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China Daily

97 / 10 / 24 /

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1. Chinese literature hails its 'return to realism'
2. Chasing money changes lives in TV series
3. What's On (Page: 9, Date: 10/24/97)
4. Briefs ( Page 9, Date: 10/24/97 )
5. Electronics industry encouraging in Jiangxi
6. Dense railways help to rev up local economy
7. [INLINE]
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Chinese literature hails its 'return to realism'
CONTEMPORARY Chinese literature has been embracing a popular theme
called "return to realism" over the past two years.
What does this "return" mean? And when and how did realism leave
in order for it to return? These are the questions raised by this
cultural phenomenon that deserve more study.
The critics identify He Shen, Tan Ge and Guan Renshan as the
"Three Vehicles," who initiated the "return of realism."
In 1996 they published a series of novelettes that immediately
attracted attention from readers and critics. Their works,
including He Shen's "The Poor," Guan Renshan's "Going Home" and
Tan Ge's "The Big Factory," all have protagonists whose
experiences reflect the catharsis and the pain of the years since
China began its reform and market economy experiment.
If this was the "return" of realism, when did realism get lost?
Writer Chen Jiangong holds that there has never been a lack of
realism. Before the "Three Vehicles," Chen Yuanbin's "The Lawsuit
of the Wans," Chen Zhongshi's "White Deer Land" and Liu Xinglong's
"Majestic" all demonstrated the strength of the realist tendency
in recent years.
Writer Zhang Ping has continued to write novels that touch upon
the problems and conflicts arising from the dramatic social and
economic changes during the reforms.
His latest work, "Choice," which was published in three
installments by the popular literary bimonthly, Woodpecker,
explores the bankruptcy of a State-run textile company in a
provincial capital.
In the novel, he indicates that serious corruption in the
management is the main culprit in the collapse of the company.
He said in his article published in the latest issue of
Woodpecker: "Writers can't save the world, but writers have no
right to distance themselves from the time and the people, and no
right to alienate themselves from reality and responsibility."
Realistic writers have never stopped their work, Chen Jiangong
said in his essay published in the literary monthly, Selected
Stories.
In the 1980s, influenced by foreign trends in literature and art,
quite a number of Chinese writers began inquiries into history,
culture and philosophy and tried to explore a variety of literary
forms.
Critic Zhu Xiangqian said in his interview with Selected Stories
that he believes that the inquiry and exploration greatly promoted
the modernization of Chinese literature, but that this has been
done at the price of the alienation of reality and readers.
"Devoted to various avant-garde literature forms, many writers of
the 1980s soon used up their life experience and could create no
more," Zhu said.
At the end of the 1980s, the "new realism" appeared with such
representative writers as Liu Heng, Liu Zhenyun, Fang Fang, Chi
Li, Liu Xinglong, Bi Shumin and Yan Lianke. They concentrated on
the life of common people and trivial matters.
Many of these "new realism" writers also achieved new heights in
1996. For example, Yan Lianke's "The Hole of Gold" is a metaphor
for the challenge of materialism to humanity in modern society.
Li Guowen's "Nirvana," Wang Anyi's "I Love Bill," Liang
Xiaosheng's "Death of a Researcher" and Li Guantong's "The Sky
That Lacks a Corner" also realistically portray the lives of
common Chinese in times of change.
So why have the "Three Vehicles" attracted so much attention in
such a short time?
There are two reasons, according to Zhu Xiangqian. First, they
appeared as a group, which helped to label them as a literary
school. Second, they all express a strong concern for reality, and
choose the two main battlefields of the reform as their themes:
large and medium-sized enterprises and the countryside, themes
that other writers hesitate to touch upon.
The works of the "Three Vehicles" remind most readers of the
strength of realism. As a form that most directly reflects
people's living conditions, realism is hardly to be abandoned by
writers and readers, Zhu said.
Xiao said that although these three writers have abundant life
experiences, they are not very good at extracting them.
Enumerating facts is a common defect, even in their better-written
novels, such as "Sharing the Difficulty" and "The Big Factory."
"Their writing styles are also too similar. It is hard to
distinguish their works without knowing their names," said Zhu.
But Chen Jiangong said that these works are not a repetition of or
a return to the old realistic literature. "Read any of today's
realistic novels and you will see that its narrative structure,
narrative point of view, sense of language and range of time and
space are all influenced by other literary schools," said Chen.
The "return of realism" is not a denial of other schools, but a
result of the development of all kinds of literary schools.
"We should not let any one of them dominate our literary circles,
but give each one a chance to take part in the mighty torrent of
Chinese literature," Zhu said.
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_Date: 10/24/97_
_Author: Mu Bian_
_Copyright© by China Daily_

