“Bernard Shaw and China : cross-cultural encounters.” (Publication, 2007)
Year
2007
Text
Li, Kay. Bernard Shaw and China : cross-cultural encounters. (Gainesville : University Press of Florida, 2007). (The Florida Bernard Shaw series). (Shaw63)
Type
Publication
Contributors (1)
Li, Kay
(um 2007) : Adjunct Professor of English, Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies, York University ; Research Associate at the Asian Institute, University of Toronto ; President of Asian Heritage Month, Canadian Foundation for Asian Culture
Mentioned People (1)
Shaw, George Bernard
(Dublin 1856-1950 Ayot Saint Lawrence, Hertford) : Dramatiker, Schriftsteller ; Literatur-Nobelpreisträger 1925
Subjects
Literature : Occident : Ireland
/
References / Sources
Chronology Entries (16)
| # | Year | Text | Linked Data |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1901.2 |
Dickinson, G. Lowes. Letters from John Chinaman [ID D15745]. (2) VII To grave and fundamental distinctions of national character and life commonly correspond similar distinctions in religious belief. For religion is, or should be, the soul of which the State is the body, the idea which informs and perpetuates institutions. It is not, I am aware, in this sense that the word is always understood, for religion is not seldom identified with superstition. I propose, however, in this place to distinguish the two, and to concern myself mainly with what I conceive to be properly termed religion. But I note, at the outset, that among the masses of China superstition is as widely spread as among those of any European country. Buddhism and Taoism lend themselves with us to practices and beliefs as regrettable and absurd as any that are fostered by Christianity among yourselves. Our people, like yours, hope by ritual and prayer to affect the course of the elements or to compass private and material benefits ; they believe in spirits and goblins, as Roman Catholics do in saints ; they worship idols, practise magic, and foster the impositions of priests. But all this I pass by as extraneous to true religion. I regard it merely as a manifestation of the weakness of human nature, a vent for the peccant humours of the individual soul. Different indeed is the creed and the cult on which our civilization is founded ; and it is to this, which has been so much misunderstood by Europeans, that I propose to devote a few words of explanation. Confucianism, it is sometimes said, is not a religion at all ; and if by religion be meant a set of dogmatic propositions dealing with a supernatural world radically distinct from our own, the statement is, no doubt, strictly true. It was, in fact, one of the objects of Confucius to discourage preoccupation with the supernatural, and the true disciple endeavours in this respect to follow in his master's footsteps. 'Beware of religion,' a Mandarin says, meaning' beware of superstition ; and in this sense, but in this sense only, Confucianism is irreligious. Again, it is said that Confucianism is merely an ethical system ; and this, too, is true, in so far as its whole aim and purport is to direct and inspire right conduct. But, on the other hand and this is the point I wish to make it is not merely a teaching, but a life. The principles it enjoins are those which are actually embodied in the structure of our society, so that they are inculcated not merely by written and spoken word, but by the whole habit of everyday experience. The unity of the family and the State, as expressed in the worship of ancestors, is the basis not merely of the professed creed, but of the actual practice of a Chinaman. To whatever other faith he may adhere Buddhist, Taoist, Christian this is the thing that really matters to him. To him the generations past and the generations to come form with those that are alive one single whole. All live eternally, though it is only some that happen at any moment to live upon earth. Ancestor-worship is thus the symbol of a social idea immense in its force to consolidate and bind. Its effects in China must be seen to be believed ; but you have a further example in a civilization with which you are better acquainted I mean, of course, the civilization of Rome. This, then, is the first and most striking aspect of our national religion ; but there is another hardly less important in its bearing on social life. Confucianism is the exponent of the ideal of work. Your eighteenth -century observers, who laid so much stress on the ritual of the Emperor's yearly ploughing, were nearer to the heart of our civilization than many later and less sympathetic inquirers. The duty of man to labour, and primarily to labour on the soil, is a fundamental postulate of our religion. Hence the worship of Mother Earth, the source of all increase ; hence the worship of Heaven, the giver of light and rain ; and hence also that social system whose aim is to secure a general access to the soil. The willing dedication of all, in brotherhood and peace, to labour blessed by the powers of heaven and earth, such is the simple, intelligible ideal we have set before our people, such is the conception we have embodied in our institutions. And if you seek more than this, a metaphysical system to justify and explain our homely creed, that too we have provided for our scholars. Humanity, they are taught, is a Being spiritual and eternal, manifesting itself in time in the series of generations. This Being is the mediator between heaven and earth, between the ultimate ideal and the existing fact. By labour, incessant and devout, to raise earth to heaven, to realize, in fact, the good that as yet exists only in idea that is the end and purpose of human life ; and in fulfilling it we achieve and maintain our unity each with every other, and all with the Divine. Here, surely, is a faith not unworthy to be called a religion. I do not say that it is consciously held by the mass of the people, for in no State does the mass of the people reflect. But I claim for us that the life of our masses is so ordered and disposed as to accord with the postulates of our creed ; that they practise, if they do not profess, the tenets of our sages ; and that the two cardinal ideas on which every society should rest, brotherhood and the dignity of labour, are brought home to them in direct and unmistakable form by the structure of our secular institutions. Such, then, in a few words, is the essence of Confucianism, as it appears to an educated Chinaman. Far harder is it for me, though I have spent so long in Europe, to appreciate the significance of Christianity. But perhaps I may be pardoned if I endeavour to record my impressions, such as they are, gathered from some study of your sacred books, your history, and your contemporary life. In such observations as I have made I have had in view the question not so much of the truth of your religion of that I do not feel competent to judge as of its bearing upon your social institutions. And here, more than anywhere, I am struck by the wide discrepancy between your civilization and ours. I cannot see that your society is based upon religion at all ; nor does that surprise me, if I have rightly apprehended the character of Christianity. For the ideal which I seem to find enshrined in your gospels and embodied in the discussions of your divines is one not of labour on earth, but of contemplation in heaven ; not of the unity of the human race, but of the communion of saints. Whether this be a higher ideal than our own I do not venture to pronounce ; but I cannot but hold it to be less practicable. It must be difficult, one would think, if not impossible, to found any stable society on the conception that life upon earth is a mere episode in a drama whose centre of action lies elsewhere. An indifference to what, from a more mundane point of view, must appear to be fundamental considerations, a confusion of temporal distinctions in the white blaze of eternity, a haphazard organization of those details of corporate life the serious preoccupation with which would be hardly compatible with religion such would appear to be the natural result of a genuine profession of Christianity. And such, if I understand it aright, was the character of your civilization in what you describe as the Ages of Faith. Asceticism, monastic vows, the domination of priests, the petty interests of life and death overshadowed and dwarfed by the tremendous issues of heaven and hell, beggary sanctified, wealth contemned, reason stunted, imagination hypertrophied, the spiritual and temporal powers at war, body at feud with soul, everywhere division, conflict, confusion, intellectual and moral insanity such was the character of that extraordinary epoch in Western history when the Christian conception made a bid to embody itself in fact. It was the life-and-death struggle of a grandiose ideal against all the facts of the material and moral universe. And in that struggle the ideal was worsted. From the dust of battle the Western world emerged, as it had entered, secular : avowedly worldly, frankly curious, bent with a passionate zeal on the mastery of all the forces of nature, on beauty, wealth, intelligence, character, power. From that time on, although you still profess Christianity, no attempt has been made to christianize your institutions. On the contrary, it has been your object to sweep away every remnant of the old order, to dissociate Church from State, ritual and belief from action. You have abandoned your society frankly to economic and political forces, with results which I have endeavoured in an earlier letter to characterize. But while thus, on the one hand, your society has evolved on a purely material basis, on the other religion has not ceased to be recognised among you. Only, cut off from its natural root in social institutions, it has assumed forms which I cannot but think to be either otiose or dangerous. Those who profess Christianity and there are few who, in one way or another, do not either profess it only with their lips, and having in this way satisfied those claims of the ideal from which no human being is altogether free, turn back with an unencumbered mind and conscience to the pursuit of egotistic ends ; or else, being seriously possessed by the teachings of Christ, they find themselves almost inevitably driven into the position of revolutionists. For those teachings, if they be fully accepted and fairly interpreted, must be seen to be incompatible with the whole structure of your society. Enunciated, centuries ago, by a mild Oriental enthusiast, unlettered, untravelled, inexperienced, they are remarkable not more for their tender and touching appeal to brotherly love than for their aversion or indifference to all other elements of human excellence. The subject of Augustus and Tiberius lived and died unaware of the history and destinies of imperial Rome ; the contemporary of Virgil and of Livy could not read the language in which they wrote. Provincial by birth, mechanic by trade, by temperament a poet and a mystic, he enjoyed in the course of his brief life few opportunities, and he evinced little inclination, to become acquainted with the rudiments of the science whose end is the prosperity of the State. The production and distribution of wealth, the disposition of power, the laws that regulate labour, property, trade, these were matters as remote from his interests as they were beyond his comprehension. Never was man better equipped to inspire a religious sect ; never one worse to found or direct a commonwealth. Yet this man it is whose naif maxims of self-abnegation have been accepted as gospel by the nations of the West, the type of all that is predatory, violent and aggressive. No wonder your history has been one long and lamentable tale of antagonism, tumult, carnage and confusion ! No wonder the spiritual and temporal powers have oscillated between open war and truces as discreditable to the one as to the other ! No wonder that down to the present day every man among you who has been genuinely inspired with the spirit of your religion has shrunk in horror from the society which purports to have adopted its principles as its own ! It is the Nemesis of an idealist creed that it cannot inform realities ; it can but mass together outside and in opposition to the established order the forces that should have shaped and controlled it from within. The spirit remains unembodied, the body uninformed. So it has been and so it is with this polity of yours. It purports to represent a superhuman ideal ; in reality, it does not represent even one that is human. It is of the earth, earthy ; while from heaven far above cries, like a ghost's, the voice of the Nazarene, as pure, as clear, as ineffectual, as when first it flung from the shores of Galilee its challenge to the world-sustaining power of Rome. The view which I have thus ventured to give, candidly, as I feel it, of the relation of your society to your religion, will, I am aware, be received by most of my readers with astonishment, if not with indignation. Permit me, then, to illustrate and confirm it by an example so patent and palpable that it cannot fail, I think, to make some appeal even to those who are most unwilling to face the truth. If there is one feature more marked than another in the teaching