Chen Yingzhen
Chen Yingzhen was a Taiwanese author. Chen is also notable for having served a prison sentence for "subversive activity" between 1968 and 1973. He was active as writer from the late 1950s until his death in 2016.
The Collected Works of Chen Yingzhen is 15 volumes long, and was published in 1988. Some of his stories were also included in Lucien Miller's Exiles at Home.
Early life
Chen Yingzhen was born Chen Yongshan in northern Taiwan, the son of a devout Christian minister. Despite this, he never was a Christian himself while growing up. He was raised in what became Zhunan, Miaoli, with a twin brother, who died in 1946.Chen's early years were shaped by the tumult of the Chinese Civil War, the Nationalist government's retreat to Taiwan, and its perpetration of the White Terror. The socio-political turmoil of post-war Taiwan motivated him to address the social realities around him through literature.
Career
His early writings reflected the struggles and idealism of his generation while embodying the tension brought about by traditional values and modern influences. Chen's depictions of the bleak political atmosphere of the White Terror on Taiwan contain strong existentialist themes.His interest in writing was motivated by the cultural movements of the 1960s. As a young adult, Chen participated in Taiwan's intellectual movements amongst the youth, including in student protests and leftist intellectual discourse during much of the 1960s, during which he established himself as a leftist writer versed in modernist aesthetics. In 1968, the secret police arrested him for organizing Marxist reading groups. Chen was released during the amnesty that followed Chiang Kai-shek's death in 1975.
In his mid-years, Chen Yingzhen harnessed family life without abandoning the development of his literature. Works like "My Father" by Chen show the complexity of family relationships and the expectations that come with them. Chen talked much about familial obligations which, upon further scrutiny, reveal a struggle with emotional conflict in fulfilling one's desires within the constraints of cultural expectations. In his essay "Life and Death", Chen extends these themes to discuss some of the universal questions of existence and legacy.
''Xia Chao'' (夏朝)
Xia Chao, the literary magazine edited by Chen Yingzhen, became a dominant cultural phenomenon in Taiwan in the 1980s and 1990s. One of Chen's purposes in working with Xia Chao was to establish opportunities for writers to provoke discourses on issues of ethnicity, justice, and cultural background. According to Chen, the primary focus should be put on literature as a way of understanding existential questions. Using Chen's philosophy, Xia Chao published many works that provoked and responded to the challenges or questions of society. With a focus on non-superficial feelings and intentions, Xia Chao formed a community of like-minded readers and writers.''Renjian'' (人间)
The Renjian magazine was co-established by Chen Yingzhen in the 1980s as an attempt to discuss societal problems like human rights, democracy, and social justice. Chen's editorial content helped redirect the magazine towards real-life issues and experiences of locals and urged writers to publish materials that were relevant to Taiwanese society. Renjian was established to advocate for the 'voiceless'. Chen insisted that literature should depict actual life in order to attract attention to the harsh fate of those who do not have any opportunities to be heard in an oppressive society. Depictions of social inequality, political oppression, and the struggles for personal liberties helped spread the essence of dissent and progressive thoughts found in the magazine's content. Besides understanding human suffering, Renjian taught readers the importance of the public's societal roles and responsibilities, and supported co-operatives of writers with the common purpose of championing change through writing.Research advancements
In Third World, Chen writes in favor of the reductionism of such labeling by noting the various heterogeneities in cultural identity. As he positions himself within broader geopolitical texts, Chen does so with the expressed intention of encouraging readers to interrogate their ingrained discourses of development and cultural identity themselves. His approach to narration has served as a model for the genre of fiction and non-fiction, particularly in Taiwanese literature. Through his narrative methods and socio-political comments, Chen shaped contemporary discussions of literature and society.Philosophy
Chen was a supporter of the notion of a unifying Chinese national identity in Taiwan, as opposed to "nativist" writers like, who support the development of a native Taiwanese consciousness. Chen contributed to several journals as an editor and writer, and was "regarded as Taiwan's utmost representative leftist intellectual." Jeffrey C. Kinkley noted in 1990 that Chen was "considered by many Chinese readers and critics in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and overseas to be Taiwan's greatest author."Later life and death
In his later years, Chen Yingzhen remained contemporary with the issues of his surroundings and resorted to changes in narrative style to make subtle social and political commentary. These environmental themes continued to salience in his work. Later in life, Chen took up philosophical investigations into life and death, which becomes apparent in essays like "Life and Death". Chen was arrested in 1968 by the Kuomintang for "leading procommunist activities", and was imprisoned until 1973. Chen was again imprisoned in 1979, shortly before the Kaohsiung Incident. He died in Beijing on 22 November 2016 at the age of 79 following a long illness.Legacy
From the influential literary work of Chen Yingzhen, Taiwanese society has been immensely affected, especially in matters concerning identity and cultural expression. By articulating the struggles of people burdened by the weight of expectations from society, Chen makes readers think more critically about identity and relationships and develops an avenue toward discussing social cohesion and inclusivity in society. Chen's stories often serve as a contribution to Taiwan's policy debates on social cohesion and inclusiveness and identify issues of alienation and marginalization, especially those of young adults and less privileged backgrounds. He discusses the human psychological trait of ignoring the suffering of others, particularly in utilitarianism, in which one person's suffering is accepted for the benefit of the rest.Some critics have seen Chen's work as featuring important moral dimensions while lacking technical proficiency. For example, Joseph S. M. Lau said of Chen, "his output is relatively small and his style is at times embarrassing, yet he is a very important writer... Almost alone among his contemporaries, he addresses himself to some of the most sensitive problems of his time."
Political impact
In his writings, Chen places personal narratives within a greater political history as a way to show how history configures contemporary experiences. He presents resistance and struggle against oppression through his characters as ways to pursue active civic commitment and demonstrate the effectiveness of activism in representing the political voice of the people. Taiwan–China relations have always been an important point of focus in Chen Yingzhen's perspective and work. Chen stated that he wanted Taiwan to join back with China because he allegedly believed that its culture and history are intertwined. Chen expressed this sentiment in his writings, including in "Third World".Influence on literature
Chen's literature explored the connection between identity, society, and the complexity of postwar Taiwan. Chen's earlier fiction covers personal experiences of hardships, while his later works discuss political ideologies. Chen influenced the climate of the 1960s and 1970s toward the growing concept of Taiwanese nationalism by engaging with the nation's history and culture. Chen's works established and promoted a literary trend that emphasized realism, humanism, and the representation of marginalized groups. Besides Chen's direct literary works, Chen significantly influenced Taiwanese literary culture with his theory of social intervention, which indirectly motivated generations of writers. On the grounds of literary experiments and the political outlook, Chen Yingzhen made a significant contribution to the transformation of Chinese modern literature as a palate for the voices of marginalized groups. In the post-war era, Chen used societal struggles to depict individual goals that highlighted the political disillusionment of the times.Chen Yingzhen's influence on Taiwanese literature extends deep into his exchange and interaction with other writers and scholars; many acknowledge that his work has stirred critical thinking among literary figures and created a community through writings dedicated to the identity and culture of Taiwan. For instance, the Chen-dedicated forum in the journal Frontiers of Literary Studies presents a collaborative effort by scholars in their engagement with his literary contributions. According to Zheng Huan, Chen's impact is felt in younger generations of writers who try to express concerns about identity and social justice in their own writing.