Ms. Tie Ning, chairman of the China Writers Association, once said: "Xu Guangyao's name is a striking presence in the literature of the War of Resistance. ”
His "Plain Fire" was the first novel to reflect the War of Resistance Against Japan that was officially published after the founding of New China and caused great repercussions, and it was also one of the pioneers of the long-form creation of revolutionary historical themes that became a trend since then. The popular "Little Soldier Zhang Ga" is a treasure of Chinese children's literature, lighting up the childhood memories of generations.
On December 18th, the "Symposium on the Publication of Xu Guangyao's "Plain Fire" and "Little Soldier Zhang Ga" Collection Edition" was held at the People's Literature Publishing House. The meeting invited Yan Jingming, vice chairman of the China Writers Association, Guan Renshan, chairman of the Hebei Writers Association, Meng Fanhua, distinguished professor of Shenyang Normal University and director of the Institute of Chinese Culture and Literature, Cheng Guangwei, professor of the School of Literature of Chinese Min University, Cong Zhichen, associate professor of the Department of Chinese of Peking University, and other famous writers, critics, and scholars to discuss the literary achievements, creative characteristics, personality spirit and important works of the famous veteran writer Mr. Xu Guangyao, "Plain Fire" and "Little Soldier Zhang Ga".
The conference also specially invited Mr. Xu Guangyao's son and filmmaker Xu Dan to participate in the theme dialogue. The forum was presided over by Li Hongqiang, editor-in-chief of the People's Literature Publishing House. Li Yan, member of the Party Group of China Publishing Group and general manager of China Edition Media Co., Ltd., and Zang Yongqing, president of the People's Literature Publishing House, delivered speeches before the meeting. Mr. Xu Guangyao, who is 96 years old, recorded a video for the meeting.
"Plain Fire" is the first book published by the Humanities Society
Born in 1925 in Xiongxian County, Hebei Province, Mr. Xu Guangyao was a veteran who joined the army at the age of thirteen and joined the Party in the same year, personally experienced the War of Resistance Against Japan, the War of Liberation, and the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea. He once served as the secretary and chairman of the party group of the Hebei Provincial Federation of Literary and Art Circles. In 1947, he began to publish works, including the novel "Plain Fire", the novella and the play of the same name "Little Soldier Zhang Ga", and the essay collection "Last Night's West Wind Withered Bishu".
For the People's Literature Publishing House, the book "Plain Fire" has another very special significance: it is the first book published after the establishment of the People's Literature Publishing House in March 1951. Over the past 70 years, Mr. Xu Guangyao has also forged a deep friendship with the People's Literature Publishing House, and delivered a new edition of his other important work, "Little Soldier Zhang Ga", to the Humanities Society for publication.
In order to pay tribute to the heroes, to the great motherland and the heroic people, and also to pay tribute to the literary achievements of Mr. Xu Guangyao, on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the publication of "Plain Fire" in the Humanities Society and the 60th anniversary of the first publication of "Little Soldier Zhang Ga", the Humanities Society specially launched the hardcover collection editions of two works. Compared with the previous version, the two books not only added a number of texts such as Xu Laotan's creation, but also accompanied by many precious photos, and the book "Little Soldier Zhang Ga" also invited the famous oil painter Mr. Xu Chunzhong to draw more than ten special illustrations. Both books are beautifully printed to meet the reader's desire to cherish history, cherish heroes, and treasure the growth process.
Li Yan, a member of the Party Group of China Publishing Group and general manager of China Edition Media Co., Ltd., said in his speech that Mr. Xu Guangyao is an evergreen tree in the Chinese literary world, and since he published his first literary works in 1947, he has continued to contribute to the Chinese literary circles for more than 70 years, and many works have aroused important repercussions. He expressed his admiration for Mr. Xu Guangyao's feelings of home and country and literary achievements, and expressed his sincere gratitude to Mr. Xu Guangyao for his decades-long trust on behalf of the China Publishing Group.