of Christ it is his condemnation of every form of violence. No one can read the Gospels with an unprejudiced mind without being struck by the emphasis with which he reiterates this doctrine. ' Whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.' These are his words, and they are spoken in sober earnestness, not in metaphor, nor yet as a counsel of perfection, something that should be but cannot be put into effect. No ! they are the words of conviction and truth, backed by the whole character and practice of their author. The principle they embody may, of course, be disputed. It may be held as in fact it always has been held by the majority of men in all ages that force is essential to the preservation of society ; that without it there could be no security, no order, no peace. But one who holds this view cannot be a Christian, in the proper sense of a follower of Christ. If, then, as is undoubtedly the case, this view has been universally held throughout their whole history by the nations of the West, then, whatever they may call themselves, they cannot be truly Christian. Yet this consequence they have always refused to accept. They have interpreted the words of their founder to mean the reverse of what they say, and have conceived him, apparently without any sense of the solecism they were perpetrating, to be the defender and champion not only of their whole system of law, based as it is on the prison and the scaffold, but of all their wars, even of those which to the natural sense of mankind must appear to be the least defensible and the most iniquitous. In proof of what I say if proof be required I need not recur to historical examples. It will be enough to refer to the case which is naturally most present to my mind the recent attack of the Western Powers on China. That there was grave provocation, I am not concerned to deny, though it was not with us that the provocation originated. But what fills me with amazement and even, if I must be frank, with horror, is the fact that the nations of Europe should attempt to justify their acts from the standpoint of the Gospel of Christ ; and that there should be found among them a Christian potentate who, in sending forth his soldiers on an errand of revenge, should urge them, in the name of him who bade us turn the other cheek, not merely to attack, not merely to kill, but to kill without quarter ! What further proof is needed of the truth of my general proposition that the religion you profess, whatever effect it may have on individual lives, has little or none on public policy ? It may inspire, here and there, some retired saint ; it has never inspired those who control the State. What use is it, then, to profess that, in essence, it is a religion higher than ours ? I care not to dispute on ground so barren. 'By their fruits ye shall know them' said your own prophet ; and to their fruits I am content to appeal. Confucianism may, as you affirm, be no religion at all ; it may be an inferior ethical code ; but it has made of the Chinese the one nation in all the history of the world who genuinely abhor violence and reverence reason and right. And here, lest you think that I am biassed, let me call to my aid the testimony of the one among your countrymen who has known us intimately and long, and whose services to our State will never be forgotten by any patriotic Chinaman. In place of the ignorant diatribes of your special correspondents, listen for a moment to the voice of Sir Robert Hart : 'They are,' he says of the Chinese, ' well-behaved, law-abiding, intelligent, economical, and industrious ; they can learn anything and do anything ; they are punctiliously polite, they worship talent, and they believe in right so firmly that they scorn to think it requires to be supported or enforced by might ; they delight in literature, and everywhere they have their literary clubs and coteries for learning and discussing each other's essays and verses ; they possess and practise an admirable system of ethics, and they are generous, charitable, and fond of good works ; they never forget a favour, they make rich return for any kindness, and, though they know money will buy service, a man must be more than wealthy to win public esteem and respect ; they are practical, teachable, and wonderfully gifted with commonsense ; they are excellent artisans, reliable workmen, and of a good faith that everyone acknowledges and admires in their commercial dealings ; in no country that is or was, has the commandment "Honour thy father and thy mother" been so religiously obeyed, or so fully and without exception given effect to, and it is in fact the keynote of their family, social, official, and national life, and because it is so "their days are long in the land God has given them." Thus Sir Robert Hart. I ask no better testimonial. Here are no superhuman virtues, no abnegation of self, no fanatic repudiation of fundamental facts of human nature. But here is a life according to a rational ideal ; and here is a belief in that ideal so effective and profound that it has gone far to supersede the use of force. 'They believe in right' says Sir Robert Hart let me quote it once more 'they believe in right so firmly that they scorn to think it requires to be supported or enforced by might.' Yes, it is we who do not accept it that practise the Gospel of peace ; it is you who accept it that trample it underfoot. And irony of ironies ! it is the nations of Christendom who have come to us to teach us by sword and fire that Right in this world is powerless unless it be supported by Might ! Oh, do not doubt that we shall learn the lesson ! And woe to Europe when we have acquired it ! You are arming a nation of four hundred millions ! a nation which, until you came, had no better wish than to live at peace with themselves and all the world. In the name of Christ you have sounded the call to arms ! In the name of Confucius, we respond ! VIII Hitherto I have avoided any discussion in detail of the existing political and commercial relations between ourselves and the West, and of the events which led up to the situation we all deplore. I have endeavoured rather to enlist your sympathies in the general character of our civilization, to note the salient points in which it differs from your own, and to bring into relief the more fundamental and permanent conditions which render an understanding between us so difficult and so precarious. I cannot, however, disguise from myself that even a sympathetic reader may fairly demand of me something more ; and that if I am to satisfy him, I am bound, however unwillingly, to enter upon the field of current controversy. For, he may reasonably inquire, If it be really true that your people possess the qualities you ascribe to them, if they be indeed so just, so upright, so averse to violence, how is it that they have committed the greatest breach of international comity that is known in the history of the civilized world ? How is it that they have been guilty of acts which have shocked and outraged the moral sense of communities, according to you, less cultured and humane than themselves ? In reply, I will urge that I have never asserted that the Chinese are saints. I have said, and I still maintain, that if they are left to themselves, if the order to which they are accustomed is not violently disturbed, they are the most peaceful and law-abiding nation on the face of the earth. If, then, they have broken loose from their secular restraints, if they have shown for a moment those claws of the brute which no civilization, be it yours or ours, though it may sheathe, will ever draw, the very violence of the outbreak serves only to prove how intense must have been the provocation. Do you realize what that provocation was ? I doubt it ! Permit me then briefly to record the facts. When first your traders came to China it was not at our invitation ; yet we received them, if not with enthusiasm, at least with tolerance. So long as they were content to observe our regulations we were willing to sanction their traffic, but always on the condition that it should not disturb our social and political order. To this condition, in earlier days, your countrymen consented to conform, and for many years, in spite of occasional disputes, there was no serious trouble between them and us. The trouble arose over a matter in regard to which you yourselves have hardly ventured to defend your own conduct. A considerable part of your trade was the trade in opium. The use of this drug, we observed, was destroying the health and the morals of our people, and we therefore prohibited the trade. Your merchants, however, evaded the law ; opium was smuggled in ; till at last we were driven to take the matter into our own hands and to seize and destroy the whole stock of the forbidden drug. Your Government made our action an excuse for war. You invaded our territory, exacted an indemnity and took from us the island of Hong Kong. Was this an auspicious beginning ? Was it calculated to impress us with a sense of the justice and fair play of the British nation ? Years went on ; a petty dispute about the privileges of the flag a dispute in which we still believe that we were in the right brought us once more into collision with you. You made the unfortunate conflict an excuse for new demands. In conjunction with the French you occupied our capital and imposed upon us terms which you would never have dared to offer to a European nation. We submitted because we must ; we were not a military Power. But do you suppose our sense of justice was not outraged ? Or later, when every Power in Europe on some pretext or other has seized and retained some part of our territory, do you suppose because we cannot resist that we do not feel ? To a Chinaman who reviews the history of our relations with you during the past sixty years and more must you not naturally appear to be little better than robbers and pirates ? True, such a view is unduly harsh, and I do not myself altogether share it. A study of your official documents has convinced me that you genuinely believe that you have had on your side a certain measure of right, and I am too well aware of the complexity of all human affairs to deny that there may be something in your point of view. Still, I would ask you to consider the broad facts of the situation, dismissing the interminable controversies that arise on every point of detail. Which of us throughout has been the aggressor we who, putting our case at the worst, were obstinately resolved to maintain our society, customs, laws and polity against the influences of an alien civilization, or you who, bent on commercial gains, were determined at all cost to force an entrance into our territory and to introduce along with your goods the leaven of your culture and ideas ? If, in the collision that inevitably ensued, we gave cause of offence, we had at least the excuse of self-preservation. Our wrongs, if wrongs they were, were episodes in a substantial right ; but yours were themselves the substance of your action. Consider for a moment the conditions you have imposed on a proud and ancient empire, an empire which for centuries has believed itself to be at the head of civilization. You have compelled us, against our will, to open our ports to your trade; you have forced us to permit the introduction of a drug which we believe is ruining our people ; you have exempted your subjects residing among us from the operation of our laws ; you have appropriated our coasting traffic ; you claim the traffic of our inland waters. Every attempt on our part to resist your demands has been followed by new claims and new aggressions. And yet all this time you have posed as civilized peoples dealing with barbarians. You have compelled us to receive your missionaries, and when they by their ignorant zeal have provoked our people to rise in mass against them, that again you have made an excuse for new depredations, till we, not unnaturally, have come to believe that the cross is the pioneer of the sword, and that the only use you have for your religion is to use it as a weapon of war. Conceive for a moment the feelings of an Englishman subjected to similar treatment ; conceive that we had permanently occupied Liverpool, Bristol, Plymouth ; that we had planted on your territory thousands of men whom we had exempted from your laws ; that along your coasts and navigable rivers our vessels were driving out yours ; that we had insisted on your admitting spirits duty free to the manifest ruin of your population ; and that we had planted in all your principal towns agents to counteract the teachings of your Church and undermine the whole fabric of habitual belief on which the stability of your society depends. Imagine that you had to submit to all this. Would you be so greatly surprised, would you really even be indignant, if you found one day the Chinese Legation surrounded by a howling mob and Confucian missionaries everywhere hunted to death ? What right then have you to be surprised, what right have you to be indignant at even the worst that has taken place in China ? What is there so strange or monstrous in our conduct ? A Legation, you say, is sacrosanct by the law of nations. Yes ; but remember that it was at the point of the sword that you