Chapter 12 56-60

Chapter 56: Skipping class/Mongolia (2) Most teachers will not really threaten students with roll call.It seems to be very strange once.I remember that it was a course on the principles of Marxism, and the departments of Chinese and law co-authored it in the large classroom of the No. 1 Jiaotong University.Our boys have matured experience in skipping classes, so we decided not to expose our strength prematurely from the first class, and everyone platooned representatives to take turns to attend class.In this way, intuitively, our teacher has never known exactly how many students there are.The final exam, God knows, whether they print the test papers according to the teaching seat or what.It shouldn't be the roster, but the papers turned out to be insufficient.So the political teacher said, those who don't have test questions, don't worry, I will go to other departments to test the questions.After a few minutes, some students' problems were solved, but the papers were still not enough.Our industrious teacher is three.I remember that half an hour had passed, and he suddenly burst out laughing. "Report! Teacher, we don't have test questions yet." Three more students stood up from the corner.The poor young teacher's face turned pale, so he went out to debug the questions again.The result of the political examination was that out of the forty people in our class, more than ten failed.The funny thing is that the vast majority of girls fail.So girls complained to us and said: Boys cause trouble, girls are blamed.

The time saved by skipping classes is really refreshing, just like stolen melons and fruits are really sweet.Everyone had everything to do, but at that time, there was a rural area around Peking University, and the entertainment was monotonous. Most of the students were sleeping late, visiting friends, reading idle books, listening to lectures, going to the library, or listening to classes they were interested in.After my junior year, I basically did not take the exams for the lectures, and did not listen to the lectures for the exams.At the end of my junior year, my credits were still two short.A classmate told me that Mr. Wu Xiaodong, who has just stayed at the school, is very talkative, and it is enough to write an article on symbolism in his class.I am relatively familiar with Baudelaire, Maeterlinck, etc., and spent two or three hours in the library, drafting an assignment and handing it in hastily.After many days, a classmate told me that Mr. Wu wanted to see you.I went to his tube room on the 25th floor. Teacher Wu looked at me and said gently: "You look very unfamiliar, don't you seldom attend classes?" "This made Mr. Wu stunned for a while, "However, your article contains all the basic points about symbolism." I could only blushed, and he continued: "Let you come here, Because your article is well written, I give you high marks."

At that time, there was a "reading room for teachers and postgraduates of the Chinese Department" on the south side of the second floor of the library (today's old library), which was only open to students who were senior undergraduates or above.I spend most of my time there, and one of the scenery is the old man Ji Xianlin, who sits on time in the southeast corner of the reading room closest to the library every day soon after the library opens, reading quietly.Occasionally, familiar people bowed to him, smiled at each other, and then quickly found their own seats, and each quietly read a book.It is not surprising that Wu Zuxiang, Lin Geng and others appeared here. Maybe they have all been here, but I don’t recognize them.There are several shelves of hard-shelled blue-covered literature books, which may be specially recommended for students. The library has specially packaged high-quality translations. The ones I remember most are "Selected Translations of Foreign Literature Masterpieces" published by People's Literature Publishing House and Shanghai Translation. "Foreign Literature Series of the 20th Century", etc., and I have read most of the works that are not too big.

Chapter 57: Notes on Skipping Classes / Mengmu (3) This is my literary enlightenment.Use the time to escape from class to go to the library and listen to lectures.And of course go out for a walk.I had four high school classmates in Tsinghua, but I was more familiar with Tsinghua campus than them at that time, because they had to study hard in class and do experiments, and their parents and friends came over, and I was often the one who played with them and didn’t have any Qian, so I am very familiar with the free tourist attraction of Peking University and Tsinghua University. Of course, at that time, the Old Summer Palace could be drilled through the wall behind No. 21 High School, so the undeveloped Old Summer Palace is a bit like Lu Xun’s Baicao Garden for the students who skipped classes at Peking University.

After graduation, I went to meet some friends who were teaching in colleges and universities, and found that many colleges have fixed seats, fixed evening self-study, and closed the gate after 11 o'clock.What is the difference between such a university and a high school?It's nothing more than cultivating more good employees who will ask for instructions in everything.However, this society does need good employees more than people with independent ideas.From the perspective of earning a living, what Peking University gave me may not be good, but she raised a corner of my dark room, and I once glimpsed a world that should be free and dignified.Although I am still unable to rush out, I can yearn, yearning sweetly and painfully.

