A00078 - Wu Hsin-jung, Taiwanese Poet

 Hsin-jung, Wu

"The flower is not concerned about tomorrow. 

"It does not plan.

"It does not worry about death.

"Nor does it make effort to smell beautifully.

"The flower teaches being -- Being what one is."

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Wu Hsin-jung Memorial Statue.

Wu Hsin-jung^[a] (Chinese: 吳新榮; Taiwanese: Ngôo Sin-îng; October 12, 1907 – March 27, 1967)

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Wu Hsin-jung^[a] (Chinese: 吳新榮; Taiwanese: Ngôo Sin-îng; October 12, 1907 – March 27, 1967) was a prominent figure in the literary group known as the Saline Land and was also a physician and political figure.^[1] He was from Siaolung Subprefecture, Yenshui Port Prefecture, which is present-day Jiangjun District, Tainan City, Taiwan.

Activities

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Around 1930, Wu Hsin-jung began publishing new poems, describing himself as "a doctor by profession and a literary lover by passion".^[2] He actively engaged in literary creation and activities. Later, he participated in the Taiwan Alliance for Literature and Arts and, in 1935, co-founded the Taiwan Literature and Art Association Jiali Branch with Kuo Shui-t'an and others. Since many works of the Taiwan Alliance for Literature and Arts Jiali Branch were inspired by the local Saline Land, this literary school was also called the Saline Land School.^[3] After the dissolution of the association in 1936, Wu Hsin-jung continued to publish works in literary magazines and was later known as one of the Seven of Beimen (北門七子).^{[citation needed]}

For a period, Wu Hsin-jung was actively involved in public affairs and politics.^[4] He was elected as a councilman in Tainan County after World War II, but later shifted his focus to local history research and writing after facing consecutive election defeats around 1950.^[5][6] He edited the quarterly Tainan Vignettes (南瀛文獻) and worked on books such as Tainan County Gazette (台南縣志稿) and Annals of the Changes of Nankunshen Temple (南鯤鯓代天府沿革志).^{[citation needed]}

After Wu Hsin-jung's passing, his works were compiled into The Complete Works of Wu Hsin-jung (published by Vista Publishing) and three volumes of Selected Works of Wu Hsin-jung (published by Tainan Cultural Center).^[7] In 2007, the National Museum of Taiwan Literature published Wu Hsin-jung 1933-1937 (吳新榮日記全集), which became an important historical source for understanding southern Taiwan.^[8]

Notes

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1. ^ Courtesy name Shih-min (史民), pseudonyms Chen-ying (震瀛), Chao-hsing (兆行), or later Suo-Lang-shan-fang-chu-jen (琑琅山房主人, literally “Owner of the Crystal and Clear Mountain House”)

References

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1. ^ Shih, Yi-lin, ed. (2014). 臺灣現當代作家研究資料彙編55：吳新榮 [Research Compilation on Contemporary Taiwanese Writers No. 55: Wu Hsin-jung]. Tainan: National Museum of Taiwan Literature. p. 51.
2. ^ Kuo, Chih-Chuan (2002). 台灣歷史人物小傳─日據時期 [Biographical Sketches of Historical Figures in Taiwan - Japanese occupation period (1895-1945)]. Taipei: National Central Library. pp. 59–60.
3. ^ Chen, Fang-ming. "吳新榮的左翼詩學—台灣新文學運動的一個轉折" [Wu Hsin-jung's Leftist Poetics - A Turning Point in the Taiwan New Literature Movement]. 吳新榮選集（二） [Wu Hsin-jung's Selected Works (Part 2)]. Tainan: Tainan County Cultural Bureau. p. 254.
4. ^ Wu, Hsin-jung (1991). 吳新榮回憶錄 [Memoirs of Wu Hsin-jung]. Taipei: Vanguard Publishing Company.
5. ^ Wu, Hsin-jung (2008). Zhang, Liang-Ze (ed.). 吳新榮日記全集8：1945-1947 [Complete Diary of Wu Hsin-jung 8: 1945-1947]. Tainan: National Museum of Taiwan Literature. p. 321.
6. ^ Wu, Hsin-jung (1989). 吳新榮回憶錄：清白交代的台灣人家族史 [Memoirs of Wu Hsin-jung: A Taiwanese Family History with a Clear Conscience] (1st ed.). Taipei: Vanguard Publishing Company. p. 230.
7. ^ Kuo, Chih-Chuan (2002). 台灣歷史人物小傳─日據時期 [Biographical Sketches of Historical Figures in Taiwan - Japanese occupation period (1895-1945)]. Taipei: National Central Library. pp. 59–60.
8. ^ Zhang, Liang-Ze, ed. (2007). 吳新榮日記全集 1-11 [Complete Diaries of Wu Hsin-jung, Volumes 1-11] (1st ed.). Tainan: National Museum of Taiwan Literature.

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