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Huang Yuanyong
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'''Huang Yuanyong ''' (黃é? 庸), (Pen name: '''Huang Yuansheng''' 黃é? 生) (
1885 -
1915) was a renowned
List of Chinese authors Chinese author and
journalist during the late
Qing Dynasty (清�) and early
History of the Republic of China Republic of China (民國�年).
Huang made significant contributions to
journalism and
literacy in
China, particularly as an innovator in both journalistic methodology and writing style.
Image:Photo_of_Huang_Yuanyung.JPG frame|right|Mr. Huang Yuanyong
Early life
Huang Yuanyong (Given name: Huang Weiji 黃為基) was born to an educated family in
Jiujiang (�江),
Jiangxi Province (江西�) in China on
1885-01-15. His father was a
scholar and an officer in charge of foreign affairs in
Ningbo (寧波), and a number of his family members were government officials. Influenced by his family, Huang immersed himself in
Chinese classics when he grew up. To improve his
English language English, his family hired a foreign tutor to teach him the language.
Huang completed secondary schooling in the
Zhejiang (淅江) province. During his studies at ''Zhejiang Huxing Nanxun Government School'' (浙江å?³èˆˆå?—潯公å¸), he was involved in
Education reform educational reform campaigns and became a member of the ''Progressive Party'' (進æ¥é»¨). In
1903, Huang came in seventh place in the regional examination in Jiangxi (江西). Nevertheless, the 19-year-old Huang did not follow the custom of becoming a government official, instead continuing his legal study at
Chuo University in
Tokyo,
Japan. Six years later, he returned to China and started working at the ''Civil Postal Department'' (郵傳部). Later on, he became a
journalist and worked for several different papers and news agencies. Huang was particularly famous for his discussions of
politics and
social issue social issues.
Life as a journalist
Background
Following the collapse of the
List of Emperors of the Qing Dynasty Qing emperor, Huang ceased his work as an officer in the new government of the Republic of China. Li Shengduo (�盛�), one of the
Beiyang five ministers (北洋五大臣), played an influential role for Huang. He advised Huang to enter
journalism, saying that "In western countries, the majority of journalists are familiar with
history and
international affairs. If you choose to work in this field, there is no doubt you will become a famous reporter." After receiving Li's advice, Huang began his career as a journalist.
Huang soon won recognition for his abilities as a journalist. In
1912, the founding year of the Republic of China, Huang, Lan Gongwu (è—?å…¬æ¦) and Zhang Junmai (å¼µå?›å‹±), who were known as "The trio of youth for modern China" (æ–°ä¸åœ‹ä¸‰å°‘å¹´), first published ''Shao Nian Zhong Guo Weekly'' 《少年ä¸åœ‹å‘¨åˆŠã€‹ to criticise politics. Later on, Huang and two other young journalists, Liu Shaoshao (劉少少) and Ding Foyan (ä¸?佛言), were entitled '"The outstanding trio of journalism" (æ–°è?žç•Œä¸‰å‚‘).
Huang was also regarded as "The first genuine reporter in the modern context in China" (ä¸åœ‹ç¬¬ä¸€å€‹çœŸæ£ç?¾ä»£æ„?義上的記者) and his ''Yuansheng Tongxun'' (é? 生通訊), a special column of news dispatch, became the most popular and famous brand in Chinese journalism.