Meng Mu, formerly known as Gao Lizhi, native of Pi County, Jiangsu Province, was born in March 1973. He graduated from the Chinese Department of Peking University in 1991. He trained in Shijiazhuang Army Academy for one year and graduated in 1996. In 2000, he returned to school for postgraduate study, major: ancient Chinese literary theory. After graduating with a master's degree in 2003, he worked in Central Compilation and Translation Publishing House.Current position: planning editor. Chapter 58: A Little Story / Hong Zicheng (1) Dream into the juvenile cluster Mr. Wang Yao has a lot of witty words in his study.One time, somehow talking about a person’s relationship with his alma mater, he put down his famous pipe and said calmly: If the graduates are more famous than the school, the school will accumulate your reputation and become a famous school; It will be sent to you (to the effect).I don't know whether the teacher intends to encourage us to ask questions, and I don't know what other students in the audience think.I realized that day: I will always be soaked in the light and warmth of my alma mater.

A little bit of the past (Hong Zicheng) From the autumn of 1965 to the first half of 1966, together with my students, I participated in the "Siqing" ("socialist education" movement) in Xiaohongmen, Chaoyang District, a rural suburb of Beijing.At that time, I had been teaching in school for more than four years after graduation. On June 1, after China Central Radio broadcast the big-character poster written by Nie Yuanzi and others, the school quickly sent a "work team" and asked us to return immediately to participate in the movement called the "Cultural Revolution".Stepping into the school gate, I saw big-character posters everywhere, and excited crowds everywhere: this is a bit like the "French Revolution" (or the "October Revolution" in Russia) in my imagination or from literary works.According to the regulations at the time, I no longer went to the students' classes, but returned to the teaching and research section, and the teachers concentrated on studying and holding meetings.

One day in early June, a student cadre from the class where I was the head teacher came to my dormitory.After knocking on the door, I stood and informed with a serious expression that I would go to their class meeting in the afternoon.When I asked what the meeting was about, he refused to sit down and left without answering.At two o'clock in the afternoon, I came to the 32nd floor, and the hallway was covered with big-character posters.There are also about me, with comics, as if the character Vanka in Chekhov's novel is talking to me-"Vanka" is an article I analyzed when I gave them a writing class.I didn't have time to take a closer look, the room was surprisingly quiet; everyone looked at me, but no one greeted me.I saw that the upper and lower tiers of the bed and the aisle were full of people, except for a stool by the window: I realized that this was my seat.With his head down, he hurried to the window and sat down.

At this time, the host announced: "Today we will hold a class meeting to criticize Comrade Hong Zicheng." This sudden "criticism" and the sudden title of "comrade" immediately threw me into a panic, without any mental preparation. My mind went blank.Then I heard the words "Hong Zicheng, you have to listen carefully to everyone's speech, and check yourself honestly...".So, almost subconsciously, I took out my notebook and turned to the table to make notes.From the critical speech, I gradually understood what my problem was.One is to spread bourgeois poisons, especially petty bourgeois sentiments, in teaching.The other is that the head teacher made a "class line error" and reused students from reactionary class families; yes, most of the branch and class meeting cadres came from revolutionary cadres and poor and lower-middle peasant families, but "Hong Zicheng didn't really rely on us. Those young masters, those young ladies."Some of the speeches were sharp and fierce, while others were a bit hesitant in their tone and wording; a few days ago, they called me teacher, but now in front of me, I don’t know how to call my name confidently.The desk is placed against the wall, which allows me to record without facing the students, and thus my mood is a little more stable.

After about an hour or so, there was a small "climax" in the already dull meeting.A student sitting on the upper bunk exposed that I had "poisoned" in class, and burst into tears when he got excited. "You don't let us write about the parade to see Chairman Mao. What is your intention?! We revolutionary cadres and the children of poor and lower-middle peasants love the great leader the most. The moment we look forward to the most and the happiest is seeing him, but you don't let him We write..." He choked up, unable to continue.This sincere and heartfelt accusation resonated with many people present; some people led the slogan "Long live Chairman Mao".I froze, but he said it was true.In the writing class (I have been giving "writing classes" to the Chinese Department and liberal arts departments after graduation), usually for the first-year students who have just entered the school, there will be composition questions such as "First Arrival at Peking University", and many people will naturally Will write about their participation in the National Day Parade.When I commented on the article, I seemed to say that if we want to overcome mediocrity, we must pay attention to and cultivate your sensitivity and discover your true experience; take the parade as an example, everyone’s discovery is different, so don’t From preparation, departure, to meeting Chairman Mao, to returning to school in the same way; you can write before you leave, or after you return; what you think is the most important is not necessarily the most worthy of writing... This classmate It should be referring to this matter.After this "climax" occurs, the criticism will not know how to proceed.So, the host announced the end.The room returned to the strange silence before the start.I put away the notebook, and left in a hurry under the silent gaze of everyone.

