Xiao Hong (1911-1942)

Childhood

Xiao Hong was born in Heilongjiang province 黑龙江省 (Lit. Black Dragon River.) on June second 1911. (on the same day as the Dragon Boat Festival 端午节) She had a difficult childhood. Her mother died when she was very young, and her father was very controlling and was also, at times, even abusive. Her closest family member was her grandfather, who was a more kind and gentle man than her father. When she was fifteen, she was sent to a school for girls in Harbin, There she experienced a taste of freedom. She had great interest in the work of Liu Xun, foreign literature, and took sides on political issues such as the May 4th Movement

Motivations

Around 1930, her father arranged for her to marry. But rather than submit, she ran away to Beijing, but she was followed by her husband-to-be. Apparently he never truly intended to marry her, because in 1932 he abandoned her penniless and pregnant in a hotel in Harbin.

Later in Harbin she met a young newspaper writer, Xiao Jun, (some sources claim he was also abusive) they started living together, and he helped her start her writing career, first publishing her writing in the local newspaper. Around 1933 she published 2 short stories Trek and Tornado She also published a collection of short stories titled, Baishe.

In 1934 she and Xiao Jun moved to Qingdao, And later the same year, to Shanghai. There she wrote The Field of Life and Death which was very successful due to some help from Liu Xun, who said she was destined to replace Ding Ling as the most famous female writer of her time.

About this time Japan began occupying many cities, as part of the second Sino-Japanese war. This forced her to move several times to avoid the conflict . In 1936 she oddly chose to move to Japan to escape the conflict. There she wrote On the Oxcart, Hands, an essay called The Solitary Life, and a book of poems called Sand Grains.

In 1938 she broke up with Xiao Jun in Xi’an, moved to Wuhan and married Duanwu Hongliang, (another writer.) In 1940 they traveled from Wuhan to Chongqing, and from there to Hong Kong, where they finally decided to settle. In Hong Kong she published some of her greatest work. A novel titled, Hulanhe Zhuan (Tales of the Hulan River), as well another collection of short stories titled Spring in a Small Town. All of these were inspired from her childhood in Heilongjiang.

Controversy

Most of Xiao Hong's controversy lies in her scandalous behavior with men. Only in the last few years of her life did she finally decide to settle down and marry.

She was also controversial in her ability to very bluntly criticize or make powerful statements in her stories. She often chose to show the oppression of women, in which she often shared used personal allegories, literally putting herself into the story. She was very revolutionary and rebelled against many traditions or stereotypes placed upon Chinese women. She was a guiding influence that led to the ideals of modern women hold today in China.

Legacy

In January of 1942 Japan began its invasion of Hong Kong. At this time Xiao Hong was sick, and with the limited medical attention available in a war zone, Xiao Hong died in a temporary hospital due to complications following throat surgery. She was only 31 years old. (some say it was malpractice and that she was misdiagnosed.)

Her life was one full of adventure and travel. Here is a link to a map of all the places she lived in within a 10 year period.

Xiao Hong's Travels

Sources

Denton, Kirk A. "China: a Traveler's Literary Companion" Whereabouts Press, Berkley, CA. Print

Lau, S.M. Joseph, and Goldblatt, Howard. The Columbia Anthology of Modern Chinese Literature 2nd Edition. Columbia University Press. New York. Print

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xiao_Hong

http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/xiao.htm