Contribution to Newspapers and Magazines
Huang's first job was to write articles for the ''Ya Shi Ya' Daily News'' (äºžç´°äºžæ—¥å ±) in Shanghai. The positions at
newspapers and
magazines that he later served include:
Image:Shen_Bao.jpg thumbnail|''Shen Bao''
*''Shen Bao'' (ç”³å ±) - newspaper reporter
*''Shi Bao'' (æ™‚å ±) - newspaper reporter
*''Dong Fang'' Daily News (æ?±æ–¹æ—¥å ±) - newspaper reporter
*''Shao Nian Zhong Guo ''Weekly (å°‘å¹´ä¸åœ‹å‘¨åˆŠ) - founder and magazine editor
*''Yong Yan'' (庸言) - magazine editor
*''Dong Fang'' Magazine (�方雜誌) - writer
*''Lun Heng'' (è«–è¡¡) - writer
*''Guo Min Gong Bao'' (åœ‹æ°‘å…¬å ±) - writer
With his academic background and working experiences, Huang took up a number of roles in the field. He worked as a chief editor (主編), an appointed regional reporter in
Beijing (�京記者) and Shanghai, and a freelance article writer (自由撰稿人). He was well-known for being diversified and productive. In
1915, Huang's clash with Yuan Shikai (�世凱) eventually cost him his job. The news of Huang being shot to death in the
United States shortly after his arrival shocked the
news press and
literary circles of China.
Publications
Among Huang's publications,''Yuansheng yi zhu'' 《é? 生é?ºè‘—》 is a collection which consists of 239 pieces of his posthumous articles. It was published by Huang's friend, Lin Zhijun (林志鈞), after Huang's death in
1919. From
1920 to
1927, four editions of this book were published by the [http://www.commercialpress.com.hk/ww/english/history.htm Commercial Press] of Shanghai (商務�書館，上海). It was the first collection of news articles in Chinese publishing history. Huang's articles included news reporting, political analysis, and the like. The majority of Huang's articles were reports of major events and influential people in the turbulent politics of
China at the time.
His publications on political issues include:
*''A Warning to the Trio Superpower'' 《å°?於三大勢力之è¦å‘Šã€‹
*''An Overview of Current Politics'' 《最近之大勢》
*''Astray Official'' 《官迷論》
*''Conflict between Traditional and Contemporary Thoughts'' 《新舊�想之��》
*''New Year in Beijing'' 《北京之新年》
*''Three Days' Astronomy'' 《三日觀天記》
*''The Chef of the Ambassador'' 《外交部之厨å?》
His other publications include:
* ''My Confession'' 《懺悔錄》
* ''Introspection'' 《å??çœ?》
* ''Passive Optimism'' 《消極之樂觀》
As a journalist, he interviewed many important figures of the time, including:
*
Sun Yat-sen (å«ä¸å±±)
*
Huang Xing (黃興)
*
Song Jiaoren (宋教�)
*Chang Taiyen (ç« å¤ªç‚Ž)
*
Cai Yuanpei (蔡元培)
*
Yuan Shikai (�世凱)
*
Li Yuanhong (黎元洪)
*Tang Shaoyi (�紹儀)
*Lu Zhengxiang (陸�祥)
*Zhao Bingkwun (趙秉鈞)
*Xiong Xiling (熊希齡)
*
Duan Qirui (段祺瑞)
Huang reported on many important events in China. For example:
*The assassination of Song Jiaoren (宋教�被剌殺)
*The resignation of Yuan Shikai (�內閣兩次倒�)
*The signing of ''The Twenty-One Demands'' (喪權辱國的二å??一æ¢?)
*The resignation of Tang Shaoyi (å”?紹儀請è¾)
Clash with Yuan Shikai
Huang initially supported the creation of the
Republic of China under
Yuan Shikai's leadership. However, the new government became a great disappointment to Huang. He felt that despite the Progressive Party's rhetoric it was still a corrupt organization.
Image:Yuan_Shikai.JPG frame|right|Yuan Shikai (center) with foreign embassy
In the articles entitled ''Big Loan Incident'' (大借款事件) and ''The Twenty-One Demands'' (喪權辱國的二å??一æ¢?), Huang described Yuan's alleged secret deals with foreign powers and betrayal of the nation’s interest for his own sake. Huang once described the status of the
government as “idealess, dead-ended and hopeless" (無�想�無解決�無希望的政府). However, what most upset Huang was the threat to the
freedom of the press that he felt Yuan represented. Under Yuan, journalists were prohibited to attend political meetings (政治會è°) and the censorship of
newspapers also became the custody of the Police Authority (è¦å¯Ÿå®˜ç½²).