forced us to receive Embassies whose presence we have always regarded as a sign of national humiliation. But our mobs were barbarous and cruel. Alas ! yes. And your troops ? And your troops, nations of Christendom ? Ask the once fertile land from Peking to the coast ; ask the corpses of murdered men and outraged women and children ; ask the innocent mingled indiscriminately with the guilty ; ask the Christ, the lover of men, whom you profess to serve, to judge between us who rose in mad despair to save our country and you who, avenging crime with crime, did not pause to reflect that the crime you avenged was the fruit of your own iniquity ! Well, it is over over - over at least, for the moment. I do not wish to dwell upon the past. Yet the lesson of the past is our only guide to the policy of the future. And unless you of the West will come to realize the truth ; unless you will understand that the events which have shaken Europe are the Nemesis of a long course of injustice and oppression ; unless you will learn that the profound opposition between your civilization and ours gives no more ground why you should regard us as barbarians than we you ; unless you will treat us as a civilized Power and respect our customs and our laws ; unless you will accord us the treatment you would accord to any European nation and refrain from exacting conditions you would never dream of imposing on a Western Power unless you will do this there is no hope of any peace between us. You have humiliated the proudest nation in the world ; you have outraged the most upright and just ; with what results is now abundantly manifest. If ignorance was your excuse, let it be your excuse no longer. Learn to understand us, and in doing so learn better to understand yourselves. To contribute to this end has been my only object in writing and publishing these letters. If I have offended, I regret it ; but if it is the truth that offends, for that 1 owe and I offer no apology. Sekundärliteratur Kay Li : Letters to John Chinaman was published in 1901 after the Boxer riots and the European expeditions to suppress them. Dickinson uses the Chinese voice of the fictional 'John Chinaman' to comment on England. Comparing to the Western and Eastern civilizations, John Chinaman criticizes England's concern for economic gain. Instead, he is in favor of China’s concern for morality. China is constructed as a favorable alternative to Europe because it represents peace and stability, while Europe with her industrialization, progress, and materialism embodies strife and instability. Confucianism in the Letters is 'not a religion' but rather an ethical system directing and inspiring right conduct. The Chinese "are the most peaceful and law-abiding nation on the face of the earth", and "Confucianism has made of the Chinese the one nation in all the history of the world who genuinely abhor violence and reverence reason and right". |
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| 2 | 1918 |
Zhou Zuoren schreibt über das chinesische Drama in Xin qing nian ; vol. 5, no 5 (Nov. 1918). "On the constructive side, there is only adopting European-style New Drama. Now there are people who make a fuss over the European style and are afraid to talk about “Westernization”. Actually, transferring the literature, art, and academic studies to our country does not mean to be conquered by another country. It is only that civilized things evolving from the barbaric stage are first discovered in Europe. Therefore we make a leap and bring these things here to save much effort on our part. These things brought to our country become ours, and there is no question of Westernization or not." |
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| 3 | 1918-1950 |
George Bernard Shaw in China : Allgemein. Wendi Chen : To many Chinese intellectuals, the public face of George Bernard Shaw corresponded to their elevated image of a socially responsible scholar ; they unconsciously transformed him into a culturally more familiar type of scholar and found in him what modern China needed – a public spokesperson with all the necessary attributes : moral conscience, courage, a sense of justice, and great talent. He was regarded first and foremost as a moralist, whose principal purpose in writing was to serve social causes. Shaw was already widely known in China as an expert in humor by the time of his visit, as is clear from Chinese journalistic and literary writings produced during that time. Shaw's witticisms and jokes were told and retold in print ; essays exploiting the public craze for 'humor' were numerous. Since the majority of Chinese writers and artists of the time still came from bourgeois families, they were continually pressured to remold their thinking, - that is, to change their political outlooks and adopt proletarian attitudes – in order to serve the proletariat. The Party urged that they adopt two principles : 1) to go among the broad mass of the people in order to understand and learn from them, and 2) to conscientiously study Marxism-Leninism. Shaw was seen as a bourgeois intellectual who had already experiences ideological remolding by actively participating in various revolutionary activities and seriously studying Marx's Das Kapital. In this respect, Shaw was an exemplary figure for Chinese bourgeois intellectuals. Armed with Mao's thought, critics first of all assessed Shaw's political outlook. In this respect, Shaw passed the Maoist test. Mao Zedong's theory of the source of literary creation also strongly influenced Chinese critics' discussions of Shaw, whose advocacy of working-class causes was viewed as the determining condition for his dramatic success. Kay Li : When Shaw's works were first introduced in to China, he was regarded as a mentor showing the Chinese how to modernize Chinese drama and social life, how to enable China to join an imaginary world civilization or global culture, an integrative single entity that encompassed the world and included all nations and cultures. While Shaw's texts were regard4ed as authoritative, the Chinese intellectuals introducing Shaw's works had no intention of debasing China and elevating the West. His translators made use of the cultural gap between East and West less to widen the geographical distance between the two poles than to draw analogies and create assumed similarities between Shaw's Western world and China. The young Chinese intellectuals hailed Shaw as a naturalist and a realist who presented 'real life'. Shaw did not present real Chinese life, but the intellectuals felt that he presented real life in a general sense, thus showing their assumption of a global homogeneity. The call for social reforms made Shaw's realism and didacticism especially attractive. The young Chinese intellectuals were attracted to the idea of exposing unpleasant social facts and to the form of the problem play, but the kind of social facts exposed had to be social facts relevant to Chinese rather than to English society. The reception of Shaw's plays in China was in part responsible for a reaction against the importation of Western literature generally. Some intellectuals opposed the importation of Western-style-drama, especially the problem plays, because the problems presented in those plays were not completely relevant to the Chinese situation. Shaw's plays helped to globalize rather than Westernize modern Chinese drama because the underlying concerns surrounding the introduction of Western drama were to centrifugally enable China to join world drama and to centripetally make use of world drama to develop a Chinese theater that could realistically address the country's social problems. The young Chinese intellectuals were attracted to Shavian methods such as the discussion play and the problem play and to certain concepts Shaw advocated such as individual will and freedom from family control that echoed the ideology promoted in the Chinese Intellectual Revolution. However, the Chinese found some Shavian issues irrelevant or unimportant, the most notable of these being Shaw's intense advocacy of the Life Force and Creative Evolution, and the Chinese responded to these ideas with little att4ention or understanding. So the Chinese were faced with the dilemma of giving Shaw the power of interpretation, of interpreting Shaw themselves, or of rewriting Shaw. |
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| 4 | 1920-1921 |
Bertrand Russell in China : 8. Okt. 1920-10. Juli 1921 : Allgemein 1982 Suzanne P. Ogden : Chinese students flooded abroad for advanced education, while Chinese educational institutions were remodeled to serve better the goals of modernization. Bertrand Russel's visit produced rapid disillusionment for many Chinese, widespread confusion among others, and a kind of half-hearted admiration on the part of a few, which seemed to spring as much from intertia, embarrassment, or the wish to be polite, as from intellectual or political commitment. To many Chinese intellectuals, Russell appeared as a man who, because of his intellectual power and because of his commitment to social change, would have unusually valuable insights into the problems besetting the Chinese people at that time. That the Chinese seriously considered Russell's ideas for institutional and societal change in China indicates the inherent problem of assuming that a leader in one field will be equally well qualified to speak on totally unrelated topics. A foreign philosopher, a scientist turned ideologist, met a group of Chinese in search of a theory of social and political change. Russell arrived at a crucial time in China's intellectual and political evolution. The major split within the leadership of the new culture movement, between the Marxists and the 'liberals', occurred in 1921. While the Lecture Society encompassed a broad range of the 'liberal' Chinese political spectrum, the more radical, would-be Communists and socialists largely remained outside of it. But there were no rigid classifications at that time, only individuals who flowed from one group to another, for the differences were only of degree. On the definition of fundamental issues, there was near accord between the 'liberals' and the socialists-communists. That is, the major segments of Russell's 'political' audience (those interested in his ideas on social reconstruction) were each an assortment of 'progressives' in their attitudes toward change and development, even if later some 'socialists' were to be denounced as 'neo-conservatives'. They wanted to break with the past and 'progress' in a new direction. And both groups were preeminently nationalists, so that in spite of ideological differences, they agreed that China's major problems were economic backwardness, political disunity, and bad government. Still, the ideological perspective became important when each group inquired into the best methods for confronting these problems. Chinese intellectuals became more receptive to leftist views, including not only Marxism but also guild socialism, syndicalism, and anarchism. Since Russell was known to have spoken on all three ideas, was believed to have been an ardent guild socialist before his arrival in China, his trip generated enthusiasm not only among the 'liberals' who associated him with progressive individualist and libertarian values, but also among the various leftist groups. The Chinese also admired many of Russell's personal qualities : his near-heroic pacifism, his independence of thought and action, his advocacy of the ideal of world unity and his defiance of authority. The last trait was thoroughly compatible with the general Chinese new culture ideal of defiance. Russell came to China with a view to discovering what China's problems were ; but he also came with many preconceptions of what the best solutions would be. Throughout his life, Russell held two general convictions. The first was that political and economic problems could be solved by choosing and effecting the right economic system and the right political values. The second was that the right solutions would involve fundamental change which would be revolutionary unless action was taken to ensure an evolutionary path. A brief exposure to China's conditions convinced him that although his social ideas were correct in theory, they were inapplicable to China. Once in China, he talked, observed, argued and learned, so that his judgments changed as his information and understanding increased. Having visited Bolshevik Russia immediately prior to his trip to China, Russell was eager to expound on the evils of Bolshevism, but to separate this issue from socialism as a value construct. Russell and the Chinese began with different hopes and drew different conclusions from viewing the consequences of the Bolshevik Revolution. The question of revolution's 'humanity' was not a luxury in which the Chinese felt they could indulge. For Russell it became the key issue. What the Chinese socialists saw in the Russian Revolution was the existential possibility of complete and rapid change. Russell saw no need to wonder that revolution could occur. So he approached it instead from the perspective of morality : the Bolshevik method of industrialization exploited the worker. This increased Russell's skepticism about socialism as a method of