Passing on the torch and displaying high-level research results (telling a story of one thing in a lifetime)

The picture above, from top to bottom, shows Chen Shaoyan, the former editor of Wenshizhe, Li Mei, editor, and Sun Qi, editor. Photo by Li Rui, a reporter of this newspaper

Editor's note: In May 1951, Wenshizhe magazine was founded. For more than 70 years, several generations of editorial staff have been keeping the integrity and innovation, passing on the torch, always unswervingly abiding by the principle of "academic-oriented, quality journal", and have done a lot of work in promoting Chinese civilization and prospering academic research. With the joint efforts of all members of the editorial department, in 2009, Wenshizhe won the title of "The Most Influential Journal in the Sixty Years of New China"; in 2011, it won the honor of "China Publishing Government Award"; from 2013 to 2018, it was shortlisted for three consecutive national "Top 100 Newspapers"; in 2021, Wenshizhe was selected as the "Most Popular Journal of 2016 to 2020" by the National Philosophical and Social Science Documentation Center. Recently, the reporter interviewed three editors of "WenShizhe" and listened to them tell unforgettable stories in the process of running the journal.

"The source is the key, nothing more than three words, that is, 'high level'"

After more than 10 years of retirement, the most memorable thing to say about Chen Shaoyan is an "scrubbing bath" experience.

In 1982, Chen Shaoyan graduated from the Department of Philosophy of Shandong University and remained in the editorial department of Wenshi Zhe, responsible for the manuscript of Chinese philosophy. At that time, the funds for running the journal were limited, and Chen Shaoyan often carried a backpack, carried a lunch box, took a train, and visited scholars to make an appointment.

Once, Chen Shaoyan went to Beijing to ask Mr. Zhang Dainian for a manuscript. When it was time to eat, the two men found a restaurant, ordered a few small dishes, a glass of beer for each person, and chatted speculatively. Mr. Zhang was in a good mood, and after eating, he waved his hand and said, "Go, scrub the bath!" In the bathhouse, Chen Shaoyan rubbed Mr. Zhang's back. Chen Shaoyan laughed and talked, his technique was average, but Mr. Zhang was very happy.

The experience brought the two closer together. After getting acquainted, Mr. Zhang can be described as "responsive to every need" for "Literature and History". "Wen Shi Zhe" opened a column of "New Theory of Sinology", Chen Shaoyan asked Mr. Zhang for a manuscript, and soon Mr. Zhang sent an article entitled "How to Study Sinology" and published it as the first manuscript of the column.

"To run a good magazine, the source is the key, nothing more than three words, that is, 'high level', to recruit high-level scholars, and to publish high-level articles." Chen Shaoyan took a sip of tea and said, "Editors must take the initiative to run and maintain contact with high-level scholars in order to ensure the source of the manuscript." ”

Chen Shaoyan made an appointment during the day, and returned to his residence at night to carefully compile the manuscript, or pondered how to improve the quality of the manuscript and how to continue to make a high-level manuscript. "Running around, although it is hard, but it is very rewarding, and I have met many scholars of high moral standing." Chen Shaoyan counted carefully, "For example, Feng Youlan, Zhu Bokun, Zhang Shiying, Lou Yulie and other old gentlemen, we all have close ties. ”

When encountering a manuscript that was difficult to grasp, Chen Shaoyan went to consult the seniors of the editorial department. "When I came to visit, they had a lot of questions and answers, which greatly benefited me." Chen Shaoyan said.

"The editorial department has very high requirements for manuscripts, and often does not miss a single detail." Chen Shaoyan said that editors should make sufficient efforts to produce high-level articles. In those days, there were no computers and networks, and verifying citations had to be read through the vast sea of books, a long and arduous process. Manuscripts are handwritten and often densely altered.

When Chen Shaoyan was in the editorial department, Mr. Ji Xianlin once wrote a draft for "Wen Shi Zhe", and after repeated research, the editorial department put forward some suggestions for revision. To this end, the editorial department sent a letter to Mr. Ji to discuss and inquire. Mr. Ji agreed, saying: "There are many magazines related to humanities and social sciences in the country, but there are very few people who really enjoy a high reputation, and Shanda's "Literature, History and Philosophy" is one of them. Chen Shaoyan said that whenever he remembered Ji Lao's words, a sense of pride surged into his heart.

"'Be cautious and guard against fear' can be dedicated, and only by doing your best can you not lose your heart."

Working in the editorial department for more than 10 years, Li Mei has changed a lot.

When she first joined the editorial department, Li Mei was "scared" and cried. At that time, she edited an article, the citations were strange, and some of them were not standardized, so she called the author of the article over and over again. The author was impatient and reprimanded her.

Li Mei was also very aggrieved, and tears snapped and fell. Out of a sense of responsibility, she tried to persevere, afraid of making a mistake. Because of worry, Li Mei often wakes up from her dreams and repeatedly thinks about whether a mistake in the manuscript has been changed. Li Mei defines her work as an "assistant", serving the author, working cautiously, and rarely having her own views. When the meeting was held to discuss the topic, Li Mei had ideas but did not dare to put them forward, worried that there was no academic value.

