

About the publisher

Zhejiang People's Publishing House China · Founded in 1951

Zhejiang People's Publishing House is a comprehensive publisher known for its social science, history and foreign literature titles, covering philosophy, politics, law, economics, culture and history. Among the books in the library catalogue, its foreign literature list includes Yasunari Kawabata's Snow Country and The Old Capital in well-known translations, as well as Wuthering Heights; its history list is represented by Dangnian Mingyue's Ming Dynasty series, and its politics list by Zhejiang New Discourse. Authors represented include Yasunari Kawabata, Ye Weiqu, Tang Yuemei, Dangnian Mingyue, Emily Brontë and René Wellek, with Wellek's Theory of Literature (newly revised edition) among its titles in literary theory. Beyond these areas, the press also publishes works on literary appreciation and social culture, giving it a profile that combines classic translations, popular history and academic works. As publicly available information is limited, other details are not covered here.

Contents

  1. 版权信息
  2. 第一辑 回到祖国（节选）
  3. 1966年至1977年
  4. 第二辑 牛棚杂忆
  5. 自序
  6. 缘起
  7. 从社教运动谈起
  8. 1966年6月4日
  9. 对号入座
  10. 快活半年
  11. 自己跳出来
  12. 抄 家
  13. 在“自绝于人民”的边缘上
  14. 千钧一发
  15. 劳改的初级阶段
  16. 大批斗
  17. 太平庄
  18. 自己亲手搭起牛棚
  19. 牛棚生活（一）
  20. 牛棚生活（二）
  21. 牛棚生活（三）
  22. 牛棚转移
  23. 半解放
  24. 完全解放
  25. 余思或反思
  26. 后记
  27. 第三辑 回顾与前瞻
  28. 野火
  29. 回顾与前瞻
  30. 爽朗的笑声
  31. 写作《春归燕园》的前前后后
  32. 他实现了生命的价值
  33. 怀念西府海棠
  34. 黎明之前
  35. 梦萦未名湖
  36. 记周培源先生
  37. 幽径悲剧
  38. 沧桑十年
  39. 梦萦红楼
  40. 《大漠孤烟》序

FAQ

How does this book differ from Ji Xianlin's other memoirs? This book focuses more concentratedly on a specific historical period, with deeper reflection and more restrained emotional expression; it involves fewer details of personal life and more overall reflection on the era and culture.
Does the book contain direct evaluations of historical events? Ji Xianlin uses indirect literary expression, presenting through concrete scenes and details and avoiding blunt judgments, reflecting the cautious attitude characteristic of a scholar.
What background knowledge is needed before reading? A basic understanding of Chinese social change in the mid-to-late twentieth century is enough; the book provides its own thread. But familiarity with Ji Xianlin's academic career will help in understanding certain metaphors.

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

About the author

Ji Xianlin Author · China · 1911–2009

Ji Xianlin (1911–2009) was a Chinese orientalist, Indologist, Sanskrit scholar and translator, and a senior professor at Peking University. He was versed in Sanskrit, Pali and Tocharian, and served as vice president of Peking University and director of the Institute of South Asian Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. His long engagement with Indology and cultural exchange produced works such as The Track of Cultural Exchange: A History of Sugar Cane in China, which traces civilizational contact through a single commodity, while his translation of the Panchatantra brought an Indian classic to Chinese readers. He is equally noted for his essays, several selections of which appear in this catalog; they dwell on hometown scenery, old friends and teachers, and everyday reflections in a plain, unhurried style that reveals warmth and erudition in small details. His works are commonly grouped under culture, classic works, essays and miscellaneous writings, and foreign literature. The catalog currently holds seventy-four titles, appealing to both scholarly and general readers.