Between 1912 and 1916 Yuan and his party extended their control over the news media, banning 71 newspapers and arresting more than 60 journalists. These events left Huang with a much more pessimistic view of the importance of journalism.
The incident which triggered the final clash of Huang and Yuan occurred in 1915. At that time, news media sympathetic to Yuan had been promoting his plan to revive the
Monarchy monarchic system in China. At first, he offered
Liang Qichao (�啟超) two hundred thousand dollars to write an article in favor of him, but Liang refused. Then he approached Huang due to Huang’s reputation. Yuan offered him ten thousand dollars to become a
Political minister minister and the chief
editor of ''Ya Shi Ya Daily News'' (äºžç´°äºžæ—¥å ±), which was under his control. Still, Huang was unwilling to violate his principles as a journalist. Huang posted his announcement entitled ''My declaration of opposing the
monarchic system and resignation from all positions of Yuan's group of publishers'' 《黃é? 生å??å°?å¸?制並è¾åŽ»è¢?ç³»å ±ç´™è?˜ç´„啟事》 in most major newspapers in Shanghai, including ''Shen Bao'' (ç”³å ±). Huang published further similar announcements in several papers, including ''Shen Bao'' (ç”³å ±) and ''Shi Shi Xin Bao'' (æ™‚äº‹æ–°å ±) to clarify his political break from Yuan.
Yuan maintained pressure on Huang by naming him chief editor of ''Ya Shi Ya Daily News'' against his will, a position which Huang rejected. Eventually, though, Huang tried to escape this political battle, devoting himself to further academic studies.
Influence on China
Journalism
Huang's writings were an important element in transforming traditional China into its modern form. Huang and other famous journalists such as
Kang Youwei (康有為) and
Liang Qichao (æ¢?啟超) formed the ''Group of Journalists'' (å ±äººé›†åœ˜), which played an important role in late Qing Dynasty. As the educated ones, the group's opinions towards the society would be released to the public so that the dark side of the nation could be disclosed, enhancing the public's awareness of social issues. The group was undeniably a major breakthrough in China's journalistic history.
Huang was most active before and after the
Xinhai Revolution (辛亥�命). That period was a dark age for cultural development in China, with the interference from the past and the present, China and the West. Huang showed his concern and worries in that period through his writings. Strictly speaking, there was nobody who would write so many articles as Huang did at that time.
Huang emphasized that a journalist should be equipped with four important abilities:
*The ability to think critically (è…¦ç‹èƒ½æƒ³)
*The ability to run (腿腳能奔走) - to develop and broaden interpersonal network to enrich news sources
*The ability to listen (耳能��) - to analyze and co-ordinate trivial pieces into consequence
*The ability to write (手能寫�) directly, without distortion
Literature
Image:Chen_Duxiu.JPG thumbnail|[[Chen Duxiu]]
Many
intellectuals such as
Chen Duxiu (陳�秀) were influenced by Huang's ideas. They organized and published "
New Youths" 《新�年》 and "New current of ideas" 《新潮》, which were largely promoted in
Shanghai. More than thirty articles of the two publications mentioned Huang's name and his innovative ideas. One famous intellectual,
Hu Shih (胡�), even considered Huang as the "First Voice" of promoting a new type of
literature in his book ''Wu shi nian lai zhi wen xue'' (Literature within fifty years) 《五å??年來之文å¸ã€‹.
Huang has been regarded as the pioneer of the
May Fourth Movement (五四�動). He advocated the ''Literary Enlightenment Movement'' (文�啟蒙�動) by promoting
modern Chinese literature and introducing Western ideas to China. In his article, ''My Confession'' 《懺悔錄》, he argued that a prerequisite for the betterment of the society is to improve the personality and quality of citizens. (“今日無論何ç‰æ–¹é?¢ï¼Œè‡ªä»¥æ”¹é?©ç‚ºç¬¬ä¸€è¦?義â€?，è¦?改é?©åœ‹å®¶).
