Taiwanese Literature During Japanese Rule
In the spring of 1895, the literary destiny of Taiwan began a new chapter with the signing of the Treaty of Shimonoseki. If Taiwanese literature during the Qing Dynasty had slowly gestated within the womb of traditional Chinese culture, then the fifty years of Japanese rule witnessed its painful yet brilliant birth as an independent literary entity under the intense impact of Western modernity.
This was the most complex, contradictory, and dramatic period in Taiwanese literary history. The colonizer's language became the tool for the colonized to express resistance; the new literary concepts brought by the oppressor inspired the national awakening of the oppressed; the deepest cultural identity often emerged from the most intense cultural conflicts. During these fifty years, Taiwanese literature underwent multiple transformations—from classical to modern, from literary Chinese to vernacular, from Chinese to Japanese—ultimately finding its unique voice amidst multiple cultural tensions.
The 1895 Cession: Literary Historical Rupture
In 1895, with the echoes of gunfire from the First Sino-Japanese War still reverberating, the Treaty of Shimonoseki pushed Taiwan onto a different historical trajectory. For Taiwan's literati, this was not merely political upheaval, but a fundamental turning point in literary destiny.
The Heroic Cry of Anti-Japanese Literature
"Spring sorrow cannot be dispelled, I force myself to gaze at mountains, / Past events alarm the heart, tears about to fall. / Four million people weep as one, / Last year today Taiwan was ceded." This verse from poet Qiu Fengjia's "Spring Sorrow" captured the grief and helplessness of Taiwanese intellectuals facing the fate of cession.
During the 1895 period, Taiwan saw a surge of anti-Japanese literary works. These works, primarily poetry, expressed resistance to Japanese rule and longing for the motherland. Lian Yatang's "Preface to the General History of Taiwan," though compiled later, traced its spiritual origins to this period. The lament that "Taiwan has no history" reflected intellectuals' cultural consciousness in establishing historical records for Taiwan.
However, many literati chose to "cross over" and return to mainland China. This massive brain drain caused a temporary hiatus in Taiwan's literary development. The literati who remained in Taiwan either gradually fell silent under Japanese cultural policies or struggled painfully between tradition and modernity, local and foreign influences.
The New-Old Literature Debate: The Baptism of Modernity
Zhang Wojun: Pioneer of the New Literature Movement
In 1924, an article titled "A Letter to Taiwanese Youth" appeared in the Taiwan People's News, written by Zhang Wojun, who had recently returned from Beijing. This article fiercely criticized Taiwan's traditional poetry as "decadent and unbearable," advocating for the new literature promoted by Hu Shi and others, and calling for creation in vernacular Chinese.
Zhang Wojun's views triggered fierce controversy. Traditional literati led by Lian Yatang firmly opposed, arguing that vernacular Chinese was "shallow and tasteless" and damaged the depth of Chinese culture. The new literature camp led by Zhang Wojun believed that only vernacular Chinese could express modern thoughts and feelings, making literature truly accessible to the people.
This debate's significance transcended literature itself. It was fundamentally a discussion about Taiwan's cultural development direction: Should Taiwan preserve tradition or embrace modernity? Should it maintain elite culture or move toward popular culture? Should it stick to "national language" (Chinese) or accept "national language" (Japanese)?
Taiwan People's News: Cradle of New Literature
The Taiwan People's News, founded in 1925, became an important bastion for the new literature movement. This newspaper not only published political news but, more importantly, provided a platform for Taiwan's new literature. Many important writers published their debut works in this newspaper.
The literary pages of Taiwan People's News displayed obvious characteristics of the era: on one hand, it published new poetry, novels, and essays written in vernacular Chinese; on the other hand, it preserved space for traditional poetry, reflecting the transitional nature of old and new coexisting. More importantly, this newspaper began to focus on Taiwan's local social realities, laying the foundation for the rise of realist literature.
Lai He: Father of Taiwan's New Literature
If we were to choose the most important Taiwanese writer of the Japanese rule period, Lai He (1894-1943) would undoubtedly be the top choice. This rural doctor from Changhua laid the foundation for Taiwan's new literature with his literary works and is revered as the "Father of Taiwan's New Literature."
