The First Half of My Life (Complete 2 Volumes)
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Summary
From Emperor to Citizen is the memoir of Puyi, the last emperor of China. In chronological scope it covers the most tumultuous decades of modern Chinese history. Many have been cast into the dust by the wheel of history, but there was only one last emperor—and that makes this memoir uniquely valuable and uniquely compelling to read.
The book proceeds in chronological order, from his enthronement at the age of three to his rehabilitation after Liberation and his life as a citizen of the People's Republic. The memoir is rich in the stuff of legend, and its vivid, image-laden style does no damage to its truthfulness—it lifts it to a higher order of truth.
This edition is based on the "definitive text" revised by Puyi himself in 1964, and it neither evades nor alters such historical episodes as the deposed emperor's departure from the Forbidden City, the founding of "Manchukuo," and the death of Wanrong—all of which makes it especially precious.
Editor's review
Who it's for
A good fit for
- General readers interested in modern Chinese history and the upheavals of the late Qing and early Republic
- Readers of autobiography who want to understand the last emperor's real inner life
- Students of modern history and historiography using it as a firsthand memoir source
- Readers curious about court life, the deposed emperor's departure from the palace, and the rise and fall of "Manchukuo"
Not a good fit for
- Readers who prefer the strong plotting and fast pace of genre fiction
- Readers expecting a purely objective work of history and unwilling to weigh an individual's perspective
- Readers entirely unfamiliar with the late Qing and early Republic and unwilling to fill in the background
Reading tips
- First get a grasp of the basic timeline of the Qing abdication, the departure from the palace, and "Manchukuo," then go into the main text.
- As you read, distinguish between "what was experienced at the time" and "what was recounted later," and note shifts in the author's attitude.
- For key events, read alongside other historical sources or chronologies and form your own judgment rather than accepting everything wholesale.
- The two volumes can be read in stages: the first half focuses on the court and the departure from the palace, the second on rehabilitation and the transformation of identity.
About the publisher
Bashu Publishing House is a publisher centered on collating and publishing classical Chinese cultural texts, with its main publishing areas covering classical literature, Eastern philosophy, ancient poetry, and educational classics. Its library currently holds 1,075 titles, including representative works such as Dream of the Red Chamber, the Preface to the Orchid Pavilion Gathering, Renjian Cihua, and Out to the Frontier, involving authors such as Cao Xueqin, Wang Xizhi, Wang Guowei, Wang Changling, Liu Xie, and Yan Yu. These reflect the publisher's focus on literary classics, poetry criticism, and philosophical readings. Its publishing character lies in working around ancient texts and canonical works, with attention to textual collation and presentation. Public information on its more detailed publishing background and series plans is limited; this introduction is based only on the library's book information.
Contents
- 版权信息
- 出版说明
- 我的前半生（上册）
- 第一章 我的家世（1859—1908）
- 一、醇贤亲王的一生
- 二、外祖父荣禄
- 三、慈禧太后的决定
- 四、摄政王监国
- 五、亲王之家
- 第二章 我的童年（1908—1917）
- 一、登极与退位
- 二、帝王生活
- 三、母子之间
- 四、毓庆宫读书
- 五、太监
- 六、我的乳母
- 第三章 北京的“小朝廷”（1917—1924）
- 一、袁世凯时代
- 二、丁巳复辟
- 三、北洋元老
- 四、不绝的希望
- 五、庄士敦
- 六、结婚
- 七、内部冲突
- 八、遣散太监
- 九、整顿内务府
- 十、紫禁城的末日
- 十一、在“北府”里
- 十二、三岔口上的抉择
- 十三、由“使馆区”到“租界地”
- 第四章 天津的“行在”（1924—1930）
- 一、罗振玉的努力
- 二、我和奉系将领之间
- 三、谢米诺夫和“小诸葛”
- 四、东陵事件
- 五、领事馆、司令部、黑龙会
- 六、郑孝胥的理想
- 七、“行在”生活
- 第五章 到东北去（1931—1932）
- 一、不静的“静园”
- 二、日本人意见分歧
- 三、会见土肥原
- 四、白河偷渡
- 五、在封锁中
- 六、我的所见与所思
- 七、会见板垣
- 我的前半生（下册）
- 第六章 伪满十四年（1932—1945）
- 一、登场
- 二、“元首”的“尊严”
- 三、李顿调查团
- 四、第三次做“皇帝”
- 五、吉冈安直
- 六、我的恐惧
- 七、四大“诏书”及其他
- 八、在羊的面前是狼
- 九、“后”与“妃”的命运
- 十、大崩溃
- 第七章 在苏联的五年（1945—1950）
- 一、疑惧和幻想
- 二、放不下来的架子
- 三、我不认罪
- 四、远东国际军事法庭
- 第八章 由抗拒到认罪（1950—1954）
- 一、回到了祖国
- 二、第一次写自传
- 三、乾隆的田黄石印
- 四、黑色的皮箱
- 五、交代一段历史真相
- 六、检举与认罪
- 七、震动
- 八、原形毕露
- 第九章 认罪以后（1955—1956）
- 一、观测“气象”
- 二、劳动滋味
- 三、生活检讨会
- 四、血泪控诉
- 五、平顶山的方素荣
- 六、台山堡一家农民
- 第十章 一切都在变（1956）
- 一、最初的答案
- 二、会见亲属
- 三、日本战犯
- 四、离婚
- 第十一章 “世界上的光辉”（1957—1959）
- 一、在我心里失掉过的
- 二、解放了的人
- 三、美与丑、善与恶
- 四、“监狱”
- 五、“所方”
- 六、命运是可以掌握的
- 第十二章 特赦（1959）
- 一、中共中央的建议
- 二、一九五九年十二月四日
- 三、告别
- 附录1
- 附录2
FAQ
Was this book written by Puyi himself?
Has material such as the death of Wanrong been cut or altered?
What should readers keep in mind when reading this memoir?
How is the content roughly divided between the two volumes?
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About the author
Aisin-Gioro Puyi was the last emperor of China's Qing dynasty and a highly unusual twentieth-century Chinese autobiographer. Publicly available information about the details of his life is limited, so this page does not elaborate on them. Judging from the fourteen works held in the collection, his writing centers almost entirely on his own experience, most importantly the autobiography From Emperor to Citizen (My First Half of Life), which appears in an unabridged edition, a latest complete edition, a multi-volume edition, and other versions, as well as an edition subtitled as the autobiography of the "Xuantong Emperor" Puyi. These works fall under the categories of general biography and documentary literature. Written in the first person, they recall court life, the changes of the times, and personal fate, in a plain and reflective narrative voice. Because of the eyewitness perspective, his autobiography has distinctive value as historical material and a notable reading influence, and it is an important reference text for understanding Chinese history from the late Qing to the Republican period.