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Chasing money changes lives in TV series
AFTER Deng Xiaoping made a speech during his South China tour in
1992, which set long-term guidelines on reform and opening up
policies for China, Hainan Island has undergone tremendous changes
not only in its economy but also in its society.
A 26-part dramatic TV series has been made by the Henan Audio and
Video Publishing House to portray a group of Chinese who moved
from the mainland to the island, the biggest Special Economic Zone
in China, in pursuit of money.
Gao Mingxing, producer of the TV series, entitled "The People From
Inland," said the current opening up and reform policies created
conditions for well-educated people to make their own decisions
about what to pursue in life.
The depiction of these educated people's experiences during this
period reflect the reform's profound significance, according to
Pan Jun, director and screenwriter of the play.
The second tide of reform triggered by Deng's speech during his
South China tour in 1992 is the TV series' background, when the
foundation of the theories of the socialist market economy had
been laid.
The different characters have different experiences in the process
of getting rich in the early 1990s.
Tang Xiaosong, a cellist, and Ye Ziyuan, a painter, are newly-weds
who come to Hainan to earn money so that they can afford to go
abroad to study.
However, since Ye cannot adjust to the fast pace of life in
Hainan, he misses many chances for further development.
Tang, the wife, is obliged to sing in the dancing halls to earn
money to keep them, and she becomes famous overnight.
The intolerant and self-important Ye suspects that Tang is having
extramarital affairs.
In his despair, Ye is manipulated by a swindler into making
counterfeit paintings and selling alcohol bearing counterfeit
brand names, and eventually he becomes involved in an affair with
a model who cheats him out of a sum of money.
Song Qi, a teacher, and Shen Xiaoqiu, a section chief, have been
lovers for years and have given birth to a son.
Not being a strong man, Shen cannot break himself away from the
control of his father-in-law together with whom he is transferred
to a new post in Hainan.
Since Song and Shen's son has contracted an unidentified disease,
Song also comes to Hainan to make more money so as to seek a
remedy for her son's illness.
Song gets involved in selling, and her business snowballs
miraculously, leaving her confused in her priorities -- business,
love, and her son.
Although these different characters face varied fates, every one
of them pays heavily for the pursuit of financial gain.
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_Date: 10/24/97_
_Author: Liu Yinglang_
_Copyright© by China Daily_