Literary Enlightenment and National Awakening
Lai He's literary creation was inseparable from his political awakening. In 1921, he participated in activities of the Taiwan Cultural Association and began to focus on Taiwan's social problems. In 1925, he published the essay "Untitled" and the new poem "Sacrifice Under Awakening—To the Comrades of the Erllin Incident," officially entering the field of new literature creation.
Lai He's representative work "Fighting the Heat" (1926) is considered Taiwan's first true vernacular novel. This novel, set against the backdrop of a temple fair, depicted the lifestyle of Taiwanese people while cleverly interspersing criticism of Japanese rule. The novel's language was vivid and lively, extensively using Taiwanese vocabulary, pioneering the localization of Taiwanese literature.
Establishing Realism
Lai He's literary creation consistently focused on social reality, particularly the living difficulties of the lower classes. His novel "A Steelyard" described the unfair treatment suffered by vendor Qin Decan due to changes in the measurement system, profoundly exposing the absurdity and cruelty of colonial rule.
This realist writing tendency established an important tradition for Taiwanese literature. It was not art for art's sake, but the practice of literature intervening in reality, reflecting people's hardships, and enlightening minds. This tradition later influenced a large group of writers including Yang Kui and Lu Heruo, becoming an important characteristic of Taiwanese literature.
Language Experimentation and Innovation
Lai He's experimentation in language use had pioneering significance. His works extensively used Taiwanese vocabulary and expressions, sometimes even directly phonetically transcribing Taiwanese into Chinese characters. This attempt caused considerable controversy at the time but established the direction of localization for Taiwanese literary language.
More importantly, through language experimentation, Lai He found an appropriate way to express the Taiwanese experience. His literary language maintained the literariness of Chinese while incorporating the liveliness of Taiwanese, creating a modern Chinese with local characteristics.
The Rise of Leftist Literature
Yang Kui: Standard-Bearer of Proletarian Literature
Yang Kui (1906-1985) was an important representative of Taiwan's leftist literature. He studied in Japan in his early years, came into contact with Marxist thought and proletarian literary theory, and after returning to Taiwan, devoted himself to creating and promoting socialist literature.
Yang Kui's representative work "The Paperboy" was Taiwan's first novel with a worker as protagonist. This work depicted the tragic experiences of a newspaper delivery boy, profoundly exposing the injustices of capitalist society. The novel's language was simple yet powerful, with vivid character portrayals, embodying the aesthetic characteristics of proletarian literature.
In 1935, Yang Kui founded Taiwan New Literature magazine, Taiwan's first purely literary magazine. The magazine not only published works by local writers but also extensively translated foreign leftist literary works, providing international perspectives for Taiwanese literature.
Zhang Shenqie and Taiwan Literature and Arts
In 1934, Taiwan Literature and Arts magazine was founded. Initiator Zhang Shenqie proposed an editorial policy of "regardless of ideology, regardless of faction," broadly uniting Taiwan's literary forces. This magazine became one of the most influential literary publications in Taiwan's literary history.
The characteristic of Taiwan Literature and Arts was inclusiveness and diversity. It published both leftist writers' works and modernist creations; it featured both Chinese writing and Japanese works; it focused on Taiwan's locality while also looking toward world literature. This open attitude laid the foundation for Taiwan literature's diverse development.
Literary Struggles During the Imperial Subject Period
The Rise of Japanese-Language Literature
After the outbreak of the Second Sino-Japanese War in 1937, Japan implemented the "Imperial Subject Movement" in Taiwan, prohibiting the public use of Chinese and mandating Japanese education. Against this background, a group of local writers emerged who created in Japanese.
These writers faced extremely complex cultural circumstances. On one hand, they had to create using the colonizer's language; on the other hand, they hoped to maintain concern for Taiwan's local culture in their works. This contradiction produced unique literary tension and gave birth to some excellent works.
Lu Heruo: Artist Transcending Language
Lu Heruo (1914-1951) was the most important writer of this period. His novel "Oxcart" depicted the decline of Taiwan's countryside with delicate brushstrokes, showing farmers' helplessness and struggle under the impact of modernization. Though written in Japanese, the spiritual core of the work remained deeply rooted in Taiwan's soil.
Lu Heruo's creation embodied colonial writers' cultural strategy: superficially cooperating with colonial policies while actually expressing guardianship of local culture through literary metaphor and symbolism. This "indirect writing" method became an important tradition in later Taiwanese literature.