industrializing. While Russell endorsed socialism as 'necessary to the world', his concern for morality caused him to condemn Bolshevik methods of establishing it. Russell recommended a form of state socialism for China, a system about which he was alternately cynical, hopeful, dubious, critical, and enthusiastic. Instead of a Western-style democracy or a Soviet-style socialism, Russell suggested that China had first to experience a government 'analogous to', but not the same as, the dictatorship of the Communist Party in the Soviet Union. This analogous form of dictatorship, carried out by '10,000 resolute men' would presumably educate the people to recognize the incompatibility between capitalism and democracy, would carry out 'non-capitalistic' industrialization, and would re-invest profits for the benefit of the people. Russell's vision of the best form of government for China presupposed political reform, but reform was the prerequisite for economic reform : the Chinese had to establish a unified, strong, and honest state capable of governing China before they nationalized, permitting the right people to control the socialist economy. Russell's views on the role of socialism in industrialization provoked much controversy among China's intelligentsia, which was already debating these questions in 1920-21. Russell asserted that education had to precede socialism in China : power without wisdom was dangerous, as Bolshevik Russia demonstrated. Industrialization would provide the resources for mass education, and education would reveal the incompatibility between capitalism and democracy. If the capitalists kept control, they could preempt discussion of individual freedom, so that the people's awareness of the incompatibility between democracy and capitalism would have no active implications. The only solution then, said Russell, would be revolution. He counseled against foreign control of Chinese education which in the past had made Chinese students 'slavish toward Western education'. China should not depend, for leadership, on 'returned students' who would adopt many foreign perspectives. Finally, Chinese education should preserve the 'courtesy, the candor and the pacific temper' which are characteristic of the Chinese nation, together with a knowledge of Western science and its application to the practical problems of China. Russell's advice to continue the good aspects of Chinese education and culture, but to adopt Western science was difficult to implement, since Western science brought with it values not wholly compatible with traditional Chinese values. The events of the May fourth period indicated that, with China under militarist control, education remained nearly inseparable from politics. References to Russell's observations, long after his departure from China, are remarkable for two reasons. First, they indicate that while the major periodicals did not continue to publish articles on Russell's social and political ideas, people did continue to think about Russell and to read his books and articles. Second, it is what Russell said about the Chinese people that is remembered by the Chinese, not his solutions or proposals for action to reconstruct China. It was Russell as a traveler and an observer, someone who could, in the Chinese view, convey an accurate 8impression of China to the outside world, that left a lasting impression on the Chinese. 1987 Kuo Heng-yü : Bertrand Russell hält in China Vorlesungen über seine Philosophie, sowie Reden zu Theorie und Praxis des Bolschewismus und Chinas Weg zur Freiheit. Da er weltweit als Philosoph und Pazifist im Kampf gegen den Weltkrieg bekannt war, wurde er anfangs von fortschrittlichen Intellektuellen sehr begrüsst. Er gibt China den Rat, durch die 'Entwicklung des Erziehungswesens' das Bildungsniveau des Volkes zu heben und erst dann den Sozialismus zu praktizieren : "Hätte man diesen Stand nicht erreicht, und wollte dennoch den Sozialismus einführen, würde die Durchführung des Sozialismus und Kommunismus unvermeidlich scheitern". Zhang Dongsun nahm diese Worte zum Anlass und meinte, die dringendste Aufgabe Chinas läge darin, die Industrie aufzubauen und den Kapitalismus zu entwickeln, statt den Sozialismus zu propagieren und eine sozialistische Bewegung zu organisieren. Er schreibt : "Was den Bolschewismus betrifft, so fürchten wir nicht, dass er nicht verwirklicht wird, sondern dass er zu früh verwirklicht wird, so wie auch Russell es feststellte". 1994 Raoul Findeisen : The interest in Russell and his work had begun in China some time before the May fourth demonstrations and had risen to such an extent that Russell, upon his arrival in Shanghai Oct. 12 1920, was even celebrated as 'Confucius II'. There were many reasons for such an enthusiastic response, not least of course mutual sympathies. These sympathies had a solid basis : As many of the May fourth intellectuals, Russell had been much attracted by the foundation of the Soviet state in which he first saw, as the Chinese did, the 'utopia' of social equality and democracy realized. On the other hand, Russell's 'will of a system of philosophy' that would re-establish philosophy as a science of sciences fitted in perfectly well with the aim of Chinese students to acquire Western scientific methods. Highlight of this systematic effort are the Principia mathematica (1910-1913) and proposing formal logics as starting point for such a role of philosophy. The shock of World War I had also some similarities on boeth sides, with and Chinese and with Russell, and it was commonly known in China that Russell's pacifist activities had brought him to jail. Furthermore Russell's ethical commitment had certain common traits with the sill effective traditional Chinese image of the 'literatus' and civil servant. Finally Russell's rhetorical and didactic abilities perhaps made him more suitable than any other Western philosopher to quench the Chinese thirst for 'yang xue'. Especially the young generation of May fourth activists, who were interested in formal and logical problems of philosophy. They believed that a more systematic approach, to Western ideas as well as to their own tradition, would make their fight against traditional beliefs more effective and turn philosophy to practice. 2007 Ding Zijiang : Russell's contributions to philosophy were not accepted by Chinese inellectuals because his methods were too technical, too trivial, and totally different from traditional Chinese patterns of thinking. Russell's educational philosophy was not very influential in China. His 'school' is similar to the traditional Chinese private school. It even mimics the Confucian educational 'mode', which also includes a country estate for its setting, a modest tutorial staff, some servants, and a small group of students whose parents supported the project, where a demonstration of the application of Confucian theory could be carried on. There are three basic distinctions between Russell's school and a Confucian schools : (1) while the former emphasized freethinking, the latter did not ; (2) while the former had no discipline and penalty, the latter did ; and (3) while the former approved liberal sexual education, the latter did not. For Chinese new educators, the most important task was to save and reconstruct China through science, technology, industrialization, and democracy. They wanted to extend and develop a 'popular education' rather than an aristocratic education. For most of them, the urgent task was to enable their motherland to eliminate poverty, weakness, and backwardness. Therefore, for both Nationalists and Communists, nationalism and patriotism are more important than individualism and liberalism. For many Chinese intellectuals, Russell was a very enthusiastic and revolutionary social transformer. In his lecture at Beijing University, he treated himself as a Communist and stated that there would be real happiness and enjoyment after the realization of Communism. He said that he believed in many social claims made by Marxism. Later, different schools of Chinese intellectuals wanted to ask Russell to join their own 'fronts' or interpreted his theories to suit their own needs and images. The moderate reformers hoped that he would be a moderate reformer ; the anarchists hoped that he would be an anarchist ; the communists hoped that he would be a communist. |
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| 5 | 1920 |
Aufführung 16. und 17. Okt. 1920 von Mrs. Warren's profession = Hualun fu ren zhi zhi ye von George Bernard Shaw im Xin Wu Tai Theatre (New Shanghai Theatre) unter der Regie von Wang Chongxian ; Wang als Vivie, mit den Schauspielern Xia Yueren, Xia Yuesan und Zhou Fengwen in Mandarin Chinese. Advertisements in Shen bao : 14., 16., 17. Okt. 1920. Other advertisements in Xin wen bao, Shi shi xin bao, Xin shen bao, Min guo re bao. "The first Western play on the Chinese stage : is Mrs. Warren's profession ; is the most famous play in the new century ; is the play that must be watched by women worldwide." Unique in the newspaper advertisements for Shaw's play is, that two advertisements for Mrs. Warrens profession were placed on the same page, nearly side by side. Shaw first came to the attention of progressive Chinese intellectuals at a time when the general desire for social and cultural reforms was strong. Drama was recognized as an effective medium for disseminating new ideas and for mobilizing people in their efforts to reform backward traditions. Dramatists like Henrik Ibsen and Shaw were greatly admired for their unconventional views and iconoclastic spirit. Mrs. Warren's profession was to prove an extraordinary event in the world of Chinese drama. Virtually all the participants were important figures in the dramatic profession, and all were enthusiastic advocates of the New Drama. Wang Chongxian was known as a staunch drama reformer who had started experimenting with the civilized New Drama. The opening night for the production was set for a Saturday. When the curtain fell, three-quarters of the audience was gone. The second night was no better. Analyzing the causes of this failure, Wang Chongxian noted that the main factors were the audience, the players, and the media. First, the audience had been ill-prepared for such a play and had difficulty understanding it because the audience had no generic context within which to situate the play. Some members of the audience were unable to understand Shaw's play at all ; others could understand a little, but not enough to sustain their interest ; and the rest could follow the plot but had trouble finding any real meaning in the play. Second, the players, being new to an authentic Western play and not having been trained in a realistic tradition of acting, did a poor job. Third, the media were unsupportive. Most of the papers honored the occasion by ignoring the play altogether, and only a few carried review consisting the superficial flattering comments. "This was our first experiment, but we picked too difficult a play with which to challenge the audience ; and they afterwards complained about their inability to understand it. We have ourselves to blame." In traditional Chinese drama, the audience at least had a visual spectacle to watch and music and singing to. Song Chunfang complained "there are only six people in the play who engage in mundane conversation for four and a half hours. At the beginning of the play, Vivie and Praed talk trivially for nearly 30 minutes. In the third scene, Mrs. Warren and Vivie talk for an hour." Wang Chongxian summarized the lessons he learned from the production of Mrs. Warren's profession : "Our future principle should be : we cannot always cater to the expectations of the general populace, nor can we cater to the needs of the highly-educated few. Instead, we must select simple, new ideas and weave them into an interesting and entertaining plot ; in this way we will produce a play which the audience find so engaging that they will want to see it from the beginning to the end." After his failed production, Wang Chongxian concluded in Yu chuang zao xin ju zhu jun shang que, that borrowing famous Western plays is one of the methods to be used in China's transitional state, it should not represent the true spirit for the creation of plays. To find a place in world literature, Chinese plays needed different scriptwriting talents as well as several genres of drama that would be equal to or of higher value than Western plays. Kay Li : Ideology was a dominant issue in the introduction to China of Mrs. Warren's profession. The obvious reason for the choice of Mrs. Warren's profession is that these later plays of Shaw dealt more with individuals than with society, and Shaw's esoteric creed of the Life Force and Creative Evolution seemed more remote to the Chinese audience. The transmission of Shaw's first translated and published play to China was partial. The Chinese became more and more aware of the need to go beyond linguistic translation to a cultural translation in order to make Shaw's plays comprehensible to Chinese readers and audiences. Some aspects transcend cultural barriers more easily than others. Since content demands more cultural translation than form, genres such as the essay and discussion play were more readily received. These provided the tools for the young Chinese intellectuals to criticize society and propose changes to build a better society, whereas the cultural content of Mrs. Warren's profession remain4ed alien to Chinese sensibilities. The failure of the 1920 production had a far-reaching influence on modern Chinese drama. Wang Chongxian argued, that the performances drew attention to the need for new adaptations in Chinese drama to accommodate China's new sociocultural ideals and the needs of a Chinese audience. Wang Chongxian explained that the first Chinese production of Mrs. Warren's profession was the first encounter between purely realist Western drama and Chinese society and the first meeting between New Culture Drama and Chinese society. |