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What's On (Page: 9, Date: 10/24/97)
EXHIBITIONS
Joint art exhibition -- More than 30 newly emerged artists of ink
and wash paintings from across the country will present a joint
exhibition from October 18-25 at Wanfung Art Gallery in Beijing.
Time: 9am-4pm, October 23-25.
Place: Wanfung Art Gallery, 136 Nanchizi Dajie, Dongcheng
District, Beijing.
Tel: 6523-3320.
Abstract vision -- Shanghai artist Qin Yifeng is displaying his
works at the Red Gate Gallery until October 29.
The paintings develop the distinctive abstract style of Qin's
earlier line drawings, by employing strong brushwork and a
confident use of acrylic colour on medium- and large-format
canvases.
Qin's mastery of the medium brings to life the rich texture of his
paintings, titled the Linefield Series.
Time: 11 am-6 pm, until October 29.
Place: Red Gate Gallery, third floor, China World Trade Centre, 1
Jianguomenwai Dajie
Tel: 6505-2266 ext 6821/5729.
Veteran photographers -- A retrospective photo show of Hou Bo and
Xu Xiaobing is held from October 18 to November 5 at Yanhuang Art
Museum in Beijing.
Over the past 60 years, the couple have captured a large number of
historical moments and honestly recorded the great history of
Chinese revolution. They have received a lot of prizes for their
brilliant achievements. And many of their works have been
collected by the State Archives as important historical documents
Time: 9am-5pm, until November 5.
Place: Yanhuang Art Museum, 9 Huizhonglu, Asian Games Village,
Chaoyang District.
Tel: 6493-5334, 6491-2902.
Peruvian painter -- Peruvian painter Antonio Maro will hold his
one-man show at the Beijing Working People's Cultural Palace.
Antonio Maro studied painting in Lima and in Stuttgart, Germany,
with master Willi Baumeister.
He has displayed his works in Lima, Brasilia, Buenos Aires, Bonn,
Frankfurt, Madrid, Venice, Monaco and other cities. He has taken
part in various expositions, the most noteworthy being the Venice
biennial.
Time: 9 am-4 pm, October 23-31.
Place: Beijing Working People's Cultural Palace (east side of
Tian'anmen Square).
Tel:6532-2178.
CONCERTS
Peruvian guitar concert -- Peruvian guitarist Alexander Ramirez
will present two concerts in Beijing.
Alexander Ramirez studied in the Conservatory of Dusseldorf,
Germany. In 1984, he won the contest of the Robert Schumman
Superior Conservatory. He also studied guitar with Spanish
professor Jose Luis Gonzalez (pupil of Antres Segovia) and won the
Alhambra International Award. He has given concerts in Peru,
Russia, Germany, Austria and Belgium, and recorded many compact
discs.
Time and Place: 7:30 pm, October 31, at Kempinsky Hotel, Jade
Ballroom; 7:15 pm, November 3, at the Central Music Conservatory
(43 Baojiajie Street, Xidan District).
Tel: 6532-2178.
Japan's "Groove Museum" -- Famous Japanese musician Tetsuya Komuro
will present his "Groove Museum" concert on November 14 at the
Capital Gymnasium.
It will mark the 25th anniversary of the normalization of
diplomatic relations between China and Japan.
Kumoro is a jack-of-all-trades figure in music circles: He
composes music, writes lyrics, operates electric synthizer, plays
instruments, produces albums and cassettes and even packages new
singers. Because of his enormous success, he was dubbed the
"Emperor of Music."
Japan's superstar Namie Amuro boasts a bold and enthusiastic
singing style. The performances will also feature TRF, a
techno-rave group; and dance band Globe: a trio of Kumoro, top
model Marc Panther and new singer Keiko.
The programme includes "Feel Like Dance Departures," "Chase the
Chance," "Boy Meets Girl," "Overnight Sensation" and others. The
themes are about nature, tradition, future and friendship.
The concert is sponsored by the China Liaison Society for
International Friendship and the China National Culture and Art
Corp. After Beijing, the Japanese musicians will tour Shanghai on
November 23.
Time: 7:15 pm, November 14.
Place: Capital Gymnasium.
Tel: 6608-4160, (022)2712-2025.
DRAMA
Peek-in opera -- Located in an ornate former temple, and painted
and draped in a manner fit for royalty, Zhengyici Theatre may be
worth a visit just for a look inside.
Better yet, stick around until the show gets rolling -- live
Peking Opera packaged in short programmes for foreign audiences.
Each act includes an explanation written in English, similar to
the announcements.
You'll see at least one lively acrobatic or fighting scene. There
are snacks, tea and ice cream during intermission.
Time: 7:15 pm, daily.
Place: 220 Xiheyan Dajie, Xuanwu District (behind Hepingmen Roast
Duck Restaurant).
Tel: 6303-6233, 6303-6234.
Original opera -- The Liyuan Theatre at Qianmen Hotel is
presenting Peking Opera, original style. The theatre has revived
the ambience of old Beijing by setting up Ming-style tables, so
guests can sample snacks during performances. The performers come
from the Beijing Peking Opera Theatre.
Time: 7:30 pm, nightly.
Place: Qianmen Hotel, 175 Yong'anlu, Xuanwu District.
Tel: 6301-6688 ext 8986.
_____________________________________________________________