Zang Yongqing, president of the People's Literature Publishing House, said in his speech that "Plain Fire" is the "book of opening the society" and also the "book of honor" of the Humanities Society; since the new edition of "Little Soldier Zhang Ga" was published in the Humanities Society, it has also printed nearly seventy editions (times), about one million copies, providing important support for the majority of readers, especially children and young people, to remember history and look forward to the future. In the important year of 2021, the archival editions of "Plain Fire" and "Little Soldier Zhang Ga" were launched, which not only continued the established publishing ideas of the Humanistic Society to carry forward the revolutionary historical tradition, but also enriched the cultural life of readers. He hopes that Mr. Xu Guangyao and all readers and friends will like this new version.
Mr. Xu Guangyao is 96 years old and is not in a position to attend the symposium, and a video was recorded for the meeting. He said that "Plain Fire" is the first book published by the People's Literature Publishing House, which is his honor. Since then, he and the Humanities Society have become old friends, and "Little Soldier Zhang Ga" was later submitted to the Humanities Society for publication. These two books are loved by people, and the Humanities Society has done a lot of work. In order to commemorate the special fate of "Plain Fire" and the Humanities Society, he is willing to hand over the lifelong copyright of the book to the Humanities Society, so as to contribute to the development of the Humanities Society and the cause of Chinese literature.
Zang Yongqing, president of the People's Literature Publishing House, and Li Hongqiang, editor-in-chief, expressed their gratitude to Mr. Xu Guangyao for handing over the lifelong copyright of "Plain Fire" to the Humanities Society, and said that this reflects Xu Lao's great trust in the Humanities Society, which will certainly publish and disseminate the works well, and live up to The Trust and Love of Elder Xu.
An example to admire and learn from
Mr. Xu Guangyao once said that in literary writing, writers should not only care about their personal hearts, but also pay attention to the fate of the times and the country, reflecting the "big life". With his rafters, with his literary record of the history of Beacon Fire, and with the many heroic images he has created, he has provided an important carrier for future generations to remember revolutionary history and inherit the revolutionary spirit.
The first half of the dialogue session
In the first half of the dialogue session, the guests had a heated discussion and sharing of Mr. Xu Guangyao and his writings.
Yan Jingming, a well-known scholar, critic and vice chairman of the China Writers Association, pointed out that Mr. Xu Guangyao is a highly respected predecessor in the Chinese literary circles, and his creative history itself is a witness to the entire history of the development of contemporary Chinese literature, and people are also very affinity. More than seventy years later, such classic and excellent literary works as "Plain Fire" and "Little Soldier Zhang Ga" still have irreplaceable artistic charm and ideological strength and spiritual strength, and the important reason for this is that he pointed out with the help of General Secretary Xi Jinping's speech at the opening ceremony of the just-concluded Eleventh National Congress of the China Federation of Literary and Literary Circles and the Tenth National Congress of the China Writers Association, one is to take the heroes and the people as the protagonists; the second is not only to write about the people, but also to completely integrate the author's thoughts and feelings with the people; and the third is to express them in an artistic way that the people can accept. This has an important enlightening effect on the creation of contemporary writers.
Guan Renshan, a famous writer and chairman of the Hebei Writers Association, congratulated Mr. Xu Guangyao on the publication of hardcover editions of Mr. Xu Guangyao's two works on behalf of the Hebei Writers Association. He said that Xu Laode's art and art were double-xin, and he had the words and deeds of him and another important writer in Hebei, Mr. Jia Dashan, that he had the team of writers in Hebei today. Contemporary writers, especially young writers, should learn from the older generation of writers their noble personality, the rigor of creation, the promotion of the tradition of realism, and the excavation of the beauty of the times. In recent years, he has experienced life in Xiong'an, has a more personal understanding of the "Yanzhao root vein", and has been thinking about how to express this magnificent and rapidly advancing era, how to go from the grandeur of society to the details of the characters, to the hearts of the characters, and to the souls of the characters.
In the eyes of Mr. Xu Guangyao's son, Xu Dan, his father is one of his idols. This is not only because Mr. Xu Guangyao wrote many classic works, but also because his father participated in the Eighth Road at the age of thirteen, participated in the War of Resistance Against Japan, the War of Liberation, the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, and was a soldier who had experienced hundreds of battles and was born into death. Talking about his father's behavior, he summed it up in three words: "true", "positive" and "real". Regarding "truth", Xu Dan said: "'True' has several meanings, such as his truth, this truth includes telling the truth, recording the real history, and being a person is also more sincere. Regarding "righteousness," he said that his father was an upright man with a sense of justice and a firm belief. The works written are also the main theme and positive energy, and the majority of acura heroes. Regarding "real", Xu Dan said that his father was a real person and did things more solidly. He said that the father used these words to teach his children and future generations, and there were many excellent qualities in the father that were worth learning for a lifetime.