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| 6 | 1933 |
George Bernard Shaw's visit to China. Febr. 2th Yu, Dafu. Xiao Bona yu Gaoersihuasui. In : Shen bao ; 2 Febr. (1933). [Shaw and Galsworthy]. 萧伯纳与高尔斯华绥 Er schreibt : "While we are preparing for the warm welcome of the long-faced prophet Old Mr Shaw, unfortunately we heard about the death of last year's Nobel Prize winner Galsworthy. Shaw is 76, Galsworthy 65. Although comparatively he came from the upper class, we could not help respecting highly his attitude of speaking for humanity and criticizing society, even now when the time is different and the tides are changing rapidly. At first, Shaw seems to be speaking dead words flippantly. But when one closes his eyes and reconsiders, he will find immediately that all his roguish laughter and angry words are cardiac stimulants aiming at social disease." Kay Li : Yu went on to compare Shaw with Galsworthy, Galsworthy was regarded as a 'detail recorder of British upper class society'. The writer was respected in China because of his social criticism. The writer was respected in China because of his social criticism. Shaw was appreciated for humor and social criticism. Shaw also was associated with socialism. His visit to the U.S.S.R. and his meeting with Stalin were mentioned, quoting Shaw's words, "I studies Marx much earlier than Lenin". Notice from the editor : "The world-famous Irish humourist-satirist Mr Bernard Shaw will visit our country in the middle of next week. This section [of Shen bao] intends to have a 'special issue on Bernard Shaw' on the day when Shaw arrives at Shanghai. We welcome any contributions on the criticism, the life and works of Shaw. Please limit your article to 600 words." Febr. 10th Xuan. Xiao Bona fang wen Zhongguo. In : Shen bao ; 10 Febr. (1933). [Bernard Shaw's visit to China]. 萧伯纳访问中国 Er schreibt : "The British literary veteran Bernard Shaw will arrive at Shanghai shortly in his world tour. The Chinese literary field will not forget the war introduction of Shaw ten years ago in the May fourth movement. When Ibsen was mentioned, Shaw would be thought of. One would think about the problem raised in Mrs. Warren's profession – the controversies caused by capitalism, and the warm attention youths paid to this in the May fourth. Old Mr Shaw's works are anti-capitalistic. His style is humourous and satiric. Old Mr Shaw exposes the spokesman of imperialism's flattering whitewashing of modern warfare. Galsworthy's works superficially appear to show the controversy and rottenness of modern capitalist society, but basically he affirms and speaks for the present system. Those advancing toward brightness include Shaw in England. He indicts the atrocities of imperialism. At this time when there are dangerous fast-changing situations in the Pacific, when the imperialist powers are tightening preparations for a world war to divide China and to attack the U.S.S.R, we welcome Shaw's visit to China, and hope that he can take part in the investigating party organized by the International League against Imperialism, which will soon also come to China." Hong Kong Febr. 11th Shaw arrived in Hong Kong from Bombay, via Ceylon and Singapore on the Empress of Britain 11 Febr. (1933). Hong Kong Telegraph ; 11 Febr. (1933). Shaw arrives in Hong Kong. The visit got off to a good start with Shaw's refusing to speak to the Rotarians : he reasoned it to reporters who interviewed him on board the Empress of Britain : "I remember the beginning of Rotary. It was a movement to induce captains of industry to take their business more scientifically and to raise business men to the professional rank. Rotary Clubs are merely luncheon clubs, which as a general rule know as much about the aims and objects of Rotary as a luncheon of Church of England members knows about the 39 Articles." Febr. 13th South China Morning Post ; 13 Febr. (1933). "On Saturday there were only six reporters present when G.B.S. strolled in. We watched him anxiously, but our fears were groundless. G.B.S. was at peace with the world. 'Hello, only six of you ? Where's the rest ?' were his first remarks. Someone explained that all the Hong Kong newspapers were represented. In the afternoon a party on a ramble organized by the Sailors' and Soldiers' Home, in Wanchai, Having visited several old landmarks of the Colony in the Pokfulam neighbourhood, had the pleasure of seeing one of the worlds's landmarks, Mr Shaw, who was returning from a drive round the island under the guidance of Professor R.K. Simpson of Hong Kong University. Shaw about the Japanese invasion of Manchuria : 'Japan is going to take Manchuria. But hasn't she behaved very correctly over it all ? She pledged herself to the League of Nations that she would not declare war on anyone. Consequently she has not declared war on China, but has contented herself with fighting – all so legitimately. What does China expect the League to do ? An economic boycott ? But the League has funked the issues. And now it is gradually ceasing to exist. Japan has smashed the League, or, let me put it this way, Japan has called the League's bluff'. [The great] Powers want to come to some arrangement by which they can fight more cheaply. They hold meetings and say to each other 'if you disarm, we'll disarm', and the result is deadlock. The greatest satisfaction to us is that in the next war we will be knocked by a ten inch shell and not a sixteen inch shell." Febr. 13th Shaw accompanied by Professor R.K. Simpson, took 'tiffin' at the residence Idlewild of Sir Robert Ho Tung [Sir Robert Hotung Bosman (1862-1956) : Businessman, manager of the Chinese Department of Jardine, Matheson and Co.]. [Siehe Shaw 1946]. Febr. 14th South China Morning Post ; 14 Febr. (1933). Brilliant address George Bernard Shaw Breaks resolution Advises University students To be communists Education denounced. In the afternoon the Great Hall of the University of Hong Kong was packed with students and distinguished guests. When Mr Shaw was accompanied to the dais by the Vice-Chancellor, Sir William Hornell, there was a terrific out-burst of cheering. Sir William introduced Mr Shaw collectively and then individually to the visitors. The pair stopped before the Press representatives. "I have met them already", commented G.B.S. 'And this is Mr M.F. Key, formerly of the Press', said Wir William. "Yes", said Mr Key, "But now secretary of the Rotary Club. I want to tell you, Mr Shaw, that you were quite right in all you said about the Rotary Club the other day". Sir William interjected, "But Mr Shaw said that the Hong Kong Rotary Club was probably an exception". "I had to be polite" was the dry comment of the famous man. Shaw set about his audience with enthusiasm : "I am here as a guest of the University. I have a very strong opinion that every University on the face of the earth should be levelled to the ground and its foundations sowed with salt. There are really two dangerous classes in the world – the half-educated, who half-destroyed the world, and the wholly-educated who have very nearly completely destroyed the world. When I was young – an incalculable number of years ago – nobody knew anything about the old, old civilizations. We know a little about Greece and Rome and we knew that Rome somehow or other collapsed and was very ably replaced by ourselves. But we had no idea how many civilizations exactly like our own had existed. They almost all collapsed through education. "What are you going to do ?" "I don't know. You may say 'Shall I leave the University and go on the streets ?' Well, I don't know. There is something to be got from the University. You get a certain training in communal life which is very advantageous. If I had a son I should send him to the University and say 'Be careful not to let them put an artificial mind into you. As regards the books they want you to read, don't read them." (Applause). Professor Brown : "They never do". (Laughter). Shaw : "Well, that's very encouraging". This was the spirit of the assembly : laughter, applause, cheerful backtalk. "We like it" one student shouted out when Shaw asked if he should continue. "If your read, read real books and steep yourself in revolutionary books. Go up to your neck in Communism, because if you are not a red revolutionist at 20, you have some chance of being up-to-date at 40. So I can only say, go ahead in the direction I have indicated." (Prolonged applause). "The thing you have to remember is valuation. Remember all you have to forget or you will go mad. Keep and stick to your valuation. You may be wrong but you must make up your mind. Being human and fallible you may come to wrong opinions. But it is still more disastrous not to have opinions at all. I hope you are properly edified and will not regret having made me break my promise not to make a speech while in Hong Kong." Florence Chien : Shaw's speech to the students at Hong Kong University created a major stir which widened the gulf of antagonism between the Nationalist and the Communist factions, and also marked Shaw's stance against the reigning Nationalists. Since Shaw sided with the Communists, he was automatically regarded as the enemy of the reigning Nationalists. His safety in 133 was guaranteed by his nationality, but his activity was not to be publicized. The Hong Kong Telegraphy ; 14 Febr. (1933). Letter from Robert McWhirter. "Sir - Allow me to congratulate the Vice-Chancellor of the Hong Kong University on his enterprise in securing the attendance of Mr Shaw at a tea-party held there yesterday afternoon. Sir William Hornell's [Vice-Chancellor] distinguished supporters are also to be thanked, many of whom will no doubt treasure the newspaper account of the affair. Mr Shaw's student listeners had the treat of their lives. They, really, quite understood that the famous author was but talking with his tongue in his cheek. The Chinese have such a keen sense of Humour ! Seriously, I trust that all concerned in yesterday's farce now see their mistake. I can appreciate the misgivings of those responsible if a lesser light of theirs had raved half so rantingly in a lecture-room of our University. We can also realise how difficult it will be for those in authority to deal with any mild outbreak of 'Bolshevism' which may occur at our principal seat of learning. After the wise counsel given yesterday, I can, in addition, appreciate the confusion in the minds of students when next they hear that one [of] their countrymen has been gaoled for preaching 'revolution' in our streets." Febr. 15th The Empress of Britain pulled out of Hong Kong harbour. Febr. 16th South China Moring Post ; 16 Febr. (1933). "Reactions to Mr G.B. Shaw's visit are mixed. His ardent admirers stand staunchly by him and dilate upon the brilliance of his utterances, while the mischievous chuckle to see the pained expressions on the faces of the eminently proper. Outrageous ! The average person, perhaps, has been surfeited and, not a few disappointed, having in their dullness expected something far better from the oracle. In fairness, it must be said, however, that no criticism attaches to Mr Shaw. He was on holiday and with no desire to speak or to be interviewed. Having been pestered, he responded naturally and with Shavian malice aforethought, setting himself out to be deliberately outrageous, by way of reprisal and as though to teach us that stringing plants and insects are best left alone. Exception has been taken to his remarks to the University students, and it is being said that no explaining may remove all of the harm that may have done thereby. Nevertheless the position remains that upon his hosts falls the responsibility of justifying Mr Shaw's irresponsibility. Himself would offer no apology : and his disciples deny that his satires can have been misunderstood, or, in any event, that any harm can come from candour. The discussion thus ends in impasse or else is ruled out as unnecessary and the episode to be forgotten. There is only one Shaw, and that he should grace Hong Kong but once in his lifetime is an historical event, to be appreciated in all humility. In comparison, what matters ? If in fact the Shavianism has been overdone, having acquitted Shaw of blame it can only be pleaded that seldom does a fish worth baiting come this way. As we are, Shaw has come and Shaw has gone ; and so back into our narrow beds creep and let no more be said." "Actually Shaw himself is an example of the tragedy of a mind undisciplined by a University education. Nobody can deny his genius ; everybody is made