Zhang Wenhuan: Literature's Perseverant
Zhang Wenhuan (1909-1978) was another important Japanese-language literary writer. His novel "Capon" used the story of a castrated rooster to metaphorically represent the fate of Taiwanese people under colonial rule. This use of symbolic technique both avoided political censorship and expressed profound political allegory.
In 1941, Zhang Wenhuan founded Taiwan Literature magazine, the most important literary publication during the Imperial Subject period. Though using Japanese, the magazine maintained Taiwan's local literary stance and provided a precious platform for Taiwanese writers.
Aesthetic Qualities of Colonial Literature
Literary Expression of Double Consciousness
Taiwanese literature during Japanese rule exhibited obvious characteristics of "double consciousness." Writers had to face the reality of colonial rule while maintaining identification with local culture; they had to learn modern literary techniques while upholding national literary positions. This complex cultural situation produced unique literary aesthetics.
This double consciousness manifested at many levels: language choice (Chinese or Japanese), subject matter selection (reality or tradition), stance determination (resistance or cooperation), style establishment (local or international). It was precisely through these complex choices that Taiwanese literature gradually formed its own characteristics.
Deepening of Realism
Taiwanese literature during Japanese rule was dominated by realism. This realism was not simple life description but carried strong social critical coloring and national consciousness. Through literary works, writers exposed the injustices of colonial rule, reflected people's suffering, and expressed pursuit of social justice.
The characteristic of this realist literature was closely combining individual destiny with national destiny. A farmer's bankruptcy often implied the decline of the entire agricultural society; an intellectual's struggle often reflected the predicament of the entire nation. This combination of grand narrative and personal narrative provided rich expressive space for Taiwanese literature.
Localization of Literary Language
Despite experiencing multiple language transitions, Taiwanese literature during Japanese rule consistently sought literary language suitable for expressing the Taiwanese experience. Whether it was Lai He's Taiwanese writing, Yang Kui's popularized Chinese, or Lu Heruo's "Taiwan-style Japanese," all embodied writers' relentless exploration of localizing literary language.
The significance of this exploration lay not only in finding tools of expression but in establishing the linguistic characteristics of Taiwanese literature. What should the language of Taiwanese literature be like? How can one maintain literariness while embodying local characteristics? The exploration of these questions provided valuable experience for post-war Taiwanese literary development.
Historical Turning Point
On August 15, 1945, with the Japanese Emperor's announcement of surrender, Taiwan's Japanese rule period officially ended. For Taiwanese literature, this was both the end of one era and the beginning of another.
The fifty years of Japanese rule left a rich legacy for Taiwanese literature: establishment of modern literary concepts, awakening of localization consciousness, cultural inclusiveness, and establishment of realist tradition. These all became important foundations for post-war Taiwanese literary development.
At the same time, this period also exposed some problems in Taiwanese literary development: confusion over language identity, ambiguity of cultural identity, and complexity of political stance. These problems continued to exist after the war and appeared in new forms under different historical conditions.
Conclusion: Blooming in the Cracks
Taiwanese literature during Japanese rule was like flowers blooming in the cracks. It was caught between tradition and modernity, between local and foreign, between resistance and cooperation. It was precisely in these complex tensions that Taiwanese literature found its voice and established its character.
Lai He's physician's pen, Yang Kui's fighting voice, Lu Heruo's artistic beauty, Zhang Wenhuan's persistent will—these different literary faces together constitute the rich landscape of Taiwanese literature during Japanese rule. Through their creations, they proved that even under the most difficult historical conditions, literature could still uphold its ideals and express the nation's voice.
This period's Taiwanese literature laid a solid foundation for later development. Its realist tradition, localization consciousness, spirit of resistance, and cultural inclusiveness all became important characteristics of Taiwanese literature, influencing it to this day. As Lai He wrote in his poem: "Warriors should fight for justice"—this literary courage and idealism remain Taiwan literature's most precious treasure.
References:
- Ye Shitao, Outline of Taiwan Literary History
- Chen Fangming, Colonial Taiwan: Historical Essays on Leftist Political Movements
- Kawahara Isao, The Development of Taiwan's New Literature Movement
- Nakajima Toshiro (ed.), Collected Essays on Taiwan Literary History During Japanese Rule