Beijing

Abstract

WORLDLITERATURETODAY.ORG 5 photo : amy lantrip Notebook CHINA HAS A LONG AND RICH literary history with a well-preserved written language and a robust collection of premodern literary works. Recent Chinese history, however, has taken a toll on this long-admired tradition. In the early 1900s, the great Hanlin library of Beijing, which housed a multitude of rare manuscripts, was burned to the ground. The Cultural Revolution in China that raged from 1966 to 1976 resulted in many scholars being banished and even killed. Precious literary manuscripts were burned to ashes. Despite all these obstacles, Beijing has been a place of constant inspiration for premodern and modern Chinese writers, for example Cao Xuequin, Lu Xun, and Nobel Prize–winning novelist Mo Yan. During my travels in Beijing, I felt this atmosphere of continued literary appreciation . It was very common for people to have classical Chinese poems written in beautiful calligraphy on wall scrolls. Many buildings have inspirational quotes from famous writers on the outside. When I was traveling through one of the narrow alleyways, I saw a red gate with the paint chipping off, a very common sight in Beijing. But there was something different about this gate: a skinny tower was peeking over the top. My curiosity got the better of me, and I pushed open the gate. Inside I saw the concrete tower as tall as the trees that surrounded it: to the right was a small museum; to the left, a small bookstore. When I walked up to the tower, there was a plaque about the monument written only in Chinese. According to the description, an enlightened Buddhist monk had sat in that very spot and written a poem that would help anyone who read it achieve enlightenment. The museum describes how Beijing citizens raised money to build the monument and how it had been destroyed twice but was built back again. The monument dedicated to this Buddhist monk displays the appreciation that many Beijingers feel for the written word, the idea that poetry and stories can make the writer and the reader a better person . While most authors who write about Beijing describe its constant change, this monument shows something more enduring : Beijingers’ love of literature. Amy Lantrip is a WLT intern. A recent graduate from the University of Oklahoma with degrees in Chinese and Asian studies, she will pursue advanced studies in Chinese literature. city profile Beijing by Amy Lantrip WHAT TO READ Liu Heng Black Snow Howard Goldblatt, tr. Wang Shuo Please Don’t Call Me Human Wang Yuan Beijing Women: Stories Colin Hawes & Shuyu Kong, trs. Jan Wong Beijing Confidential: A Tale of Comrades Lost and Found ...