Zang Kejia

Outstanding modern and contemporary Chinese poet, famous writer, editor, loyal patriot, close friend of the Communist Party of China, member of the China Democratic League, national Representative of the second and third sessions of the People's Congress, member of the fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth sessions of the CPPCC National Committee, member of the Standing Committee of the seventh and eighth sessions of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, director of the first and second sessions of the Chinese Writers Association, director and consultant of the third session, fourth session Consultant of the 5th and 6th term, Honorary Vice Chairman of the 5th and 6th term, Member of the 3rd and 4th term of the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles, Honorary member of the 6th and 7th term, President of the Chinese Poetry Society, Honorary President of the China Mao Zedong Poetry Research Society, Honorary President of the Chinese Writing Society Comrade Zang Kejia passed away in Beijing at 20:35 on February 5, 2004 at the age of 99 due to ineffective treatment.

Comrade Zang Kejia, pen name Shaoquan and He Jia, was born on October 8, 1905 in Zhucheng, Shandong. Influenced by his grandfather and father since childhood, he laid a good foundation in classical poetry. In the summer of 1923, he was admitted to Shandong Provincial First Normal University. During this period, I read a large number of new literary works and began to compose new poems. In 1925, he published his work for the first time in the national publication "Yu Si", signed by Shaoquan. In 1927, he was admitted to the Wuhan Branch of the Central Military and Political School and participated in the Northern Expedition. In 1929, he published a new poem "Silent in the Late Forest" for the first time in Qingdao's "Republic of China Daily", signed by Ke Jia. From 1930 to 1934, while studying at National Qingdao University (later changed to National Shandong University), he received enthusiastic teaching and careful help from Mr. Wen Yiduo and Wang Tongzhao. His poems such as "Refugee" and "Old Horse" describe the miserable life of farmers in old China in concise verses; the long poem "The Black Hand of Crime" exposes the crimes and hypocrisy of imperialism. These poems are His representative works of early poetry have become classics in the history of modern poetry in my country. In 1933, his first collection of poems "Brand" was published, which was highly praised by predecessors such as Wen Yiduo and Mao Dun. The following year, his collection of poems "The Black Hand of Sin" came out and has become famous in the poetry world ever since. From 1934 to 1937, he taught at Linqing Middle School in Shandong Province. He published a collection of poems, "The Canal" and a long poem, "Portrait of Myself", and created a collection of essays, "Collection of Lobster". In 1936, he joined the Chinese Writers and Artists Association.

After the outbreak of the Anti-Japanese War, Comrade Zang Kejia closely linked his own destiny with the destiny of the nation and actively participated in anti-Japanese patriotic activities. In 1938, he joined the All-China Association of Literary and Art Circles to Resist the Enemy and was elected as a director of the Xiangyang and Yichang branches. From 1938 to the early summer of 1941, he served as the propaganda science and education officer of the Anti-Enemy Youth Corps of the Fifth War Zone, secretary of the Commander-in-Chief's Department, member of the Cultural Work Committee, head of the Wartime Cultural Work Group, and counselor of the 30th Army. Full of passionate patriotic enthusiasm, he braved the risk of bombing by enemy planes and went to the front line of Taierzhuang three times to interview and wrote a long reportage "The Bloody Battle of Jinpu Northern Front"; he was not afraid of hardships and led the wartime cultural work group of the Fifth Theater to go deep into Henan, He carried out anti-Japanese literary and artistic propaganda and creative activities in the rural areas of Hubei, Anhui and the Dabie Mountains; he organized a "artist military unit" regardless of his personal safety; he risked his life and went to the Suizao front line to engage in cultural propaganda for anti-Japanese and national salvation, and participated in the Suizao Battle. During this period, Comrade Zang Kejia created and published poetry collections such as "Walking in the Army" and "Yin on the Huaihe River" and a collection of essays "Walking with the Dates", which enthusiastically eulogized the great patriotism of the anti-Japanese soldiers and civilians and their heroic resistance to the enemy. In the autumn of 1941, he served as a counselor of the 31st Army Group and vice president and acting president of Trinity Publishing House. He prepared and published the progressive publication "Dadi Wen Cong". After its inception, it was banned by the authorities. In July 1942, he resigned angrily and braved the sweltering heat to trek from Ye County, Henan Province to Chongqing. In April 1943, he was elected as an alternate director at the fifth annual meeting of the All-China Literary and Art Circles Anti-Enemy Association. In the summer of the same year, he served as commissioner of the Relief Committee and was responsible for editing the magazine "The Education of Children in Distress" until the autumn of 1945. During this period, he created and published poetry collections such as the long poem "Flowers of Ancient Trees", the memoir "My Poetic Life", "Songs of the Soil", and "Ten Years' Selected Poems". Zang Kejia (1905.10.8-) was born in Nuocheng, Shandong. Before the age of 18, I had been living in the countryside of Jiaodong Peninsula. In 1923, he entered Jinan Provincial First Normal School to study. Influenced by the May 4th Movement, he learned to write poetry. His debut work "Farewell to Tiangang" in 1925 was published in "Yu Si". In the autumn of 1926, he was admitted to the Central Military and Political School and participated in the campaign against the reactionary army Xia Douyin. After the failure of the Great Revolution, he fled to the Northeast. In 1929, he entered the cram school of National Qingdao University and published Xintao's "Silent in the Late Forest". Graduated from the Chinese Department of National Shandong University in 1934. While in school, he received encouragement and help from Wen Yiduo and Wang Tongzhao in the creation of new poems. In 1932, he published his first poem "Refugee" in Volume 4, Issue 7 of "Crescent". In 1933, his first collection of poems, "Brand", was published. Then he published two poetry collections, "The Black Hand of Crime" and "Canal", and a long poem "Portrait of Myself". Zang Kejia, who joined the Chinese Writers and Artists Association in 1936, is one of the founders of new Chinese realistic poetry. He inherited and developed the realist tradition of new poetry from two aspects. First, he promoted the new poetry's singing of farmers and rural areas in old China. Before him, no poet had been able to describe farmers and rural areas so successfully. Secondly, he promoted the construction of modern Chinese narrative poetry. His narrative poetry is a blend of the poet's inner world and the external world. Zang Kejia is a Chinese poet full of charm. He consciously absorbed nutrients from Chinese classical poetry, modernized it, and created the Chinese style of his own works.

