Lao She
Biography
Lao She (real name: Shu Qingchun) was born in Beijing in 1899. His father served in the Imperial Guards during the Manchu reign but was killed during the Boxer Rebellion in 1900. While at high school, he studied English and then taught Chinese at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London for five years. He began his writing career while in England, much influenced by Dickens, Zola and Conrad. In 1930 he returned to China and became a university professor. After the war, he went to the United States as a visiting lecturer but returned to China when the People’s Republic was founded. He wrote many popular plays and was given the title of People’s Artist. However, he was persecuted by the Red Guards and committed suicide in 1966.
Books about Lao She
Britt Towery: Lao She, China’s Master Storyteller
Raneir Vohra: Lao She and the Chinese Revolution
Other links
Bibliography
(only books translated into English)
1929 二马 (The Two Mas)
1933 猫城记 (Cat Country; Cat City)
1933 離婚 (The Quest for Love of Lao Lee)
1934 牛天賜傳 (Heavensent)
1936 駱駝祥子 (Camel Xiangzi; Rickshaw; Rickshaw Boy)
1946 四世同堂 (The Yellow Storm)
1952 鼓书艺人 (Drum Singers)
1953 正紅旗下 (Beneath the Red Banner)
1953 龙须沟 (Dragon Beard Ditch)
1953 蒠馆 (Teahouse)
1963 馬先生與馬威 (Ma and Son; Mr. Ma & Son)
1985 月牙兒 (Crescent Moon and Other Stories)
1999 Blades of Grass: the Stories of Lao She