"Diary of a Madman"

Today, we solemnly commemorate the 80th anniversary of the birth of Lu Xun. Eighty years, in the history of mankind, is just a short moment; however, in China, an earth-shaking change has taken place.

Imperialism, feudalism, and bureaucratic capitalism - the three major enemies of the Chinese people

Once were like three mountains, weighing heavily on the semi-feudal and semi-colonial world

On the heads of the people of old China, now, these three mountains have been successfully toppled by the Chinese people under the leadership of the Communist Party of China

! Lu Xun, the great warrior and writer of the Chinese people, was one of the pioneers who awakened the Chinese people to resist and overthrow these three mountains. His whole life was devoted to This is a great and noble cause

. On his eightieth birthday, we can forever wipe out imperialism, feudalism, bureaucratic capitalism in a free and democratic motherland, and in the country's people's high-spirited , a period when socialism was being built with great dynamism, we should be proud to commemorate it, and it can also comfort Lu Xun in the underground.

In 1881, it was forty years since the Opium War and only fifteen years since the defeat of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.

During this period, due to the military victory in suppressing the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, the Qing Dynasty's regime, which was subdued externally and ferocious internally, gained temporary stability and called itself "Zhongxing". In the following ten years, the ruling group of the Qing Dynasty, once frightened by the strength of the Western imperialist countries

and their artillery power, regarded "the establishment of Westernization" as their survival

Tang, A number of arsenals and naval schools were successively established, foreign students were sent to learn navy and navigation, some telegraph offices were opened, several short-distance railways were built, and a number of civilian factories and mines were opened. . This unfolds the first page of bureaucratic capitalism in Chinese history. In the past ten years, imperialism's economic and cultural aggression against China has also been intensified and expanded. In particular, imperialism's cultural invasion used churches as its stronghold and missionaries as its vanguard, going deep into the interior from coastal areas along the rivers to set up newspapers, schools, and publishing houses. society to educate the Chinese people into slavery. Faced with the increasingly intensified economic and cultural aggression of imperialism, the ruling group of the Qing Dynasty not only failed to resist, but instead opened the door to thieves and aided the thieves.

However, "establishing Westernization" could neither increase the strength of the Qing Dynasty's external resistance,

nor could it improve the poverty and backwardness of the Chinese people; it was dominated by the bureaucratic group

The establishment of "Westernization" actually facilitated the export of imperialist capital and increased the burden on the people.

The intensification and expansion of imperialism's economic and cultural aggression have of course further aroused the anti-imperialist struggle of the Chinese people. After the defeat of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, the Nian Army and the armed uprisings of ethnic minorities in the northwest and southwest regions dealt a heavy blow to the Qing Dynasty. The anti-imperialism, anti-Qing, and anti-Qing Dynasty Feudal people's movements - lesson plans and peasant uprisings - also occurred one after another, year after year, spreading across all provinces in the country. In this way, the "ZTE great enterprise" boasted by the Qing ruling group has turned into a dream in the blink of an eye.

These historical backgrounds had a profound

impact on Lu Xun in his childhood.

After that, when Lu Xun was in his boyhood and youth, major historical events came one after another

: the Sino-Japanese War in 1894, the 1898 Coup of 1898, the 1998 Revolution ○○

The anti-imperialist armed struggle of the Boxer Rebellion. These major historical events prompted more patriots to devote themselves to the national and democratic revolutionary movements. The young Lu Xun also participated in this great cause of saving China.

However, Lu Xun at that time had already seen the great importance of cultural revolution and ideological education, so his activities at that time were mainly aimed at developing a new culture, literature and art movement; he introduced and advocated the patriotic, anti-feudal, romantic and great European poets

and their thoughts in "The Power of Moro Poetry". "" also introduces the critical realist literature of Europe in the 19th century. It is undeniable that Lu Xun, like many other national and democratic revolutionary movement pioneers at the time, pinned his hopes of saving China on the European bourgeoisie. the so-called democratic political system. However, the evolution of Chinese politics after the Revolution of 1911, in other words, the failure of the Revolution of 1911 to complete its historical tasks of anti-imperialism and anti-feudalism, made Lu Xun realize that "this path" It doesn't make sense, because

he was once very depressed.