Education
Image:Imperial_Examination.JPG frame|right|A Painting of Imperial Examination
Although Huang achieved a good result in the
Imperial Examination himself, he was highly critical of the system. Instead he stated that after the collapse of Qing Dynasty, the examination system should also eventually be removed. Although new examination systems and schools were immediately introduced to China following the collapse, there were still a large number of people who gained nothing in the old system and could not fit into the new one. Huang argued that these people would become a threat to the society.
Writing
Before becoming a journalist Huang immersed himself in writing literature, as
classical Chinese literature was still popular in the late Qing dynasty. He was known for writing fluently, with major use of rhetoric and allusion.
However, Huang realized that news articles should be comprehensible enough to be read by many people and that the use of classical
Chinese language might obstruct the flow of expression. He therefore decided to change his style of writing. By writing in simple and colloquial language, Huang's articles magnified his critical and satirical attitude.
Mystery of his death
Huang was assassinated while visiting
San Francisco,
United States on Christmas Day (December 25),
1915, at the age of 30.
Image:Chinese_Revolutionary_Party.JPG thumbnail|Zhonghua Revolutionary Party
The circumstances of Huang's death remain a mystery, not only because there was political instability in
China, but also because he was assassinated in San Francisco, far from his home. As a result, there are several possible explanations for the incident.
There were two versions of the story of the murder of Huang. One possibility is that Huang was shot by a killer sent by Yuan Shikai as payback for Huang's opposition to Yuan's monarchic system. Another version was that he was mistakenly assassinated by Liu Beihai (劉北海), a member of the Zhonghua Revolutionary Party (ä¸è?¯é?©å‘½é»¨), which was later known as the
Kuomintang Nationalist Party (國民黨). The Party suspected that Huang was indeed working for Yuan, and his purpose for visiting the U.S. was to promote the
monarchic system. However there is still not enough evidence to prove that Huang's death was related to Yuan, even today.
The date of Huang's assassination has also been called into some doubt. In the introduction of ''Yuansheng yi zhu'' 《é? 生é?ºè‘—》, a posthumous collection of Huang's articles, Lin Zhijun (林志鈞) recalled that he had heard the news on the night of 27th December, 1915, and gives this date as the day of Huang's death. However, some scholars, including Li Shengduo (æ?Žç››é?¸), believed that Huang was indeed killed on 25th December, as the date the news came did not necessarily have to be the day of the assassination. Therefore, generally, it has been accepted that the date of Huang's death was 25th December, 1915.
External links
-
The Wuchang Uprising - in 1911
-
Rise of the Republic China - from 1912
-
The Period of Beiyang Warlord Rule
References
*Yang, Zongsheng. ''Famous Chinese People and the Mass Media.'' Xianggang : Xianggang Journalistic Publication, 2002.
*Li, Longmu. ''Facts about Journalism in China.'' Shanghai : Shanghai People Publication, 1985.
*Li, Liangrong. ''The Development of Newspaper in China and the Problems arised.'' Fuzhou : Fujian Peoples Publication, 2002.
*Zhang, Jinglu. ''Newspapers in China.'' Shanghai : Guang hua, 1928.
*He, Jingzhong. ''A hundred years of Journalism.'' Beijing : China Economics Publication, 2001.
*Fang Hanqi, Zhang Zhihua. ''The Illustration of Journalism in China.'' Beijing : Peoples University Press, 1995.
*Tang, Zhenchang. ''Shi hai xun du.'' Xianggang: Tian di Publication Company Limited, 2000.
*Lin, Zhijun. ''Yuansheng Yizhu (The last work of Huang Yuansheng).'' Taipei : Wenhai Publication, 1968.
Category:1885 births Huang Yuan yong
Category:1915 deaths Huang Yuan yong
Category:Chinese writers Huang Yuan yong
Category:Chinese journalists Huang Yuan yong
Category:Murdered journalists Huang Yuan yong
Category:Murdered writers Huang Yuan yong
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