to laugh by his humour ; but on reflection anyone might also weep that such a genius has done so little, if any, constructive work. Few people in Britain take Shaw's social or political views seriously and it is unfortunate that any of the British in Hong Kong should have done so." P.H. Larkin : "You have absolutely spoilt him ! You have credited him with a power greater than the Creator ! You have placed him on a pedestal so high that he fears to fall, lest his fall would be disastrous ;hence his attempt to justify his omnipotence by clinging fast to the top, daring not to look down on the ground from his dizzy height ! And what do we, mere men in the street, get from this man-made god ? Trash ! Absolutely undiluted trash ! Shaw is first and last an egoist, and the way he babbled about the affairs of the world as if he knew all, excaping nothing, plainly shows this self-patting of him. For the love of Mike give us less of Shaw and more of the saner men !" The North China Herold ; 16 Febr. (1933). Mr Shaw greeted the correspondents with the words : "You do not look very much like Chinese" and expressed surprise at the entire lack of Chinese pressmen. "Where are the Chinese", he asked with his usual genial impertinence. "Are they so primitive that they have not heard of me ?" South China Morning Post ; 18 Febr. (1933). "In the welter of correspondence on G.B.S's famous lecture, it appears to me that the most of your correspondents, Shavian and anti-Shavian alike, ignore the main point. I mean the effect that such an open support of Communism will have on the lower social strata of our Colony. I know nothing of the student body of the University, but am willing to take it as read, that they will be able to place such advice in its proper perspective. I take it that representatives of the Chinese press were in attendance at the lecture, and I would like to know how it appeared in their papers, and what the average Chinese would make of it." Shanghai The Empress of Britain left Hong Kong on 15 Febr. (1933) and arrived in Shanghai 17 Febr. (1933). Febr. 17th Song Qingling met the Empress of Britian at 6.45 in the morning and had breakfast with the Shaws. [Einige Leute behaupten, dass er im Hotel Cathay (heute Peace Hotel) Shanghai abgestiegen ist. Er wird auch auf der Gäste-Liste des Astor House Hotel aufgeführt. Er war aber nie in einem Hotel, er war 10 Std. tagsüber in Shanghai und ging abends auf sein Schiff Empress of Britain zurück.] Among the some four hundred people present were Hong Shen, representing the China Film and Culture Society, Ying Yunwei, representing the Xi ju xie she (Joint Drama Society), The Shanghai Students Drama Society and others. The students made a speech welcoming Shaw to China. The banners held by the people at the pier showed their attempt to construct Shaw as a sympathizer of Chinese nationalism. Among the slogans chanted were : "Welcome, Bernard Shaw the revolutionary artist. Welcome, Bernard Shaw the dramatist. Welcome, Bernard Shaw the god of peace. Welcome, Bernard Shaw who is sympathetic to the integrity of the Chinese territory. Welcome, Bernard Shaw who is sympathetic to the independence and liberation of China. Welcome, Shaw the vanguard of anti-imperialism. Welcome, Shaw who wants to overthrow imperialism. Welcome, Shaw who wants to oppose the Japanese invasion of North East China. Welcome, Shaw who is against the Second world war. Welcome, Shaw who does not want to be left behind." The crowd waited. Four hours later, the marine police informed the exhausted fans that Shaw had landed elsewhere. 12.00 Song Qingling gave a dinner at her home Rue Molière 29 in honour of George Bernard Shaw, with Agnes Smedley, Lu Xun, Cai Yuanpei, Harold Isaacs, Lin Yutang, Yang Xinfo [(1893-1933) ermordet Shanghai) : Wissenschaftler, Aktivist, Dozent Southeast University]. On the afternoon Shaw met a dozen writers and news reporters representing different papers, including Japanese, English, Russian, and Chinese. Xiao Bona guo Hu tan hua ji. In : Lun yu ; vol. 1, no 13 (1933). [Bernard Shaw's conversations during his stopover in Shanghai]. Before he left Hong Kong, Shaw sent a cable to Song Qingling, informing her that he would pay her a visit. Song Qingling considering Shaw's age and the fact that this was his first trip to China, went all the way to meet him, accompanied by two friends. Shaw said he would have had no intention of leaving the ship when it arrived in Shanghai were it not for his wish to meet Madame Song. The trip from ship to Shanghai and back again lasted for four hours - time enough for "Shaw, the outspoken conversationalist, to comment on a wide range of topics wittily." The major concern was politics, specifically the example of Soviet Russia. In the rapporteurs words, "during the four hour conversation, Shaw never stopped discussing this." Alas, there was, moreover, the usual discourse on Stalin : What is freedom ? The British give the Indians a free trial by jury, in which the judge would go back on the verdict if the jury decided that the accused should be released, and send him to jail. This is the so-called free system of the British. And what about the freedom of speech in various countries ? Only a privileged few have the right to say a few words. The freedom of speech or democracy that is truly valuable should give to peasants and workers the freedom to cry aloud when they are hurt, and improve their conditions subsequently. This is the freedom that the Russians have. I paid close attention to Stalin. When we were talking to him, everyone thought that we had only talked for twenty-five minutes, but actually we had been talking for two and a half hours already. He seemed to pay little attention to theory. He is a practical man. He finds solutions to problems by experiments, and calls all successful projects Marxism. . . . He values the objective and not the theory. He may be unscrupulous in trying to reach his goal, but in the end, he manages to reach it. Shaw : The Peace Conference cannot stop the war, and neither can we end a war by starting another war. Only when all nations are determined to have peace can the war be ended. The people themselves do not want war. After the European War, all the nations that took part discovered that they were worse-off than before. Everyone was destroyed. Facts like these can make people weary of war. The League of Nations has a tool called the International Committee of Intellectual Cooperation. If all the Intellectuals in the world can make use of this tool, it may be more effective than forming another conference. Shaw : The Peace Conference cannot stop the war, and neither can we end a war by starting another war. Only when all nations are determined to have peace can the war be ended. The people themselves do not want war. After the European War, all the nations that took part discovered that they were worse-off than before. Everyone was destroyed. Facts like these can make people weary of war. The League of Nations has a tool called the International Committee of Intellectual Cooperation. If all the Intellectuals in the world can make use of this tool, it may be more effective than forming another conference. Madame Sun : . . . The only effective way to eliminate wars is to eliminate the system which gives rise to wars - the capitalist system. Shaw: But aren't we all capitalists? I admit that I am - to a certain degree. Aren't you ? Madame Sun: No. Not entirely. The subjects discussed at the luncheon party included vegetarianism, the Chinese family system, the war, drama taught in the British universities, and Chinese tea. Lin, Yutang. Tan Xiao Bona. In : Lun yu. [On Shaw]. 谈萧伯纳 Lin, Yutang recalls Shaw’s comments on war : "The English never quarreled with the Germans. When they met on the battlefield, they only took their knives and if one did not kill the other, the other would kill him. But the English hated the French, and the French hated the Americans. By the time the European war was over, the bad feeling among the Allies was high. We often talked about the courage of the warriors. But since the European war, bravery was a historical fact. In the war nobody tells about his courage, but just about his fear. Now the modern war was cruelest. I once heard a pro-war person talking about the good the war can do to the human character, for it encourages sacrifice, bravery, and fearlessness. I told them how to eliminate war. I said that we should abolish the military review that took place in autumn, for this did not kill, and will not raise one's character. Instead, those who are pro-war should go to the fields and kill one another. This will satisfy their barbaric cannibalism." Shaw meets Mei Lanfang Mei Shaowu [Son of Mei Lanfang] : Shaw asked my father "Why is Beijing opera so loud with all those gongs and drums ?". My father answered, "Chinese opera began as entertainment for the masses. They had to use gongs and drums to attract the audience". The North China Herald reports : [Shaw] : "Will you please tell me how a Chinese actor can do anything in the midst of such infernal uproar as one hears on your stage ? In our theatre, they put a man out if he sneezes. But you have gongs and symbals [sic] and the competition of half the audience and innumerable vendors. Don't you object ?" Mei Lanfang : "[The noisy drums and gongs were necessary] because the opera was a folk art first performed in the open air and the drums have been kept to this day". 14.00 George Bernard Shaw : "Speech at the Pen Club Shanghai". In : Xiao Bona zai Shanghai. [Shaw in Shanghai]. In : Shen bao ; 28 Febr. (1933). 萧伯纳在上海 "China and the East don't have much culture worth speaking of. Culture, by scientific definition, is all those human activities which enable human beings to control nature. In China, except for the little culture that can still be found in the farms, there isn't any culture to speak of. China is now importing from Western Europe, a lot of so-called 'cultural ideas' which have long ceased to be effective and have in fact had harmful effects on the people. What good will it do to bring this sort of Western culture to China ? When I was in Hong Kong, I urged the students to start revolutions. But please don't misunderstand ; I didn't ask them to go to the streets and fight the police. When the police come to suppress revolutionaries with their clubs, the safest way is to run. You should run as fast as you can to your head won't bleed. And you don't have to get into a confrontation with the police, for policemen are like the gun in a robber's hand ; of course you don't want to fight against the gun when you're robbed, nevertheless those with guns in their hands should still be beaten down. But this takes time and you cannot make it by sheer force. The international conditions of the Soviet Union both spiritually and materially are improving vastly these days. And this systematic improvement is not only to the best interests of the Russians alone. It serves as an example for all the other countries which should learn from her strong points and start imitating her. Socialism will surely be implemented in every country sooner or later. The means and process of the revolution may appear in different forms in each country, but as all roads lead to Rome so all countries will be on the same path and the same level in the end." At the Pen Club Shaw was presented with a box of miniature clay masks, like those used by the Bejing opera, and an embroidered ancient Chinese robe. 15.00 Press Conference at Song Qingling's house. Shen bao reports ; 18 Febr. (1933) : "Shaw criticizes Chinese culture. He said that China and the East did not have culture. This is because, scientifically speaking, culture refers to all human behavior that can increase human happiness, especially the control of nature. In China, apart from finding a little culture in the fields on the countryside, there is no culture. Nowadays, China adopts from the West a lot of 'culture' that is no longer effective, and is harming the people instead. For example, the parliament started when the English did not want a government, and made use of it to upset monarchical rule and church authority. Yet eventually it could not overturn the power of the capitalists, since it was fundamentally controlled by the capitalists. What good can this kind of so-called Western culture do for China ?" Bai, He. Xiao Bona fang wen Zhongguo. In : Shen bao ; 17 Febr. (1933). [Bernard Shaw's visit to China]. 萧伯纳访问中国 Er schreibt : "I remember old Mr Shaw having a very good impression after visiting the USSR. After his visit to India, he advocated that England should give up her sovereignty over India. This time, when he visits China, I think he will not have impressions of 'pigtails' and 'foot binding'. What does he think about Hong Kong under British rule ?" Miao, Shen. You mo yu feng ci. In : Shen bao ; 17 Febr. (1933). [Humorous and satiric writing] 幽默与讽刺 Er schreibt : "In an oppressive serious situation, one cannot frankly scold the pains one is suffering, nor can one be warned kindly. Consequently, one has endless grievances and worries. At this time, if we have the power to make humorous and satiric discussion, one can attack by innuendo, tactfully using humorous words to present reality satirically. This is the so-called 'the art of scolding people'." "At the time of serious national calamity, the people are numb, the government officials are at ease. We can think about the tragedy of a dying nation. Of course we hope that, on one hand, we can have loud, deafening, fervent words of warning. On the other hand, we need many humorous and satiric words in order to wake up and strengthen our hearts. Therefore I hope that all kinds of publications can bear this mission, and publish more literary works on the difficulties of people's livelihoods. Works making the youth's body and mind drunk should be published less. At this time when we are standing together through thick and thin, we should save and arouse in many ways." Juan, Yun. Xiao xian sheng yu Xiao tai tai. In : Shen bao ; 17 Febr. (1933). [Mr and Mrs Shaw]. 