The gunfire of the great October Revolution brought Marxism-Leninism to China.

Many of our national and democratic revolution pioneers have since seen the need to save China

Lu Xun is one of the broad avenues of the country. However, the road from revolutionary democracy to Marxism cannot be completed overnight, and it must be tested by arduous battles. Lu Xun's revolutionary activities and literary activities in the ten years after 1919 are obvious proof. Studying the development process of Lu Xun's thought during this period will have a profound ideological and educational effect on us. However,

Due to time constraints, this report cannot talk about Lu Xun’s ideological development process from revolutionary democracy

to Marxism and from evolution theory to class theory

(By the way, October this year coincides with the 25th anniversary of Lu Xun’s death. Five years ago, at a conference commemorating the 20th anniversary of Lu Xun’s death, I made a speech Report titled

"Lu Xun--From Revolutionary Democracy to Communism". My views on the development of Lu Xun's thoughts are still the same today as they were then, so I also I feel there is no need to stir things up.) Here, I only intend to talk about what is practical for our current literature, creative activities and improvement of artistic workers. Three questions about meaning

. This is: 1. How Lu Xun’s example serves the entire revolutionary cause! 2. The national form and personal style of Lu

Xun’s works. 3. Lu Xun’s "expertise" and "expertise".

Lu Xun’s literary activities began in the early part of this century (about 1903 before

and after), but his revolutionary patriotism was formed earlier; His poem "Self-Inscribed Portrait" (composed in 1901) expresses his determination to dedicate his life to the motherland. However, as a writer, thinker and revolutionary, Lu Xun's revolutionary activities and literary activities began with the "May 4th" New Culture Movement in 1919.

The period officially begins. On the eve of the May Fourth Movement, he wrote the famous short story "Diary of a Madman" (1918), which is the first work of Chinese revolutionary literature.

It is also the first flower of Lu Xun’s revolutionary literature. Later, he said in the preface to "The Scream" (1922): "From then on, there was no stopping it." This was certainly not an accident. Lu Xun once wrote in the preface to "Selected Works" (1932): "I started writing novels in 1918. "New Youth" advocated

'literary revolution' when it was published. Although this movement has now become a relic in the history of literature, at that time, it was undoubtedly a revolutionary movement.

"

Lu Xun made no secret of the political tendency of his works and the purpose of serving the politics of the time. In this "Preface", he wrote:

"The pace of my works in "New Youth" is roughly the same as everyone else's,

So I think these can indeed be counted as 'revolutionary literature' at that time.

............

These can also be said to be 'obedience literature'. However, what I obeyed was the order of the pioneers of the revolution at that time, and it was also an order that I was willing to obey. It was definitely not the emperor's imperial edict, nor was it the order of Jin Yuanhe. Really command the knife. "

What Lu Xun refers to here as "literature that obeys orders" is literature that obeys the orders of the revolution.

That is, literature that reflects the people's struggle and the spirit of the times. Literature is revolutionary struggle

One of the weapons, Lu Xun was best at using this weapon flexibly to serve

revolutionary politics in many ways. At the same time as "Diary of a Madman", Lu Xun began writing essays. /p>

Writing. He creatively developed this literary weapon. From the notes published in "New

Youth" to the eve of his death, he used

Using various themes, some ridiculing, some shouting, or some clever metaphors, profoundly

exposed the feudal monsters and foreigners who appeared with various faces at that time. There are few evils

(comprador consciousness). These essays use vivid and vivid writing to express penetrating and chewable ideological content, which gave the people of that time The reactionary thinking dealt a fatal blow to the vast number of young people who pursued the truth at that time.

