Chinese Literature

Musicians. After analysing Dvorak’s works and the ideas which inspired it, he remarked: “Dvorak’s love of country, his optimism, his democratic spirit, and the simplicity and vitality of his music have won the admiration of Chinese musicians. We must do our best to learn from him.”

Chekhov was first introduced to the Chinese public in translation early this eentury. In 1907, three years after his death, a translation of his story The Bishop aroused wide interest. Since then translations of Chekhoy’s works have followed thick and fast. Lu Hsun, who laid the foundation of modern Chinese literature, and Chu Chiu-pai, another famous revolutionary writer, not only translated Chekhov but wrote many articles to give Chinese readers a better understanding of his merits. Chekhov’s play, Uncle Vanya, was staged as early as 1930, and his comedy, The Proposal, always goes down well with Chinese audiences, At a meeting in Peking commemorating the fiftieth anniversary of Chekhovy’s death, Mao Tun, Chairman of the Union of Chinese Writers, paid a moving tribute to a great man. “Today,” he said, “as we pay tribute to Chekhovy’s memory, we must, first of all, learn from him his great ideals of democracy and real patriotism; learn to share his aversion to oppression, to enslavement, to the trivial and commonplace; his love for his country and people; his love of life and labour, and his whole-hearted devotion to the cause of the people. As writers we must learn from him the realism through which he 80 profoundly and tersely reflected the life of the society around him, from the strict demands he made on himself, and from his integrity as a creative artist,”

Henry Fielding, the great British realist writer, is also well-known to the Chinese people. His Joseph Andrews and Life of Mr. Johathan Wild the Great and A Journey from this World to the Neat have won great popularity among Chi-

202

Scene from Chekhov’s play “Uncle Vanya,” presented by the Chinese Youth Art Theatre

nese readers. At a meeting commemorating the 200th anniversary of his death, Lao Sheh, the famous Chinese novelist, pointed out that at the very start of his literary career Fielding realized that art must be built on a foundation of realism, that true art must have an educational value, and that it must penetrate deeply into life itself and serve the people. Professor J. D. Bernal, famous British. physicist, Vice-President of the World Peace Council and International Stalin Peace Prize Winner, also spoke at this meeting. “We honour Fielding as a man,” he said, “we should honour him for his writing, some of the clearest and most vigorous that has ever appeared in the English language; we should honour him particularly because, at the very begin-

ning of the creation of that form of writ-_

ing, the modern novel Which was to be raised to such heights later by other Writers like Balzac, Dickens, Gogol and Tolstoy, he established an essential humanity and outlook, and made it a vehicle for the liberation and progress of mankind.”

Chinese literary circles also honoured the memory of Aristophanes, that towering representative of ancient Greek culture. The 2,400th anniversary of his birth was celebrated all over China. From his plays the Chinese people clearly perceive that he was an indomitable

SLE ere me rai 8 OO NE a ee EE sere a aS Se Se aE 3 realm =a TTS mh St aes