Chen Xuezhao (; April 17, 1906 – 1991) was a Chinese writer and journalist. She was earlier known as Chen Shuzhang or Chen Shuying. She used the pen names Ye Qu, Shi Wei, Xue Zhao and Hui. She was one of the most prolific Chinese women writers of the 20th century. Chen gave her support to

Mao Zedong Mao Zedong pronounced ; also Romanization of Chinese, romanised traditionally as Mao Tse-tung. (26 December 1893 – 9 September 1976), also known as Chairman Mao, was a Chinese communist revolutionary who was the List of national founde ...

's policy on Art and Literature.

Life

The daughter of parents from

Henan Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhongzhou (), which literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is al ...

province, Chen was born in

Haining () is a county-level city in Zhejiang Province, China, and under the jurisdiction of Jiaxing. It is in the south side of Yangtze River Delta, and in the north of Zhejiang. It is to the southwest of central Shanghai, and east of Hangzhou, the p ...

Zhejiang Zhejiang ( or , ; , also romanized as Chekiang) is an eastern, coastal province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable cities include Ningbo and Wenzhou. Zhejiang is bordered by ...

province in 1906. She was educated at the first Girls' Normal School in China in Nantong County. This school was founded in 1902 by

Zhang Jian Zhang Jian may refer to: Name * Zhang Jian (fencer) (born 1962), Chinese fencer * Zhang Jian (football) (born 1965/66), Chinese football administrator * Zhang Jian (businessman) (1853–1926), courtesy name Jizhi, Chinese entrepreneur, politician ...

. Afterwards, she attended Shanghai Patriotic Girls' College. She joined the Qiancao Literary Society and published her first work ''Wo suo qiwang de xin funü'' ("The New Women of My Ideal") in 1923. Furthermore, in 1927, Chen published an article in the New Woman magazine "explaining the new phenomenon of women choosing to remain single" and instead of raising a family, "participated in civic life" as many other Chinese

New Women ''New Women'' () is a 1935 Chinese silent drama film produced by the United Photoplay Service. It is sometimes translated as ''New Woman''. The film starred Ruan Lingyu (in her penultimate film) and was directed by Cai Chusheng. This film bec ...

were doing. Chen taught school in Zhejiang and

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

. In 1924, she published ''Juanlu'' ("Weary Travels"). She helped establish the magazines ''Yusi'' and ''Xin nüxing''. From 1927 to 1935, Chen studied western literature in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...

. From 1927 to 1931, she was a special correspondent for the '' Dàgōng bào'' newspaper. During this time, she married a Chinese medical student in France. After completing a

PhD PHD or PhD may refer to: * Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification Entertainment * '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series * ''Piled Higher and Deeper ''Piled Higher and Deeper'' (also known as ''PhD Comics''), is a newsp ...

at the

University of Clermont-Ferrand The University of Clermont-Ferrand was officially founded in 1896, by merging of two existing faculties (Literature and Sciences) and a medical school. In 1976, due to political issues, the University split between University Clermont-Ferrand I - ...

in 1935, she returned to China with her husband; the couple divorced in 1941. In 1940, she went to

Yan'an Yan'an (; ), alternatively spelled as Yenan is a prefecture-level city in the Shaanbei region of Shaanxi province, China, bordering Shanxi to the east and Gansu to the west. It administers several counties, including Zhidan (formerly Bao'a ...

and became editor of the fourth section of the '' Jiefang ribao'' newspaper and a literacy teacher at the Central Party School there. In 1942 she attended the

Yan'an Forum The Yan'an Forum on Literature and Art () was a May 1942 forum held at the city of Yan'an in Communist-controlled China and significant event in the Yan'an Rectification Movement. It is most notable for the speeches given by Mao Zedong, later edit ...

with

to determine Chinese communist policy on the Arts. Mao published a paper entitled "Talks at the Ya'nan Conference on Arts and Literature". This was an important document of national policy which Chen supported and this was the basis for a major cultural rectification programme. In 1945, she heard that she had been specifically praised by Mao Zedong. Later that year, she joined the

Communist Party of China The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victorious in the Chinese Civil ...

and her application was swiftly approved with only a note to study more Lenin. The following year she became editor of the fourth section of the ''Dongbei ribao'' newspaper. In 1949, she became Communist Party secretary at

Zhejiang University Zhejiang University, abbreviated as ZJU or Zheda and formerly romanized as Chekiang University, is a national public research university based in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China. It is a member of the prestigious C9 League and is selected into the ...

. In 1953, she was part of a Chinese delegation to the USSR.Women of China
, retrieved 31 March 2015 In 1957, she was labelled as a

rightist Right-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that view certain social orders and hierarchies as inevitable, natural, normal, or desirable, typically supporting this position on the basis of natural law, economics, authorit ...

and fell out of favour. During 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 ...

, Chen took a hiatus from writing. She resumed her writing in 1978. Chen also translated some works by Balzac and Charles de Gaulle's ''L'Appel'' from French into Chinese. She died in 1991.

Selected works

* ''Yi Bali'' (Memories of Paris), essays (1929) * ''Ru meng'' (Like a dream), essays (1929) * ''Nanfeng de meng'' (Dream of the south wind), novel (1929) * ''Gongzuozhe shi meilide'' (To be working is beautiful), novel, largely autobiographical (1949) * ''Tudi'' (The land), novel (1953) * ''Chun cha'' (Spring tea), novel (1957) * ''Fuchen zayi'' (Random Reflections of Life) (1981), translated into English as ''Surviving the storm : a memoir'' (1990)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chen, Xuezhao 1906 births 1991 deaths Chinese women journalists Republic of China essayists Republic of China translators Republic of China novelists People's Republic of China essayists People's Republic of China translators Writers from Ningbo Republic of China journalists People's Republic of China journalists 20th-century Chinese novelists 20th-century Chinese women writers 20th-century Chinese translators Chinese women novelists People's Republic of China novelists 20th-century essayists