“The Myths in the Books - The Exhibition in Memory of the 120th Anniversary of Mr. Zhao Jingshen’s Birth” Unveiled

April 24, the inauguration ceremony of “The Myths in the Books - The Exhibition in Memory of the 120th Anniversary of Mr. Zhao Jingshen’s Birth” was held at the Library of Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, co-sponsored by Fudan University Library and Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences Center.

Lasting from 24 April to 25 June, this exhibition provides a comprehensive portrayal of Zhao Jingshen’s life and academic contributions, which can be divided into 8 sections, namely: literary creation, literary criticism, translation activities, editorial career, folk literature and art research, classical novel research, ancient Chinese drama research, teaching and education.

Since Zhao Jingshen donated a collection of books to the Fudan University Library, the exhibition delves into the “books” and stories behind them, so as to present a multi-dimensional perspective to showcase Zhao Jingshen’s literary activities, social interactions, thoughts and feelings, as well as his contributions and achievements to various academic fields.

Zhao Jingsen has produced works in the genres of poetry, prose, novels, fairy tales, and big drum ci, among which the series of prose “Wentanyijiu” (Literary Sphere) is unique. A modern writer growing up under the influence of the New Culture Movement, Zhao Jingshen has conducted in-depth studies in the field of literary criticism, covering both modern Chinese literature and Western literature. 

He was a pioneer as far as modern literary criticism in China is concerned. He studied a wide range of genres, such as poetry, stories and novels His scholarship and criticism are also closely connected to his own literary creation. Zhao Jingshen was also one of the earliest translators of Andersen’s fairy tales and Chekhov’s works in China and translated news from the world literary field for The Short Story Magazine, making positive contributions to the promotion of Chinese and foreign literary exchanges. 

In addition, Zhao worked as an editor for more than 60 years: in 1923, he was chief editor of New Public Opinion’s supplement Zhaoxia (Rosy Dawn); his last editing position was at the Journal of Opera (xiqu) Reviews in the early 1980s; and he served as the chief editor of the renowned BeiXin Book Company for 21 years. The fact that the company earned the name “a vehicle of half the history of modern Chinese literature” is largely attributable to his excellent service there.

Notably this is the first exhibition that presents Zhao Jingshen’s extensive book collection. Zhao Jingshen boasted a collection of more than 30,000 books, covering such fields as folklore, modern literature, ancient Chinese xiqu plays, story collections, and novels. The exhibition has put on display more than 100 precious books from Zhao Jingshen’s collection, including many rare books, signed books, and first editions published during the period of the Republic of China as well as ancient rare books, transcripts, etc. Among them, the rare books include the first edition of Collections of Poems from the Dream of Red Mansions, published by the Chinese Library in 1918, the first edition of Theatrical Anecdotes published by the Yongji Printing Company in 1938, and the first edition of The Spider Web Collection published by the Wenbi Publishing House in 1939. The signed books bear the signatures of many famous people of the theatrical and literary circles, such as Cheng Yanqiu (actor), Zheng Zhenduo (scholar), Yu Pingbo (scholar), Xie Liuyi (dean of the first ever university Department of Journalism), and Qian Juntao (artist). The fine copies of the ancient books cover first edition books and extinct books like Four Talents’ Book engraved by Huang Zhaosen in Bogutang during the Kangxi Period (Qing Dynasty) and Yi Zhen Record engraved by Liao Jingwen in Qiexintang during the Qianlong Period (Qing Dynasty), as well as some rare handwritten copies of the Qing Dynasty like Golden Seal Records, The Kite with Its Own Mind, Wulu Baojuan and Jinkai Baojuan.