Back in the dormitory, I looked at my "mistakes" one by one from the notebook, and the more I read, the more I felt sad, wronged, and even resentful.Thinking back to how I carefully prepared each class, how to correct each article, densely wrote the comments on it, and how to point out the existing problems to the students individually.I forgot the society and social mentality at that time, and I couldn't figure out why the sincere labor was not recognized, but was criticized instead.For a long time, I fell into the depression of "self-pity and self-pity", and found an explanation for the rationality of this emotion.But the incident was quickly forgotten by "us".I say "we" because both the students, and I, are directed and invested in larger events, and larger people.Criticism meetings, large and small, have also become commonplace in those few years.My relationship with the students, on the surface, quickly returned to the original situation.Moreover, it seems to be a kind of tacit understanding, and none of us said a word about that criticism meeting afterwards.However, for me, the psychological barriers and obstacles have not been completely eliminated. Chapter 59: A Little Story / Hong Zicheng (2) When I recalled this incident again, it was in the late summer and early autumn of 1969.At that time, most of the teachers and I had been declared to work in the "May 7 Cadre School" by the Poyang Lake in Jiangxi.Before leaving, there are many things to deal with: packing books for storage; buying supplies for working and living; thinking that it is very likely that I will never return to Beijing, so I rode a bicycle with Xie Mian and Zhou Xianshen, and traveled all over Beijing's famous historical sites and scenic spots to take pictures... …The most troublesome thing for me is how to deal with the dozen or so diaries since I entered the university.Whether it is taken away or placed in the department's warehouse where teachers' belongings are stored, I feel inappropriate. It's not that there are any secrets such as "connecting with foreign countries" in it, but writing for myself, and I don't want others to read it. arrive.After much deliberation, finally, the day before I left, I tore up and burned the pages in the open space among the bushes in front of the 19th floor (the residence of the single teachers of the Department of Chinese and History).I couldn't help but read it with nostalgia when it was burned, and then watched them turn into black ash.When I read those parts between 1958 and 1959, I found that I also played the role of a fierce "critic" at that time. In 1958, I was already a second-year student. Not long after the "Anti-Rightist" movement ended, the "Great Leap Forward" began across the country.In addition to participating in the construction of the Ming Tombs Reservoir, participating in the elimination of "four pests", large-scale iron and steel smelting, and participating in the campaign to dig the land to create a record of 100,000 catties per mu of wheat, in school it is "pulling out the white flag and planting the red flag"-criticism "Bourgeois" expert authority.Peking University is a place where famous scholars gather.Before we entered the school, we were familiar with the name of "authority" in literature, history and philosophy.Most of them get "shocked" in this movement.I remember that linguists Wang Li, Cen Qixiang, Yuan Jiahua, and Gao Mingkai from the Chinese Department, and writers and literary historians Wu Zuxiang, Lin Geng, You Guoen, and Wang Yao, all of whom had academic ideas and research results, were criticized during this period.But in my class, Mr. Wang was criticized. Until now, I still don't know why this "task" was entrusted to me.What I know is that whether it is a movement, or the specific targets and methods of criticism, it is not just a matter of the school, and it is impossible for us young students who have little political experience and experience to decide.For Mr. Wang's works, the main criticism is his "Chinese New Literature History Draft", which was the earliest published after the founding of the People's Republic of China and was also the most influential work on the history of modern Chinese literature at that time.At that time, we hadn’t actually studied the history of modern literature (it was a compulsory course for the third grade), and many of the literary phenomena and works mentioned in the book were unfamiliar to us.However, since the "Historical Draft" is determined to be bourgeois in nature, we "little people" who stand on the "proletarian standpoint" are entitled to despise authority, so we are divided into several groups to fight against the "two lines" in the literary and art circles Prepare for several topics such as "Party Leadership" and "Research Methods".I was placed in the last group.We first study Mao Zedong's "On New Democracy" and "Speech at the Yan'an Forum on Literature and Art", and Zhou Yang's article summarizing the "Anti-Rightist" Movement, and then use these "weapons" at our disposal to seek "Historical Draft "The bourgeois standpoint, views and methods in .At that time, the summer vacation had already begun. After participating in several discussions, I returned to my hometown in the south. By the time I returned from school, my classmates had already written several long critical articles and handed them over to the magazine.Soon, these sharp and long articles were published in the authoritative publications of the literary and art circles "Literary News" and "Literary Review" in the second half of the year.One of the most important ones is entitled "The Struggle Between the Two Roads in the Literary and Art Circles Cannot Be Denied--Criticism of Wang Yao's "Chinese New Literature History Draft"".The author's signature is "Collective Writing by Lu Xun Literature Society, Grade 2, Department of Chinese, Peking University".Yes, the literary club organized by our class at that time was named after "Lu Xun".I wrote in my diary at the time that I felt