In 1925, it provided great encouragement and inspiration. In 2008, Lu Xun once solemnly and enthusiastically declared:

"Our immediate priorities are: first, survival, second, food and clothing, and third,

development. Those who dare to hinder this, whether they are ancient or modern, human or ghost, are the "Three Tombs" and "Five Codes", Hundreds of Songs and Thousand Yuan Dynasties, Map of the Heavenly Sphere and River, Golden Man and Jade Buddha, and Ancestral Pills Scattered,

The secret elixirs all trampled him down. "("Sudden Thought")

Resolutely opposing anything that hinders our progress and development is the core of Lu Xun's

revolutionary spirit, and it also runs through Lu Xun's literary activities

A red thread

Lu Xun’s life and his literary activities were closely related to the national and democratic revolutionary movements and the class struggle at that time. , closely related; all his works reflect the magnificent waves of the Chinese revolutionary movement from 1919 to 1936. However,

also reflect As an important wing of the revolutionary movement at that time, the long and arduous and tortuous struggle on the cultural and ideological fronts sometimes had head-on confrontations and sometimes circuitous raids.

The edge of the struggle often varied with the times. It varies from place to place. Lu Xun was the best at looking at problems dialectically. He once pointedly pointed out: "If a revolutionary writer does not want to use his literature to help the revolution deepen. , expand,

But he uses the revolution to promote his own 'literature'. When the revolution is rising, he is

a pest in the lion's body... "(Postscript to "The Book of Pseudo Freedom")

He opposed "art for art's sake" and pointed out that it was just another name for "leisure" literature of the landlord bourgeoisie; but he We also oppose "slogan-style" works that do not pay attention to technique. "Slogan-style" "revolutionary literature" lacks appeal and is about literature and art serving politics. The simplistic and vulgar understanding and approach actually fail to achieve the purpose of literature and art serving politics. He once emphasized: "I think the fundamental problem is. The author is a 'revolutionary'. If so, then no matter what events he writes about or what materials he uses, it is all 'revolutionary literature'.

Everything that comes out of the fountain is water, and everything that comes out of the veins is blood. 'Fu

revolutionary, five words and eight rhymes' can only deceive the blind examiner. "("Revolutionary Literature")

Lu Xun attached great importance to the characteristics of literature and art, as well as the characteristic of using literature and art as a means to serve politics

and strictly combined literature and art with other revolutionary Propaganda tools

In "Literature and Revolution" (1928), he wrote:

"I believe that all literature and art are propaganda; Publicity is not all about literature and art. This is just like all flowers are colored (I count white as color), but not all colors are necessarily flowers. The reason why revolution must use literature and art in addition to slogans, slogans, notices, telegrams, textbooks... is because it is literature and art. "

Lu Xun's views on the relationship between literature and art and politics, and how literature and art serve politics

are still deeply inspiring to us today, and his

p>

His works provide a model of how literature and art can serve revolutionary politics.

The scope of his themes is very broad, and the number of his novels is diverse. /p>

The volume is not large, but it shows all kinds of characters from all walks of life at that time.

It depicts the spiritual outlook of these characters, and his profound thoughts are shaped by him

p>

The world of his essays is even broader, both ancient and modern, Chinese and foreign, the vastness of the universe and the minisculeness of flies and gnats are all inclusive, but perhaps Directly

or indirectly, they all serve the revolution, they all accumulate resources for the expansion and deepening of the cultural revolution, and they all provide rich nutrition to the young revolutionary generation.

p>

When Lu Xun talked about his own creation, he once mentioned the influence of certain foreign classical writers on him; this influence can be vaguely seen in his early short stories

See. But "Diary of a Madman" not only has a more profound meaning, but its style and style still originate from the local area. He said that when he started writing, " All I rely on

are the hundreds of foreign works I have read before.” It is not only possible but also necessary to grow up and enrich one's own flesh and blood. As for inheriting and developing the country's excellent traditions, Lu Xun has repeatedly stressed that in his works. This is evidence of his personal practice. In inheriting and developing old traditions, Lu Xun had a far-reaching vision, taking the essence and making great use of it. It was not limited to our country's classical literature, but also involved other things. Sister arts, for example, in "How Do I Make a Short Story" (1933), he said this: "In old Chinese operas, there is no background, the flower paper sold to children during the New Year only has a few main people (but now the flower paper has more backgrounds), I firmly believe that for my purpose, this method is appropriate. "

His famous "Usage Doctrine" vividly illustrates his attitude towards the outstanding heritage of literature and art in ancient and modern times, both at home and abroad. He said:

"We must use our brains, broaden our horizons, and get it ourselves!