His poems have an implicit lyrical style, emphasizing "hiding". The poems are outside the poems, and the pen has a hidden edge; his poems use a simple and refined way of speaking, which is refined, yet grand and simple; his poems pursue harmony. The pleasant musical method, "knocking sound", is one of Zang Kejia's standards for calligraphy. He looks for harmonious syllables, sonorous and moving, and increases the reader's auditory beauty. In the history of the development of new poetry, there are very few realistic poets with Chinese style as profound as Zang Kejia, and they deserve in-depth study by the academic community.

Appreciate this poem and grasp a few key words: Zang Kejia; realism; Chinese-style peasants

For the history of modern and contemporary Chinese literature, Zang Kejia is a rich existence. Literary activities lasted for more than seventy years. The "Complete Works of Zang Kejia" published at the end of 2002 has 12 volumes and nearly 6.3 million words. Zang Kejia is an important page in the history of modern and contemporary Chinese literature and one of the founders of new Chinese realistic poetry.

Zang Kejia is famous for his new poems, but his prose, which is obscured by the name of his poems, also has high achievements. It should be said that in terms of time and quantity of creation, his prose is on par with poetry. Prose and memoirs including "The Wild Shop", "The Sound of Frogs", "The Party in the Mountain Nest", "The Sea", "The Fire", and "My Poetic Life" are a big topic left to the prose criticism community . In his later years, Zang Ke's family was old and sick, and could not be exposed to new life. Therefore, "when he was old, his interests were reversed, and he wrote more prose and less poetry." "I have vigorously grasped prose to express the interest of my poems."[1] Zang Kejia's poems rarely have a tendency of prose culture; his prose pursues poeticization - they all contain the soul of poetry. This established the taste of Zang Kejia's prose. Some people who prefer it even say that "literature is better than poetry".

From a horizontal perspective, first there is the child who is ignorant of the world and has not yet sweated, and seems not to be sad; secondly there is the father who is "sweating", and his melancholy mood reveals the lines of poetry; and finally there is the man who died after sweating. Grandpa, full of sadness. The life of a peasant family in the dirt! From the vertical aspect, the three images of child, father, and grandfather show not only three generations, but countless generations. This is the embodiment of the life path of Chinese farmers from generation to generation, and each image is highly generalized. The detail of observation, the depth of thinking, the skill of plotting, and the richness of the aftertaste are difficult for other poets to match. With this song alone, the achievements of "peasant poet" Zang Kejia need no further mention.

Zang Kejia attaches great importance to writing only what he is familiar with. This is a major feature of his realism. Regarding the relationship between "the needs of the times" and "one's own familiarity", he emphasized familiarity with the subject matter. Of course, as the times change, poets have to become familiar with the new life that was unfamiliar to them in the past. This is thorough realism. In the preface "A Period of War Between" he wrote for the 1946 edition of "Song of the Earth", he said: "When will I no longer be worried, sad and angry about their tragic fate, and will I no longer sing such unpleasant songs? , let me sing a happy and liberating song for them, the Chinese peasants, out of true feelings just as they sing sad songs?” [15] He was familiar with the peasants of old China, so what he wrote was about the peasants of old China. . But he also yearns for new characters and a new world.

