Chinese Literature - Li-hua Ying 2010

ROU SHI, PEN NAME OF ZHAO PINGFU (1902—1931)
The Dictionary

ROU SHI, PEN NAME OF ZHAO PINGFU (1902—1931). Poet and fiction writer. Born in Zhejiang, Rou Shi attended Hangzhou Number One Teachers’ College, where he became a member of Chen Guang She (The Morning Sun Association), a progressive literary organization. After graduating, he taught at various schools and continued to write in his spare time. The short stories he wrote expressed his frustration with the state of the country. In Shanghai, he became acquainted with Lu Xun, who invited him to edit Yu si (Words and Language). He was a founding member of the Left-wing Association of Chinese Writers and the Chinese Communist Party. He was arrested by the Nationalist government and executed in prison along with four other left-wing writers. Of his fictional works, “Wei nuli de muqin” (Slave Mother) is best known. It describes a peasant woman’s sad life and calls for the liberation of the working poor. Other works include “San jiemei” (Three Sisters) and Jiu shidai zhi si (Death of the Old Era) as well as a poetry collection, Zhan (Fight). He also translated literature from Denmark, the Soviet Union, and Eastern Europe. See also CIVIL WAR.