萧先生与萧太太 Er schreibt : "Since the Indian poet Tagore's visit to China, the visit of the world-famous personages making the Easterners drunk with respect was not realized until the coming of Bernard Shaw. Shaw became one of the then most famous people in the world." Yu, Dafu. Jie shao Xiao Bona. In : Shen bao ; 17 Febr. (1933). [Introducing Shaw]. 介绍萧伯纳 Er schreibt : "We hope that Shaw will make use of his humor to go to the countries of the world, and tell them about our government's humor toward Japanese imperialistic invasion, and the League of Nation's humor toward this event." Zheng, Baiji. [Shaw is welcome to listen to the sounds of the cannons]. In : Shen bao ; 17 Febr. (1933). Er schreibt : "Bernard Shaw comes to China. This great satirist of the world is coming to China. The large-scale Japanese invasion triggers the world war and is the prelude to the world revolution. If Shaw uses his astute mind and analyses these cannon sounds clearly, just as he analyses the human relationships in his plays, he may give a good report to the masses of the world." 18.00 Shaw returns to the Empress of Britain. Febr. 18th The interview of 17th was reported in different papers, each had its own version. Zi lin xi bao, an English paper, reported Shaw's response to a question about the Chinese government : "They [the oppressed people] should rely on themselves. China should do the same. The Chinese people should organize themselves and choose for their ruler their favourite man, not an actor nor a feudal lord". Da lu bao, a conservative, semi-government Chinese paper in English language reported : "Even a good ruler can hardly ever establish a good reputation among the people, because in nine out of ten cases a leader is not a good actor, and he does not know how to please his people". Mei re xing wen, published in Japanese, reported it with even greater variation : "What is your view on the Chinese government ?" Shaw replied "In China, as I know, there are several governments. Which one are you referring to ?" The Shanghai daily, published in Japanese, reported Shaw as attacking both Communism and the United States, an anti-Communist nation, saying : "The anti-Communist movement waged by various countries going against Communism. It is also an oppressive country with no freedom for its people. While in China, Communism seems to have been misunderstood. Those so-called Communists who raid and suppress people are nothing but bandits". Lu Xun said about the event : "The reporters, who had all gathered at the same place, at the same time, and heard the same words, came up with disparate stories. It seemed that the same English words manifested themselves differently in different ears. In this case, we can see that Shaw is not a satirist, but a reflective mirror". Fei, Ming. Tan Xiao Bona. In : Shen bao ; 18 Febr. (1933). [On Shaw]. 谈萧伯纳 Er schreibt : "Shaw and Galsworthy are most famous among the world's great writers China is familiar with, whose names are translated into Chinese. This great writer [Shaw] is a satirist with a strong Chines flavour. Apart from accent, costume, and eating habits, his speech and actions do not look like a mechanical European, but like a comical Easterner." Xuan. Tan Xiao Bona. In : Shen bao ; 18 Febr. (1933). [On Shaw]. 谈萧伯纳 Er schreibt : "Shaw's major works reveal the fallacies of man's traditional beliefs, which reminds one of how Shaw was used as an iconoclast against tradition in 1919 in the May fourth movement." Yang, Xingzhi. Hallo Shaw. In : Shen bao ; 18 Febr. (1933). Er schreibt : Dear Shaw, why do you come to Shanghai? To visit us slaves of colonialism? To salute the British flag at the Whampao River? To listen to the cannons of the Japanese? To praise our nonresistance philosophy? But I tell you: Shanghai is not London, New York or Paris, Nor is it a red city like Leningrad. The British, American, Japanese, French flags fly proudly in the sky, Clearly saying that China is only a colony. The black smoke of the warships in the Whampao River, The coolies at the Whampao River are panting rapidly for breath, The blood and flesh of the weak are supporting the authority of the strong, Shanghai is this colonial city. Do you feel that this is a tragedy? I tell you also: Your words in Hong Kong are preposterous! Youths listening to it will pull their tongues, Old people hearing will say "fart." Maybe some will even be rude to you, Don't say anything foolish when you arrive at Shanghai, This is because we do not know humor, And you cannot say anything you like, We warn you to keep your mouth shut here, Actually there is no need to tell nonsense. But, when you return, Bring good tidings! You only have to say: China will be saved, The Whampao River will rise one day, And wash the darkness and authority of the land! Febr. 19th Zhang Menglin. Shuo zhen hua. In : Shen bao ; 19 Febr. (1933). [Telling the truth]. 说真话 Er schreibt : "People can only follow their instincts. When you instinctively feel that this action is not right, you will think of ways to change. If you cover reality with words, you cannot change for the rest of your life. You cannot evolve to a higher creature. Then, creatures higher than you (what old Mr Shaw calls the Superman) will appear, and treat you as you would treat a monkey." Febr. 20th [Shaw, George Bernard. Speech at the Beijing Hotel in Beijing]. In : Shen bao ; 20 Febr. (1933). "I came to Beijing for sightseeing and to visit the world-famous old capital. I do not have any responsibility or mission. The newspaper said that the Sino-Japanese problem is serious, and that Jehol was especially tense. In the future, Beijing and Tientsin may be included in the dangerous zones. I have come to tour China at a time when the situation is serious. This seems to be different from Europeans coming to China under normal conditions. Beijing is a rich and grand old capital. If people of the world cannot forget China, they cannot forget Beijing. The Japanese immigrants are preparing to return to their country, as the catastrophe is coming. The rich Chinese also moving south, as if Beijing could be abandoned. The property of the rich cannot be damaged. I do not understand : is the price of the property of the rich higher than Beijing ? The antiques of the Forbidden City are being moved south, and this move adds another new leaf in the cultural history of Beijing, as if the antique were more important than the lives of a few million of Beijing's citizens. If we tour Italy, the antiques from the ancient Roman Empire are still there. These were not moved in spite of the wars in Italy. The Chinese love peace, and the Japanese also claim to be peace-loving. But the peace of the Japanese is the peace that follows war. The peace of the Chinese is the peace of peace. The Japanese told the League of Nations that they have the duty to protect Manchukuo, and claim that they invade Jehol to protect Manchukuo. They invade in the name of protection and claim that their actions are undertaken in self-defense. China has adopted the policy of nonresistance. I feel that the policy of nonresistance no longer applies. It changes to resistance, and China thinks that resistance no longer applies. It changes to resistance, and China thinks that resistance means self-defense. I do not know when the self-defense of China and Japan will end. Some Chinese youths are interested in communism. Although the government has repeated injunctions, the students are still studying. Communism is a political problem. At first it was an economic problem. Communism is still a problem deserving study. The absolute communism first adopted by the USSR has failed, so that the country turned to th4e New Economic Policy and implemented the five-year plans. Now this plan is successful. It is not easy to spread communism in China, and China does not have big capitalists. The labor-capital relations problem is not studied academically in China. Therefore I cannot say whether people to learn the Three People's Principles as good students. Therefore whether a discipline is right or not is determined by time. A am touring China because I believe the historic sites to be unique, and to have great value in cultural history." Beijing Shaw left Shanghai on 20 Febr. at 7.00 and arrived at Beijing via Chinwangtao at 18.40 on 20 Febr. Febr. 21th Press conference by Shaw in the Beijing Hotel, at which he commented on various subjects, from war to cheap labor, from communism to language. The educational institutions and literary circles in Beijing decided not to give Shaw an official reception. Hu Shi announced diplomatically before Shaw's arrival that "the most respectful form of welcome to a special guest like Shaw is to leave him alone ; let him move about freely, meet whomever he wants to meet and see whatever he wants to see". The Great Wall. On her recovery, Shaw insisted that Charlotte Shaw should go with him to see the Great Wall of China. The best way to see it, he decided, would be from an airplane which would reveal the vast expanse of the wall. The plane was one of the early biplanes, their seats were open to the sky. As the plane flew low over the Great Wall, Shaw was horrified to see a fierce battle in progress just below them between the Chinese Army and a horde of armed Japanese. Shaw frenziedly jabbed the shoulder of the pilot in front. "Turn back ! Turn back !" he shouted. "I don't like wars. I don't want to look at this". Apparently they flew back to Beijing in silence. George Bernard Shaw to Hesketh Pearson : "Did you see the Great Wall in China ?" "I flew over it in an aeroplane." "Interesting ?" "As interesting as a wall can be." Febr. 25th Yu, Dafu. [Literary and military lessons]. In : Shen bao ; 25 Febr. (1933). The literary lesson is from the glib Old Mr. Bernard Shaw. He told reporters in Beijing : "The Chinese have a strange character. They are inconceivably polite and friendly toward the foreigners. But among themselves they are so impolite and always fighting one another". He also said that the Great Wall was like a common low wall. Leaving China, Shaw went on to Beppu, Japan, arriving there on Febr. 28 (1933). |
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| 7 | 1956 |
100jähriges Jubiläum zum Geburtstag von George Bernard Shaw in China. The apple cart (act II), Mrs. Warren's profession (acts II-III) were performed by students from the Beijing Cinema Actors's Troupe and the Central Academy of Dramatic Art. Wendi Chen : The cultural bureaucracy orchestrated a variety of activities : conferences, performances, special exhibitions and publication of his translated work. It was not so much Shaw the Western dramatist, but Shaw the socialist who was being feted. Shaw was conveniently employed by the Chinese cultural authorities to serve several related purposes : 1) to propagandize the superiority of socialism over capitalism during the Cold War ; 2) to promote the Hundred flower campaign ; 3) to provide an example for Chinese writers with bourgeois backgrounds ; 4) to assist Chinese cultural authorities in creating a favorable international image of China by extending China's literary repertoire beyond Soviet literature. The major official event took place on the evening of 26 July 1956 in the ballroom at the Beijing Hotel, where more than one thousand people assembled for official speeches and performances. Many distinguished political leaders, as well as writers, artists, and foreign diplomats, were present. Other activities included a conference sponsored by the Beijing Library and the Beijing Working People's Cultural Palace. The Beijing Library also staged a special exhibition, displaying photos, books, and essays written by and about Shaw and Ibsen. A number of literary magazines, journals and newspapers published essays on Shaw and his works. In Shanghai, Tianjin and Shenyang similar activities took place. Guest speakers were Lennox Robinson, director of the Irish National Theatre, Rubeigh James Minney, British author and Gerda Ring, director of the National Theatre Oslo. The group included the Chinese writers Mao Dun, Chen Zhenduo, Tian Han, Xia Yan, Ouyang Yuqian and Mei Lanfang. After the celebrations, the Chinese People's Association for Cultural Relations with Foreign Countries prepared items for sale, as advertised in the Shavian : Selected works of George Bernard Shaw in Chinese translation (Mrs. Warren's profession, The apple cart, Major Barbara) ; Program of the 1956 commemoration of ibsen and Shaw in Chinese, English