The Zang Ke family has always been fascinated by the natural scenery in the countryside. As long as the conditions are met, his inspiration will easily strike him, and as a result, excellent works will come out one after another. In 1942, he completed "Song of Soil" - this is the most important work of Zang Ke's family besides "Brand", and the most satisfying work of the poet himself. Some time after the start of the Anti-Japanese War, poets and writers reflected on their creations - empty enthusiasm disappeared, high-pitched shouts became hoarse, and some poets and writers returned to familiar themes and looked at old themes with new aesthetic eyes. , wrote new works of the new era. As a result, Ba Jin wrote "Spring" (1939) and "Autumn" (1940); Cao Yu wrote "Beijing People" (1941); Mao Dun wrote "Frost Leaves Red Like February Flowers" (1943); Zang Kejia Then he wrote his 11th collection of poems, "Songs of Soil". Compared with those urgent chapters that sing directly about current events, Zang Kejia said: "I am most suitable to sing such a song, but maybe I can only sing such a song." [16] In 1944, when he compiled and selected his "Ten Years" "Selected Poems", there were very few works that directly expressed the flames of the Anti-Japanese War.

Zang Kejia’s poems are philosophy brewing in lyricism, and they are philosophical poems. Wen Yiduo once made a penetrating conclusion, "None of the Ke family's poems does not have an extremely true meaning of life." This "extreme truth" comes from the poet's concern for the essence of life and his ability to grasp the essence of life. Philosophical summary. "Three Generations", a "extremely true" lyrical poem, has the artistic characteristics of simplicity, simplicity, coldness and profoundness.

During the War of Liberation, Comrade Zang Kejia participated in many progressive activities such as signing signatures for "calling for an armistice and realizing peace". In Chongqing, he was invited to attend a symposium of cultural figures held by Comrade Mao Zedong at Zhang Zhizhong's residence. In Shanghai, he edited the literary supplement "Galaxy", "Study Poetry", "Creation Poetry Series", "Wenxun" monthly and other books and magazines of "Qiao Sheng Bao", uniting a large number of progressive writers; indignant at the dark corruption of politics, he He has created a large number of political lyric poems and political satirical poems, and published poetry collections such as "Baby", "Zero Degree of Life" and "Winter", which have had a wide impact. In December 1948, due to the serious white terror in Shanghai, he was forced to sneak to Hong Kong.

In March 1949, Comrade Zang Kejia came to Peiping under the arrangement of the Communist Party of China.

In May, he published a poem "What I Saw, What I Heard, and What I Thought" in "People's Daily" to express his joy after arriving in the liberated areas. Later, he served as a researcher at the Literary Creation Research Office of the School of Literature and Art of North China University, an editor and reviewer for the General Administration of Publishing and the People's Publishing House, an editorial board member of "Xinhua Monthly", and the editor-in-chief of the literary column of "Xinhua Monthly". In July 1949, he attended the First Congress of All-China Literary and Art Workers and was elected as a member of the All-China Literary Workers Association. He joined the China Democratic League in June 1951 and served as a member of the Central Cultural and Educational Committee of the China Democratic League.

In 1956, Comrade Zang Kejia was transferred to the Secretariat of the Chinese Writers Association. From 1957 to 1965, he served as editor-in-chief of "Poetry Magazine". After his contact, eighteen of Mao Zedong's poems were published for the first time in the first issue of Poetry Magazine, which had a huge impact across the country. During this period, he devoted himself to the organizational leadership work for the prosperity and development of socialist literature. He played an important role in the founding and development of "Poetry Journal" and made great contributions to the prosperity of poetry creation and the strengthening of the poetry team. Remarkable achievements; at the same time, full of infinite love for the motherland, the party, and the people, he kept writing and created diligently. He was active in the Chinese poetry circle in the 1950s and 1960s as a passionate and prolific poet, ushering in the Another peak of his creation, he successively published poetry collections such as "Selected Poems of Zang Kejia" and "Triumph" and the long poem "Li Dazhao". Among them, popular works such as "Some People - Reflections on Commemorating Lu Xun" and "Chairman Mao Smiling towards the Yellow River" have been selected into middle school Chinese textbooks many times. In 1957, he and Zhou Zhenfu co-authored "Explanation of Chairman Mao's Poetry", which played an important role in the dissemination and popularization of Mao Zedong's poetry.

Comrade Zang Kejia was persecuted during the "Cultural Revolution" and was forced to stop literary creation and social activities and was sent to the "May 7th" Cadre School in Xianning, Hubei Province. Returned to Beijing in 1972. Poetry Magazine resumed publication in January 1976, with Comrade Zang Kejia serving as consultant and editorial board member.