very ashamed to see the publication of these achievements and to listen to the narration of the writing situation by the students who insisted on fighting in school.At the beginning of the critique, my good friend wrote me this line: "Do you smell the smoke? Are you ready to go into battle?" But I got cold feet, which made me regret it and feel that This shortcoming will be difficult to make up for. Chapter 60: A Little Story / Hong Zicheng (3) Shortly after the critical article was published, the name of Mr. Wang Yao disappeared from the list of editorial board members of the "Literature and Art Daily".I have no way of knowing Mr. Wang's inner activities when he was criticized, but I know that he also wanted to follow the trend.At the beginning of the "anti-rightist movement", he published "Everything and Everything", expressing his condemnation of "rightists".This short article with a beautiful writing style and structure was published on the front page of the "Literary News". At the beginning of 1958, his long article commenting on Feng Xuefeng's "On the Movement of Democratic Revolution" was also published in "Literary News".The basis and logic of his criticism of Feng Xuefeng are also the basis and logic of our criticism of him half a year later.But Mr. Wang failed to save himself from "bad luck". Graduation is approaching, whether it is the school leaders or ourselves, we all feel that we have lost a lot in the past few years.Many classes that should be taken are not taken, and books that should be read are not read.Of course, perhaps more important is the loss of some basic characters, such as the boundaries between seniority and inferiority, and an honest attitude towards things (including learning).When I was in the fifth grade, I concentrated on making up some compulsory courses.Such as the history of ancient and modern literature.The history of modern literature adopts the nature of lectures, and summarizes important literary phenomena and writers' works into several topics, which are given by several gentlemen in turn.Mr. Wang Yao gave four lectures, including the May 4th Literary Revolution, Lu Xun, Cao Yu, etc.His strong Shanxi accent made it difficult for me to listen, so I always had to take the front row seat first.For the criticism of two years ago, we (at least myself) have not formally apologized to him, admitting our naivety and recklessness.But I thought at the time that accepting his teaching sincerely should be an expression of our introspection.I saw that he didn't have the slightest sarcasm in front of his students who accused him not long ago.He stated his views carefully and carefully, and when he talked about his pride, he couldn't help but let out the familiar laughter.His analysis of Cao Yu and other writers made me understand the complexity of human affairs and emotions in the world.After class, he patiently answered our questions.This kind of heart without any grievances was indeed beyond my expectation at the time.He is showing that each of us cannot escape the constraints and constraints of society and history, but we can choose the path we should take under possible conditions. After putting together what happened during the "Cultural Revolution" and previous experiences, I began to realize that the seeds of the abnormal situation we encountered had already been sown, and we sowed them with our own hands. , Harsh words, and unreasonable attacks on serious ideological achievements, in fact, the "critic" also presets himself in the position of "being criticized".This comparison reminded me that, regarding the setbacks in my life, I did not have the calmness and composure of the teacher, and I was flustered and at a loss.This is not only because I am still young and lack life experience, but the most important thing is that there is almost nothing in my heart that can serve as a strong pillar.What made me even more embarrassing was that what I was "questioned" and criticized by the students at the criticism meeting were ridiculous things like "not allowing Chairman Mao to be seen" and "class line". Published in the press to catch up with the political trend of superficial "current".What we wanted to "demolish" in the 1950s was Mr. Wang's "Historical Draft" which was the foundation of the discipline, and his perhaps more valuable "On the History of Medieval Literature": this is what critics will eventually turn back. Come to consult the works.In Mr. Wang Yao's heart, there are Lu Xun he understands, Wei Jin literati he understands, and his teacher Zhu Ziqing.Therefore, after experiencing many setbacks, what we see is a kind of maturity and dignity, which is the image he left us in the 1980s.And what about us?What exactly?What things in the mind are stable and unshakable? For Peking University, which has gone through a journey of 110 years, it may be difficult for us personally to explain clearly the glory and decline, glory and disgrace. What we can say is the "tradition" that we personally feel.In my opinion, the most cherished "tradition" of Peking University is the kind of quality preserved among teachers and students from generation to generation: it is used to adjust and filter unhealthy factors from the outside and itself. Establish a sound character and the perseverance to follow an academic path with integrity.It can be said with certainty that the establishment and transmission of this quality comes not only from success and glory, but also from the setbacks that each of us has experienced, just like the deep imprint left on us by Mr. Wang's life and academic path like that. Hong Zicheng was born in Jieyang, Guangdong in 1939. He studied literature at the Chinese Department of Peking University in 1956. After graduating in 1961, he stayed and taught at the school. He is now a professor of the Chinese Department of Peking University.Author of "Writer's Posture and Self-awareness", "History of Contemporary Chinese Literature", "1956: The Era of Hundred Flowers", "Problems and Methods", etc.