............

Without what is brought, one cannot become a new person; without what is brought, literature and art cannot develop

Be able to become a new literature and art on its own. "("Borrowingism")

He opposed conservatism and complacency. He advocated analytical and critical creation

creatively inheriting the excellent traditions of all literature and art at home and abroad, both ancient and modern, The purpose is to bring out the old and bring out the new. He said:

"These collections are not a collection of fragments of antiques, they must be dissolved into new works.

That is something that goes without saying. It is just like eating cattle and sheep, skimming off the hoof hair and leaving the essence

in order to nourish and develop new organisms. It will never be 'similar' to cattle and sheep. of.

"

("On the "Adoption of Old Forms"")

Precisely because he attached great importance to "adoptationism", he devoted most of his energy to translation and translation

Introducing foreign progressive literature and art, and, under the white terror of the Kuomintang's reactionary rule, translating and disseminating revolutionary literary and artistic theories and Soviet socialist literature. Work has extremely huge political significance. He once compared this kind of work to the Promethean monks in Greek mythology who stole fire from the sky and gave it to the earth. "Transporting arms to the revolting slaves". The work of sorting out my country's ancient cultural heritage is almost always consistent with his creative activities. The "Lu Xun Collection" will be published this year. The three volumes of "Congbian" are part of it (the ancient artistic heritage he collected, such as stone carvings and portraits, will also be systematically organized and published in the future.)

"Usageism" undoubtedly played an important role in the formation of the unique style of Lu Xun's works

That is, in terms of the technique of driving pen and ink, Lu Xun's literary language

The language is similar to the works of Chinese classical literature (classical Chinese and vernacular Chinese)

but it is a completely new literary language (such as

Syntax and composition), vaguely visible foreign influence, but it is indeed the Chinese flag style,

It is indeed a national form--of course, this has unfolded in the history of our country's national form

A new page. Whether it is his novels, essays, epigraphs, or even letters, one can immediately sense his personal style at a glance. , it is difficult to describe it in words. If I have to give a summary explanation, I am going to use this sentence: cleansing, profound and humorous.

But. The unified and unique style is only one aspect of Lu Xun's works. On the other hand, the artistic conception of Lu Xun's works is diverse. For example: Jin Gang. The angry "Diary of a Madman" is different from "Dragon Boat Festival", which is about talking about Wei Zhong, and the tearful and smiling "At the Restaurant" is also different from the sad and accusatory "Blessing".

The fragments of rural daily life in the great era point out the extreme importance of educating farmers. Behind the humorous words are the author's deep worries and enthusiastic expectations.

"Juansheng's Notes" is like an abyss, with a surface that is clear, lonely, and boring.

But through this surface, the dragons and snakes are changing, and it is clearly visible; this is through a pair of young people

"New Stories" uses historical stories and ancient legends (this is an old tradition of Chinese literature) to open up new world and create new expression methods. These eight novels

each have their own characteristics of using historical facts and using the past to satirize the present, but they still have the same characteristics, namely:

The choice of historical facts is subject to the theme. , and adding new branches and leaves is by no means aimless. "Flying to the Moon" contains crows, which is inherently ironic; "Plucking Wei" cleverly transforms decay into magic (deer breastfeeding, uncle Qi killing someone) Lu Zhixin and the woman ridiculing Yi Qi can both be found in "Biography of Scholars", "Ancient History", "Jinlouzi" and other books. Sister Ajin's name is Lu Xun

given and taken), the old theory is sufficient for application, so there is no need to indulge in fantasy. As for the artistic realm,

the eight chapters are also different; for example, "Matching the Sky" is strange, "Flying to the Moon" is majestic, "Forging Swords" is tragic

strong, and "Plucking Weird" is humorous. .