After smashing the "Gang of Four", Comrade Zang Kejia, who was over seventy years old, was full of literary thoughts and ushered in the spring of creation again. He sang his heartfelt odes to the new era of socialism and published poetry collections such as "Recalling the Sun", "Luozhaohong", "Zang Kejia's Old Style Poems", etc.; and prose collections such as "Collection of Remembering People" and "Poetry and Life"; Collection of essays such as "Thinking about Poetry", "Ke Jia's Discussion of Poetry", and "Collection of Appreciation of Zang Ke Jia's Classical Poems". The twelve-volume "The Complete Works of Zang Kejia", which condensed his life's sweat and effort, was also published in December 2002.

Comrade Zang Kejia’s works have won many awards and have been translated into many languages ??and have had a wide impact at home and abroad. In April 1988, he won the First Literary Journal Editor's Honor Award from the Chinese Writers Association; in August 1990, the "Appreciation of Mao Zedong's Poetry" he edited won the National Book "Golden Key" Award and the first prize of the Fifth China Book Award. In October 1991, he received a special government subsidy from the State Council. In January 2000, he won the Lifetime Achievement Award of the first "Xiamen Xiamen Cup Chinese Poet Award"; in November of the same year, he won the Lifetime Achievement Award of the "First Dragon Culture Gold Award of the International Yanhuang Culture Research Association". In October 2002, he was awarded an honorary doctorate in humanities by the World Congress of Poets and the World Academy of Arts and Culture; in December of the same year, he won the "Soul of Chinese Contemporary Poetry" gold medal awarded by the 7th International Poets PEN Club. In December 2003, "The Complete Works of Zang Kejia" won the Nomination Award for the Sixth National Book Award.

Comrade Zang Kejia loves the party, the people, and socialism, and earnestly studies Marxism-Leninism, Mao Zedong Thought, Deng Xiaoping Theory and the important thinking of the "Three Represents." In his more than seventy years of creative career, whether in the revolutionary war years or in the period of socialist revolution, construction, reform and opening up, he cared about the future of the country, the destiny of the nation, and the development of literature with great enthusiasm, and enthusiastically praised the party. Leading the cause of revolution, construction, reform and opening up, and socialist modernization, he wrote more than 70 works in various genres such as short poems and long poems, new poems and old poems, prose and essays, reviews and letters, novels and miscellaneous thoughts. He actively advocates writers to go deep into life and reflect the times, and strongly advocates diversification of themes and styles as well as artistic exploration and innovation. He adheres to the "two for one" direction and the "double hundred" policy, unites and cares for middle-aged and elderly poets, and enthusiastically cultivates young poets. He has witnessed the entire history of my country's new poetry from its birth to its development, and has made outstanding and indelible contributions to the development of my country's new poetry.

Comrade Zang Kejia’s life was a life of unremitting pursuit of light, a life of consciously expressing the times and serving the people wholeheartedly, a life of diligent writing, hard work, and constantly climbing to the peak of art. He has a keen mind, a clear sense of love and hate, is kind and upright, optimistic and open-minded, has a decent style and simple writing style, is approachable and open-minded, lives a simple life and is strict with himself. He selflessly devoted his life's energy and efforts to the literary cause of the party and the people.

With the death of Comrade Zang Kejia, China's literary cause has lost a great master, the contemporary poetry world has lost a bright pearl, and we all have lost a highly respected, amiable and respectable teacher. We will always learn from him and miss him.

Comrade Zang Kejia will be immortal!

Zang Kejia’s poems

Zang Kejia (1905--) published his first collection of poems "Brand" in 1933, which was his most recent collection of poems. Influential works. This collection of poems sincerely and simply expresses the decline of China's rural areas, the suffering and perseverance of farmers, and the worries of the nation.

Since then, he has successively published more than ten collections of poems and long poems, including "The Black Hand of Sin", "Portrait of Myself", "Song of the Soil", "Baby", "Zero Degree of Life", etc. .

During this period, Zang Kejia’s poems were short in length, but quite concise. In addition to consciously studying the structural methods of classical poetry and forming a dignified, concentrated, and concise style, he also painstakingly pursued novel, unique, and visual words and phrases without losing the simplicity, clarity, and colloquialism.

After the founding of the People's Republic of China, Zang Kejia wrote mostly political lyric poems, and "Some People" is his representative work of this type of poetry. This poem was written to commemorate the 13th anniversary of Lu Xun's death. Its uniqueness lies in its philosophical theme: people live for the sake of a better life for the majority of people. In fact, this theme goes beyond the scope of praising Lu Xun's spirit, and leads readers into deeper thinking about life. Simple language, strong contrast, and vivid images are the artistic characteristics of this poem.

In addition to continuing to write short and meaningful poems, Zang Kejia also created a long biography poem "Li Dazhao". This long poem shows the great and ordinary personality of a revolutionary pioneer from multiple perspectives, including battle, family, etc.