and Russian, including the speeches by Lennox Robinson and Rubeigh J. Minney ; Postcards commemorating world cultural figures, including Shaw, Mozart, Ibsen, Franklin. Rubeigh J. Minney : The scene from The apple cart in which the American ambassador tells King Magnus of England, that his country wished to return to the English fold. The thought delighted them. The play had not yet been translated into Chinese, but although they had less than a week for making the translation and for rehearsals, it was adopted and the members of the Peking Cinema Actors Troupe were word perfect on the night of the performance. The preparation of these scenes involved us in many discussions. As early as eight o'clock in the morning our rooms were invaded by actors, actresses or producers. We were asked innumerable questions about the meaning of words, the sort of action most suited to the characters, the subtlety of Western gestures, and so on. They took infinite pains. They were striving for perfection, and for the most part they attained it. The Chinese girl who played the Queen was young and pretty and in her Western clothes and make-up could have passed for English. Her role did not demand much of her ; in that scene she had just to sit and listen, but she used her feather fan most expressively, opening it and shutting it to indicate her reactions to what was being said by the King and the Ambassador. [The Chinese's acquaintance with Shaw's plays] was confined almost entirely to Mrs. Warren's profession. We tried to veer them off this. I said : "There are a great many other plays which you ought to look at – if you have Chinese translations of them. Mrs. Warren's profession is about a woman who owned a number of brothels. You have, we understand, abolished all brothels. That is a closed chapter now in the life of the people of China." But, no matter what arguments we advanced, back they came to Mrs. Warren. We learned at last that their attachments to this play was because of the struggle in it of Mrs. Warren's daughter Vivie to win her freedom from social and domestic domination. This play was being acted by various groups of amateurs and others all over China and it had accordingly the advantage that the artists already knew it. |
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| 8 | 1956 | Aufführung von Arms and the man von George Bernard Shaw unter der Regie von Wang Zuoling mit Wang Denni als Raina und Shi Hui als Bluntschli in Shanghai. Aufführung in westlichen Kleidern und Verhalten. | |
| 9 | 1978-1983 |
Miller, Arthur. Death of a salesman in China 1983 Aufführung von Death of a salesman von Arthur Miller im Beijing People's Art Theatre unter der Übersetzung von Ying Ruocheng, unter der Regie von Arthur Miller ; mit Ying Ruocheng als Willy Loman, Zhu Xu als Charley und Zhu Lin als Linda. 1978 On the trip to China 1978, Arthur Miller met many luminaries in Chinese theater, including Cao Yu, Ying Ruocheng, actor-director Jin Shan, and director Huang Zuolin. 1980 The idea for this unique collaborative venture grew out of a conversation between Arthur Miller, Center director Chou Wen-chung, Chinese playright Cao Yu, and Ying Ruocheng, when Cao and Ying visited New York in 1980 as guests of the Center. Ying, China's leading actor, played Willy Loman in the production. He visited the United States for four months in the fall of 1982 as Edgar Snow, Visiting Professor of Theater at the University of Missouri at Kansas City, began to prepare a new translation of the script. The Center sent to Beijing set designs and photographs of previous productions, tapes of the incidental music, and stage props unavailable in China—such as a football, helmet, and shoulder pads. Miller eagerly anticipated the experience of directing his prize-winning 1949 play with an all-Chinese cast and crew. "Believe it or not," he told the Center before he flew to Beijing, this is the first time I'll be fully involved in directing 'Salesman' in any language. It is going to be a fascinating anthropological experience…a real challenge." 1983 The production was made possible by the Chinese Theatre Association and the U.S.-China Arts Exchange. To celebrate the opening of the play, the Center organized a special tour of China for a delegation of artists and art patrons. The Center also arranged for correspondent Bill Moyers and a CBS television news team to film final rehearsals and cover the premiere. Miller kept a journal during his six-week stay in China. The production, co-sponsored by the Center and the Chinese Theater Association, was hailed in the Chinese press as "the most significant cultural event in China since the Cultural Revolution." Performed in Chinese, it spawned an explosive growth in contemporary vernacular theater. The recognition awarded Arthur Miller in turn stimulated a renewal in his career. April 6 "Xinhua has published a narrow description of the play as a condemnation of monopoly capitalism, period. But the actors and others around the theatre seem totally undisturbed, dismussing this as inevitable and as something nobody reads but foreigners and newspapermen... Ying Ruocheng is trying to sell it to the reporters and politicos, I think, in order to keep it from becoming a political bone of contention." May 7. The opening. "But whatever my owen reaction, the audience's is passionate. At the end they would never stop applauding. Nobody left. When he was taking his bows, I thought I saw a dremendously serious victory in the look of Yang Ruocheng's face. The gamble has paid off, the Chinese audience has understood Salesman and was shwoing its pride in the company." |
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| 10 | 1979 | Aufführung von Saint Joan von George Bernard Shaw im Hong Kong Repertory Theatre unter der Regie von James Mark. | |
| 11 | 1988 | Aufführung von The caine mutiny court-martial von Herman Wouk im Beijing People's Art Theatre, in der Übersetzung von Ying Ruocheng unter der Regie von Charlton Heston. | |
| 12 | 1988 | Film : The greatest lover = Gong zi duo qing in Hong Kong. Adaptation von Pygmalion von George Bernard Shaw unter der Regie von Clarence Ford, mit Chow Yun Fat und Anita Mui Yim Fong. |
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| 13 | 1991 |
Aufführung von Major Barbara von George Bernard Shaw im Beijing People's Art Theater in der Übersetzung und unter der Regie von Ying Ruocheng ; mit Zhu Lin als Lady Britomart, Song Dandan als Major Barbara, Zhu Xu als Andrew Undershaft und Ren Baoxian als Cusins. Wang Zuoliang schreibt eine Review in der Ren min ri bao ; June 20 (1991) : "What Shaw is saying in the play is in Western society, the capitalist rule everything. In order to show this through characterization and setting, he makes use of all his linguistic powers. The Beijing People's Art Theatre Troupe has this ability. They are nurtured by the spoken scenes in traditional Chinese opera, and trained by the Beijing People's Art Theatre Troupe's habit of paying attention to tone. Even the Chinese old poems also nurtured them. The attempt to perform various kinds of foreign plays in these years has expanded their experience. Therefore when the play began, the refined and yet authoritative expressions of Lady Britomart, played by Zhu Lin, aroused our expectations. When Undershaft, played by Zhu Xu, enters, faced by his wife who is difficult to deal with and his children, he courteously and vigilantly wards off their criticism and refuses their demands." Shen Huihui schreibt eine Review in der Guang ming ri bao ; June 15 (1991) : "Major Barbara was first performed in 1906. Bernard Shaw stepped out bravely, crying out to stop the imperialist war. He was not afraid of being misunderstood or ciricized. Using his deep thinking, he foresaw that imperialism and capitalism would make use of war to lead mankind into a darker abyss. In Major Barbara, he satirically reveals the real purposes of the conspiracy between politics and religion, and criticizes sharply the church and political authority at that time." Sun, Jiaxiu. He Xiao Bona xi ju she ci shang yan : kan hua ju Babala shao xiao. In : Xi ju ; no 8 (1991). Er schreibt über die Aufführung von Major Barbara : "Act two is an important act for Bernard Shaw. It thoroughly exposes the evils of poverty and ist irreparable effects on society under the capitalist system. Capitalism deprives people of their dignity. Capitalism turns people into rude, cruel, and inhuman creatures as in the case of Walker. Capitalism produces an extreme polarity between rich and poor, as well as the moral degradation seen in alcoholism and dishonesty. Shaw wrote this act to expose the capitalist system, but the production did not effectively accomplish that exposure, especially with the excision of some of the discussion in this act." Wendi Chen : The production was peculiar because the political, social and cultural climate of the time was not in favor of staging such a play, and it was significant because the production was charched with a serious social and professional mission. The following day the Da wan bao (Beijing evening news) reported that "many people in the drama profession as well as a large general audience attended the first night's performance. The play was received with great enthusiasm". Ke Wenhui, one of the literary critics wrote : "The first night's performance ended with laughter and extended applause. The dramatic effect was extraordinary. It was an event unlike any other during the last few years". Major Barbara was a major dramatic event for the following reasons : the great reputation of Shaw in China, the reputation of Ying Ruocheng and his cast, the prominence of the location where the performance took place and possibly, the striking contrast between the production of this foreign play and local productions. Ying confessed that his interest in Shaw dated back to his college days in the 1940s ; it was his 'long cherished wish' to be able to put Shaw on the Chinese stage : "If we don't include Bernard Shaw, we are not presenting a full picture of twentieth century drama. Shaw occupies a crucial position in the development of modern drama". Ying was fully aware of the scope of technical challenges in producing the play. He repeatedly cautioned his cast with respect to Shaw's language and characterization. He warned : "Shaw's plays are seldom staged in China mainly because of his language. His verbal skills consist of many tit-for-tat witty exchanges". |
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| 14 | 1994 | Aufführung von Major Barbara von George Bernard Shaw im Hong Kong Repertory Theatre in der Übersetzung und unter der Regie von Ying Ruocheng, mit Lo Koon-lan als Lady Britomart. | |
| 15 | 1995 |
Sun, Jiaxiu. He Xiao Bona xi ju shou ci shang yan. In : Zhongguo xi ju ; 7 (1995). [On the forst performance of Bernard Shaw's play : watching the spoken Drama Major Barbara].kl "The ideas of Bernard Shaw expressed in the play were considered advanced at the time when it was written. We should also note his limitation. It is greatly contradictory. The play was written in 1905 before the socialist revolution. Bernard Shaw notes and reveals deeply the innate contradiction in his society. Yet, the view raised in the play were those when he joined the Fabian Society, that is, a slow progressive revolution and the practice of amerliorism. They advocate using production to work for social progress, and improving employer-employee relationship. One has to be fed before one can talk about morality. But Shaw is not critical toward what is produced. Even cannons can be produced. Shaw affirms capitalist production, which means that he also affirms the capitalist system. Undershaft is the incarnation of Shaw, and a mouthpiece of some of his social ideas. The innermost being of Cusins is very bad, and he hides that by reciting the poems of Euripides. Shaw fails at the depiction of Major Barbara. The play has not given her more lines and action. She is not a very devoted Christian. She is an upper-class lady. China has published many translations of Shaw's works and recommends him as a world-famous cultural personage. But this is only half the work. It should be followed by performances. If Shaw's works were brought here without any change, the performance would be too long for China's audience. If the translation has foreign flavor, the Chinese audience will have difficulty accepting it. Ying Rucheng has translated the play into an intelligent natural language understandable by the Chinese audience. I think that the Chinese audience likes plays with a strong plot and rich human emotions. Therefore, the performance of Shaw's play in China has a certain degree of difficulty. Before the liberation of China, people had tried but failed. Shaw's play became a hard nut to crack, and nobody dared to bite in many years." |
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| 16 | 1997 | Aufführung von Yao tiao shu nu, Musical, Adaptation von Pygmalion von George Bernard Shaw unter der Regie von Clifton Ko in Hong Kong. |
Cited by (1)
| # | Year | Bibliographical Data | Type / Abbreviation | Linked Data |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zentralbibliothek Zürich | Organisation / ZB |
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