Roughly speaking, Lu Xun used another method of artistic expression

in his essays. This method of expression is subordinate to the political mission of the essay and achieves the unity of content and form.

Lu Xun called essays "daggers" or "throwing spears", which could kill the enemy with just one throw.

He accomplished his assigned tasks with excellence! However

"Dagger" or "Throwing Spear", in terms of its function, can certainly summarize most of Lu Xun's essays

But the artistic techniques of Lu Xun's essays are still Turning from yellow to green, the scenery is colorful.

His more than 600 essays, totaling one million words, cover everything from daggers and spears to deafening and thought-provoking Muduo. p>

The bells ring in the quiet night, and there are also the indulgent singing of complicated strings and urgent pipes. We say that Lu Xun's essays are a form of literature and art that can quickly reflect reality and have a strong militancy. This so-called militancy not only refers to the struggle against the enemy, but also refers to the struggle against the enemy.

Struggle against wrong tendencies within one's own camp, uncompromising and principled advice to friends who have lost their way, and

pun intended to the vacillating elements in the middle. When fighting against the enemy, Lu Xun used daggers and spears. However, when dealing with internal enemies, friends, and middle elements, Lu Xun sometimes used daggers and spears. Rulers sometimes sound alarm bells; therefore, as far as Lu Xun's essays are concerned, one-sided and simplistic statements are inconsistent with reality.

Lu Xun's life experience is extremely extensive and rich, which can be seen in his works

(including essays). Naturally, due to the limitations of objective conditions, it is impossible for him to be as close to the workers and live with them as we are today, but this does not mean that he cannot Understanding the working class does not mean that his thoughts and feelings are not the same as those of the working class; no, this is not the case.

The reason for this is that Lu Xun was very familiar with the lives, thoughts, and emotions of the vast number of working people (peasants, handicraft

industrial workers, etc.) in China at that time, and In particular

The most important point is that in the process of the development of his thoughts and from the experience of combat, Lu Xun realized that the future of mankind (including the Chinese people) depends on the working class and its First

The vanguard - the Communist Party, and just as he said in "Self-titled Portrait" in 1901

"I recommend Xuanyuan with my blood ", after 1927 until the moment he stopped breathing, he unswervingly understood that fighting for communism was also fighting for the motherland.

Struggle for the liberation of the country, he fought for the victory of the cause of the Chinese working class all the time and everywhere

In the 1930s, the path taken by Lu Xun was not only in semi-colonial society

China has a typical significance, and it also has a typical significance for intellectuals in other colonies and semi-colonies

; and in the 1960s, this still had a significance

Typical meaning: Colonial and semi-colonial people who truly seek the true liberation of the people of the motherland

Colonial intellectuals will definitely follow the path that Lu Xun took.

In addition to his extensive life experience, Lu Xun was also extremely knowledgeable, which

is reflected in his academic works and his essays. I

mentioned before that there is nothing in "Plucking Wei" in "New Stories" that has no origin; from such a novel we can get a glimpse of Lu Xun's extensive knowledge. All his essays demonstrate

his extensive knowledge of history (Chinese and foreign), science (especially biology), and ancient and modern Chinese and foreign literature and art. and deep understanding. Precisely because of such a broad and profound foundation, Lu Xun's essays can be said to be unprecedented in terms of their ideological and artistic levels. The dialectical unity of "expertise" and "expertise" in Lu Xun's works is also a model for us to learn from.

Comrades, friends! It has been the eightieth anniversary of Lu Xun's birth, and it is approaching the twenty-fifth anniversary of his departure from us.

In commemoration of his eightieth birthday, our literary and artistic work has been greatly improved under the kind care and wise leadership of the Communist Party of China and Chairman Mao.

Great results were obtained.