"Plain Fire", "Little Soldier Zhang Ga" and "Seventeen Years" literature reappraisal
In the second half of the guest dialogue, famous scholars and critics Professor Meng Fanhua, Professor Cheng Guangwei and Associate Professor Cong Zhichen conducted in-depth exchanges on the ideological and artistic charm, literary historical value, and inspiration for contemporary literary creation in the two books "Plain Fire" and "Little Soldier Zhang Ga".
The second half of the dialogue session
Regarding the charm of the two works, Professor Meng Fanhua pointed out that the most important reason why "Little Soldier Zhang Ga" has been prosperous for a long time is to shape the image of Gazi. The shaping of this image is particularly in line with the child's personality, psychology and behavior. The shaping of other images, such as luo Jinbao's image, including the image of the traitor, was also very successful. "Plain Fire" is a story of anti-"sweeping" in Jizhong and is a scarce subject. In terms of the truth of the details, as well as the reproduction of typical characters in a typical environment, both works are well done, fully in line with the creative principles of realism.
Regarding the value and status of the two books in the history of literature, Professor Cheng Guangwei focused on "Plain Fire". He pointed out that 1951 was the first year of the publication of the "Red Classic", and "Plain Fire" was the first "Red Classic" published in that year, but the book did not attract enough attention from literary historians. The reason for this is that I am afraid that the book is not a big structure and grand narrative like "Red Sun" and "Red Flag Spectrum". "Plain Fire" deepens the brushstrokes into a small detachment and several small villages in the North China Plain, which is exquisitely carved and truly presented. The small narratives and "grassroots narratives" in the "Red Classics" should now receive more attention.
Literary history needs to be constantly rewritten, "Plains of Fire" needs to be re-evaluated, and so does "Seventeen Years" literature. Professor Meng Fanhua pointed out that there are still many readers to read the "seventeen years" literature today, indicating that the "seventeen years" literature is worth studying and paying attention to. Establishing a socialist cultural space and establishing socialist values through literary creation is the most important value of "seventeen years" literature. The writers of the "Seventeen Years" era are sincere and sincere, and they start from life and the great cause of the country and the nation to create works, so their works can also stand the test of history and time. He pointed out that in practicing socialist literature, there is in fact a process of constant exploration and trial and error. Some aspects may not be done enough, but it is precisely these deficiencies that become an important part of the socialist literary experience. Therefore, the re-understanding and re-evaluation of the literary works of the "seventeen years" is very important for constantly enriching the experience of socialist literature and telling the Chinese story well.
In view of the homogenization, conceptualization, and niche problems faced by contemporary literature, how to continue the tradition of realism, the participating experts also had a heated discussion, and agreed that the experience of "seventeen years" literature is worth learning and summarizing, including the methods and experiences of shaping typical characters, including embracing life, embracing readers, and so on.
On how to write about real life, Associate Professor Cong Zhichen expressed his views. "On the one hand, we must have characters, and we must have typical characters extracted from the typical environment, so that the characters can stand one by one." The second point is that you can't write about reality lying there, and I don't agree with the realism of lying on the ground. Literature must have the power to penetrate reality and transcend it. Cong Zhichen said.
Editor-in-Chief Li Hongqiang expressed three views in the summary. First, Mr. Xu Guangyao became a soldier at the age of thirteen and wrote "Plain Fire" at the age of thirty-four, and was a writer who came down from the battlefield, and the realism of war was the greatest realism for him, so he could write such a work. Second, whether the work is good or not, the key lies in whether people like to see it or not, and whether it can leave people with memories. "Plain Fire" and "Little Soldier Zhang Ga" have affected so many people, which is the simplest and most basic standard of good. Both works are of great value, both in terms of literary history and national memory. Third, the spiritual strength of that generation of writers, including the Chinese wisdom embodied in the simplest and most simple peasants, and the sense of strength, are very touching. This is not only the reason why the work can be passed on for a long time, but also deserves the eternal taste and attention of future generations.
Nandu reporter Huang Qian