_Date: 10/24/97_
_Author: _
_Copyright© by China Daily_

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Briefs ( Page 9, Date: 10/24/97 )
Niujie on TV
SHOOTING has started on "Niujie Street," a three-part television
documentary. Niujie, a Hui ethnic minority neighbourhood in
Beijing, is being updated and resettled. The documentary, made
jointly by the Minority Nationality Film and Television Department
of the China Minority Nationality Opera Association and a Beijing
advertising company, reviews the history of the street and Hui
residents there as well as the culture in the neighbourhood. It is
supervised by Li Peilun, secretary-general of the association and
a Hui scholar.
Autumn auction
ABOUT 80 pieces of outstanding art to be auctioned off by
Shanghai-based Duo Yun Xuan Art Auctioneers next month will be
displayed in the Rongbaozhai Gallery of Beijing from October 23 to
25.
Selected from more than 950 artworks to be offered at the famous
auction house's '97 Autumn Auction -- scheduled for November 22-23
in Shanghai, the pieces on show in the southern Beijing gallery
will mainly be paintings and calligraphic works by some of
Shanghai's master artists since the late 1800s.
The artists include Ren Bonian, Wu Changshuo, Wu Hufan, Lin
Fengmian, Lu Yanshao, He Tianjian, and three recently deceased
artists -- Xie Zhiliu, Ying Yeping and Tang Yun.
Sources from the auction house specializing in art works said its
auction next month, the largest ever since it was established in
1992, will include 956 works of art worth in the neighbourhood of
38 million yuan ($4.6 million).
The works include traditional Chinese paintings and calligraphy,
oil paintings, sculptures, porcelains, antiques, and ancient
books. (CD News)
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_Date: 10/24/97_
_Author: _
_Copyright© by China Daily_

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Electronics industry encouraging in Jiangxi
THE manufacturing sector of Jiangxi Province is cashing in on the
opportunity offered by the nation's reform and opening policy and
its abundant natural resources. Developments in the electronics
industry are especially encouraging.
A simple survey of the national electronic products market shows a
series of encouraging facts and figures for Jiangxi Province. Many
strong name brands have emerged powerfully on the scene.
Zerowatt, a brand name of refrigerator made in Jiangxi has, over
time, become almost synonymous with the word "refrigerator"
itself.
The cable telecommunication sector, represented by Huasheng
Telephone, has won more than a dozen national awards for the
quality of its products. Together with the awards, the company has
won the confidence of consumers.
Ganxing's colour TV set is on the national top 10 list of best TV
sets. Its market share also ranks among the national top 10.
The Nanguang motorcycle meter has been accepted as a designated
component by seven of the largest motorcycle factories in the
country. Its production and sales volume and economic return rate
all rank it among the national top three of its kind.
Wanping plastic film transformable capacitors are exported and
have earned in excess of $10 million annually for six years
consecutively.
The Tianle aluminium electrolysis capacitor is also a national
award-winning product and has been chosen to be used in the
production of Changhong and Konka TV sets, both of which are made
in other provinces and are among the most famous TV sets
nationwide.
The Hongfa relay is now being produced at a rate of 11.22 million
pieces per year, realizing annual profits and tax revenues of 14
million yuan ($1.7 million) and foreign currency earnings of $3.9
million.
The list can go on and on.
Among the myriad electronic enterprises there are State-owned,
township enterprises and joint ventures. For the sake of better
management, a lot of grouping and conglomerating is taking place
in the industry.
At the beginning of 1997, Jiangxi Electronics Group was
established. It was empowered to manage the State assets in the
enterprises under the direct administration of the provincial
government. As an economic entity, the group now has 19
subsidiaries, among them 13 factories and three trading companies.
Others are research centres, quality inspection institutions and
technical schools.
The whole group now has 20,000 staff members and 1.68 billion yuan
($202.4 million) worth of fixed assets. In 1996 all enterprises
under the group had a combined total gross domestic product (GDP)
of 1.22 billion yuan ($146.9 million), sales earnings of 560
million yuan ($67.5 million) and profits and taxes of 33.22
million yuan ($4.0 million).
The Jiangxi Electronics Group boasts a large pool of talented
people and advanced equipment. Its whole range of products enjoys
a very good reputation with consumers. National and provincial
awards have been granted to the group one after another.
The constant efforts in technical upgrading and importation of
advanced equipment from abroad have enabled the group to turn out
annually 1.5 million telecommunication terminals, such as ordinary
telephones and cableless telephones, and 200,000 programmed
telephone exchanges and optical fibre terminals.
Foreign markets are also being actively explored. Within the group
there are now 10 enterprises which are allowed to export their
products, three of which have the right to manage the exports on
their own.
The Jiangxi Electronics Group enthusiastically seeks capital and
technology from other provinces and abroad. Twenty-five solely
foreign-funded and joint venture enterprises have been set up by
the group either within the province or in such coastal cities as
Xiamen, Jiaxing and Shenzhen, all of them in other provinces.
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_Date: 10/24/97_
_Author: Zhu Changyong_
_Copyright© by China Daily_