Once, in the middle of the night, Li Mei opened the history of the founding of "Wen Shi Zhe": historian Yang Xiangkui served as the editor-in-chief, and Lu Kanru, Feng Yuanjun, Gao Heng, Xiao Difei, Children's Book Industry and other backbone teachers formed an editorial board. From the review of the group manuscript, to the proofreading and printing, to the publication distribution, they all do it part-time, without any remuneration, and some even run the journal out of their own pocket.

Li Mei looked at the photos of the first editorial board and suddenly felt deeply. "I try to understand and understand these old people, and think about their original intentions in doing so." Li Mei recalled, "I gradually understood that the reason why "Literature, History and Philosophy" has achieved such results lies in the spirit of the elders who devoted themselves to research and pursued the truth, which is exactly what my generation needs to inherit. ”

Later, Li Meihua spent a lot of time reading and studying the articles published in "Literature, History and Philosophy". The more you read, the more "academic puzzles" you have in your head. "When she planned again, she was more handy, and when she chose the topic to discuss, she also dared to put forward some of her own views." Li Mei's colleague Zou Xiaodong recalled.

"Excellent scholars should focus on seeking truth and researching innovation. What we editors have to do is to take the initiative and integrate into academic research to help them form excellent academic results. Li Mei took out a thick copy of the "Chinese Collection", "Recently I was compiling a manuscript, and this scholar quoted a lot of the contents of the book." For these citations, I study them one by one, carefully check them, and must be rigorous and rigorous. ”

"Only by 'being cautious and guarding against fear' can we be dedicated, only by doing our best can we not lose our hearts, and only by not losing our hearts can we be calm." Li Mei said that after more than 10 years of editing career, she is still trekking.

"Not only a magazine, but also the spiritual and cultural heritage of generations of publishers"

In 2016, Sun Qi postdoctoral fellows left the station. He never imagined that after graduation, he would come to work in the editorial department of "Wen Shi Zhe", which he had always loved since his student days. Over the past few years, Sun Qi has grown up slowly, although he is young, he can also "stand alone".

In 2019, Mr. Li Hu, who is in his 80s, submitted a long article of more than 50,000 words to WenShizhe, which was edited by Sun Qi. "This article is a summary of my lifelong academic career, and it may be my last article, if it can be published in the "Literature, History and Philosophy", it is a great honor." Mr. Lai said.

"There are more than 300 full-text commentaries, involving various historical materials from the pre-Qin to the Ming and Qing dynasties, and the original books must be found one by one." Sun Qi spent half a year repeatedly communicating and discussing with Mr. Li, patiently checking and transcribed the author's correction opinions.

Unexpectedly, after the article was compiled and sorted out of the proof, because the length was too long, it was postponed to the next issue. As a result, there is some more time to add. Sun Qi quickly took out the final proof and re-read it. Sun Qi turned over a thick stack of paper, "More than 10 revised versions, adding and deleting thousands of words, this is only a part of the previous proofreading." ”

After the publication of this article, it caused great repercussions in the academic community. Mr. Li wrote to Sun Qi: "Many important views were added and perfected in the process of revision. Your tireless work attitude has contributed to this result. ”

"The job of editing is, to a large extent, 'making a wedding dress for others', but in Wenshizhe magazine, we have to invest more time and energy to polish the article more perfectly." Sun Qi said.

Why are you so persistent? Sun Qi told a story -

Mr. Gong Kechang, the elder of the editorial department, is nearly ninety years old, and his memory is not very good, and he often does not recognize people, and he does not even remember the way home. "But the old gentleman always stumbles to the newsroom." Sun Qi said.

On the eve of the 70th anniversary of wenshizhe, Mr. Gong came to the editorial office again. In the conference room, he saw the photos of the first editorial board of the editorial department hanging on the wall, and said their names one by one: "This is Zhao Lisheng, this is Wang Zhongji, Xiao Difei, and Tong Shuye..." When he walked to The photo of Mr. Lu Kanru, he suddenly stopped, stretched out his hand and touched the picture frame, choked and said: "This is my teacher!" Supporting Mr. Gong was Liu Jingxi, a young editor of Wenshizhe, who also wet his eyes.

"Wenshi Zhe is not only a magazine, but also the spiritual and cultural inheritance of several generations of publishers, and behind it is a strong sense of responsibility and mission." Sun Qi said.

This edition is drafted by Zhang Fangman

Consistent and live up to Shaohua (reporter's note)

Before interviewing the three editors of WenShizhe, I once discussed a topic with people. As soon as "Literature, History and Philosophy" came out, it attracted many top university scholars, paid attention to a series of new academic trends, and published articles that caused great repercussions in the academic circles. Even in today's large number of academic journals in the humanities and social sciences, "Literature, History and Philosophy" is still loved by readers and has won a certain reputation at home and abroad. What is the reason behind this?

Listening to three generations of editors tell the story of running the journal, the answer is clearer in my heart. For more than seventy years, several generations of editors of "Literature, History and Philosophy" regard scholarship as life, and their original intentions are like rocks, passed on from generation to generation, and have been consistent and unchanged through ups and downs.

I believe that the latecomers of the editorial department of "Wenshizhe" will definitely inherit this spirit, take up the next baton, and make "Wenshizhe" better and better, and live up to Shaohua and the expectations of readers.

People's Daily ( 2022-04-18 08 edition)