Sang Ye (born 1955) is the pen name of Shen Dajun, a Chinese journalist, oral historian, and collector. He is the author of two oral histories, ''Chinese Lives: An Oral History of Contemporary China'' (co-authored with the novelist Zhang Xinxin), and ''China Candid: The People on the People's Republic.'' Originally trained as an electrical engineer, following a short course at
Beijing Normal University
Beijing Normal University (BNU, ), colloquially known as Beishida (), is a public research university located in Beijing, China, with a strong emphasis on humanities and sciences. It is one of the oldest and most prestigious universities in Chin ...
in 1978 he began working as a freelance journalist. Described as a "remarkably gifted interviewer" with a "wholly unexpected, free-and-easy style" by
Studs Terkel
Louis "Studs" Terkel (May 16, 1912 – October 31, 2008) was an American writer, historian, actor, and broadcaster. He received the Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction in 1985 for '' The Good War'' and is best remembered for his oral hi ...
, Sang Ye has been praised for providing a unique perspective on China in the
Reform and Opening Up
The Chinese economic reform or reform and opening-up (), known in the West as the opening of China, is the program of economic reforms termed "Socialism with Chinese characteristics" and "socialist market economy" in the People's Republic of Ch ...
era, "
ringing
Ringing may mean:
Vibrations
* Ringing (signal), unwanted oscillation of a signal, leading to ringing artifacts
* Vibration of a harmonic oscillator
** Bell ringing
* Ringing (telephony), the sound of a telephone bell
* Ringing (medicine), a rin ...
to light the way people make sense of the world through telling themselves stories about their personal journeys." In 1990, his personal archive of monographs, posters, recordings and newspapers from the
Cultural Revolution
The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a sociopolitical movement in the People's Republic of China (PRC) launched by Mao Zedong in 1966, and lasting until his death in 1976. Its stated go ...
was purchased by the
National Library of Australia
The National Library of Australia (NLA), formerly the Commonwealth National Library and Commonwealth Parliament Library, is the largest reference library in Australia, responsible under the terms of the ''National Library Act 1960'' for "mainta ...
.
Early life
Sang Ye's paternal grandfather was originally from Zhejiang province, eventually coming to own a curios shop in Beijing. His father, who studied civil law, was an early member of the Chinese Communist Party. Sang Ye's maternal grandfather was a lawyer who worked for the Japanese occupation in Manchuria. After graduating from St. Joan’s Girls College, a French Catholic school founded by the Daughters of Charity, his mother became a physical education teacher. Sang Ye's parents divorced in 1971, an event which
Nicholas Jose
Nicholas Jose (born 9 November 1952) is an Australian novelist.
Biography
Born Robert Nicholas Jose in London, England, to Australian parents, Nicholas Jose grew up mostly in Adelaide, South Australia. He was educated at the Australian National ...
has argued provided a formative experience of "the gulf between noble words and shabby conduct, and the misery caused by double standards and hypocrisy in Chinese society."Jose, Nicholas. "Sang Ye: curio merchant" in ''Chinese Whispers: Cultural Essays'' (Wakefield Press, 1995).
Works
* ''Chinese Lives: An Oral History of Contemporary China'' (co-authored with Zhang Xinxin), originally published in Chinese as ''Beijing People''《北京人 (一百个中国人的自述)》by Shanghai Art and Literature Publishing House 上海文艺出版社 in 1986. Translated in into English by
W.J.F. Jenner
William John Francis "Bill" Jenner (; born 1940) is an English sinologist and translator, specialising in Chinese history and culture, and translator of Chinese literature.
Biography
From 1958 to 1962, Jenner studied sinology at Oxford and ...
and
Delia Davin
Delia Davin (9 June 1944 – 13 October 2016) was a writer and lecturer on Chinese society and particularly Chinese women's stories. She was one of the first foreign scholars to consider the impact of the policies of the Chinese Communist Party on ...
and published in the US by
Pantheon Books
Pantheon Books is an American book publishing imprint with editorial independence. It is part of the Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group.Random House, Inc. Datamonitor Company Profiles Authority: Retrieved 6/20/2007, from EBSCO Host Business Sourc ...
in 1987.
* ''China Candid:The People on the People's Republic,'' originally published in Chinese as 《1949, 1989, 1999》by Oxford University Press in Hong Kong. Translated into English by
Geremie Barmé
Geremie R. Barmé (born 1954) is an Australian sinologist, author, and film-maker on modern and traditional China. He was formerly Director, Australian Centre on China in the World and Chair Professor of Chinese History at Australian National ...
and Miriam Lang and published in the US by the University of California Press in 2006.
*''The Finish Line: A Long March by Bicycle through China and Australia,'' with Nicholas Jose and Sue Trevaskes, published by University of Queensland Press, 1994.
*''The Year the Dragon Came,'' co-edited with
Linda Jaivin
Linda Jaivin (born 27 March 1955)Susan Trevaskes. Trevaskes and Sang Ye met in 1987, during a tour of Australia on the invitation of the Australia-China Council and the Literature Board of the Australia Council. After returning briefly to live in Beijing, following the events of June 4 1989, Sang Ye was evacuated to Australia with his family, eventually settling in
Brisbane
Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...