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Dense railways help to rev up local economy
FOR Jiangxi Province, the Beijing-Kowloon Railway means no less
than an umbilical cord, supplying much needed nutrients and energy
for the province which, economically, is still in its infant
stage. The nerve centre on this cord is Nanchang Railway
Administration Bureau, which is doing its utmost to ensure the
maximum efficiency of this national railway.
The bureau was founded on August 8, 1996 by the State Council with
a view to better managing the railway. Difficulties and challenges
facing this new bureau at its inception were enormous. A whole
length of 1,113 kilometres of newly completed railway in three
provinces was under its care and they were given limited time to
open it to traffic. The bureau's 80,000 staff did not lose the
high spirits that they had just gained from the completion of the
new national transportation artery.
New stations needed not only new hands, but also more experienced
veteran railway workers. This need entailed a relocation of many
staff workers from the places where they had worked and lived for
a long time and had long since become accustomed to. Without any
grudge or complaint, they packed up and left for any places where
they were needed, no consideration being given to their own
interests.
High efficiency in terms of manpower was their hallmark in
starting up the operation of the railway. The national average
ratio between the number of the railway staff and the railway
mileage is 37 people to one kilometre. On the Beijing-Kowloon
Railway this ratio was an astonishing nine to one.
But still the new railway went into operation much ahead of
schedule. The incongruous match between the minimum input and the
maximum result could only be explained by the strong sense of
responsibility and high degree of dedication on the part of the
staff workers tending the railway.
A rapidly developing highway system all across the country is
putting ever higher pressure on the railway. Many railways are
losing out to road transportation and seeing a reduced flow of
passengers and cargo.
Revitalizing rail transportation and winning back the lost share
of passengers and cargo are at the forefront of the minds of
decision-makers and average workers alike. Increasing the use of
high technology and becoming more responsive to customers' needs
prove to be the most effective cures for the lethargy of the
railway service. Computers are widely used in ticketing. People at
one terminal can know the whole situation of ticket selling all
along the railway just at the click of a finger.
An aggressive marketing plan also helps the Nanchang Bureau to woo
back passengers. Timetables of the railway service can be found in
the newspaper. The flourishing tourism industry is not lost to the
keen eyesight of the Nanchang Bureau staff. Taking advantage of
the abundance of tourist destinations along the railway, they
organize package tour groups along the whole line under the
bureau's jurisdiction.
High flexibility has replaced the rigidity which used to be
typical of the train service. Timely readjustment of the
timetables in the light of a careful study of market needs has
both pleased customers and brought more income to the service.
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_Date: 10/24/97_
_Author: Xiao Zhu_
_Copyright© by China Daily_

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[INLINE]
[INLINE]

Updated on September 24, 1997

[INLINE]

[INLINE]

_[1]The 15th Party Congress_

_[2]Sep. 12 - Sep.18, 1997_

[INLINE]

[3][LINK] _[4]General Secretary Jiang Zemin's
Report to the 15th Party Congress_
[5][LINK] _[6]New Party Leadership elected,
Top Leaders' Profiles_
[7][LINK] _[8]Communique of 15th CPC Central
Committee's First Plenum_

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References

1. http://www.chinadaily.net/cndy/history/15/engtg124.html
2. http://www.chinadaily.net/cndy/history/15/engtg124.html
3. http://www.chinadaily.net/cndy/history/15/report.html
4. http://www.chinadaily.net/cndy/history/15/report.html
5. http://www.chinadaily.net/cndy/history/15/engtgb46.html
6. http://www.chinadaily.net/cndy/history/15/engtgb46.html
7. http://www.chinadaily.net/cndy/history/15/engtgb09.html
8. http://www.chinadaily.net/cndy/history/15/engtgb09.html
9. mailto:cd...@chinadaily.net

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