Chapter 130 The New Long March of Children's Book Publishing Work Begins

I was very excited to receive the invitation to the National Symposium on Children’s Book Publishing in Lushan, and to know the list of representatives from Beijing over the phone!Because I am not in good health recently and I have a sick person at home, I cannot participate in this event, which makes me very disappointed. I can imagine: on the majestic and straight Lushan Mountain, amidst the crisp autumn air and the sound of springs and mountains, my old, middle-aged and young friends, after smashing the "Gang of Four" and smashing the spiritual shackles, reunited with high spirits, Many new creative and publishing plans will be drafted together to start the new long march of children's book publishing.

Comrade Hua Guofeng said in his congratulatory speech at the 29th National Day Reception: "We need to emancipate our minds more, be more courageous, have more methods, and move faster", these words have caused me to think deeply!Our national children's publishing work is to provide spiritual food for the 200 million children in our country. This is a huge new force that will be responsible for building our country into four modernized powers by the end of this century. In order to enable them to quickly To complete this arduous and glorious task well, we must let them eat well and well. Those of us who are cooks must work hard to make meals that are excellent in color, aroma and taste, so that they can eat well. Well, grow up quickly and healthily, and contribute all their strength to the four modernizations.

In the past two years, many excellent works have appeared in the children's literature world, some of which are the biographies and deeds of our older generation of revolutionary martyrs, and some are exposing and accusing the "Gang of Four" of corrupting and poisoning the youth.The writing is very real and vivid. This is a gratifying phenomenon and a good start. We still have to work hard in this direction. I only think of one thing, whether our library or the Children's Palace can also order some children in foreign languages ​​from abroad. Reading?Especially about science and technology, teenagers can read the easy ones by themselves, and ask people to translate the difficult ones.Some foreign children's books have a wide range of teaching materials, and the pictures are also very lively. Taking the essence and discarding the dross is also a method of "learning from", or using foreign things for China.Whether it is appropriate or not, please consider!October 6, 1978 Preface to "Selected Scripts of Children's Literature from 1949 to 1979" People's Literature Publishing House entrusted me with the task of writing the preface to "Selected Scripts", and I was really flattered!I have never, and dare not, write children's plays.I know that the script is to be staged, and it is a synthesis of various arts, including painting (decoration), music, dance, performance... and all the things I don't know and can't tell. People who know the ups and downs of writing scripts came to write the preface for "Selected Scripts", which really forced the ducks to go on the shelves!

Comrades said: The prefaces of other anthologies of children's literature have already been written, and you are an old writer, so you should write the preface of this anthology. At this time, I am very sad!Sadly, under the persecution of Lin Biao and the "Gang of Four", my old friend Mr. Lao She passed away.If he is alive, this burden will not fall on my shoulders.And my old friend Comrade Zhang Tianyi, if he hadn't been persecuted by Lin Biao and the "Gang of Four" and became seriously ill and unable to write, this burden would not have fallen on my shoulders.But after being sad for a while, I smiled again, and what I laughed was: It turns out that "oldness" also has advantages!Because you are an "old" writer, no matter whether you are an expert or not, you must be given a place.In fact, there are still many middle-aged and young writers who can write a preface for this anthology!

I remember that the beloved Premier Zhou once encouraged us to say: We must live, learn, and work forever.Therefore, in the end, I think I should accept this task as the subject of my study. I calmed down and carefully read the 21 children's scripts selected by the editors, including more than 20 years.The first one happened to be The Newsboy!I watched this play in theater eight months ago, and recently watched it on TV. I shed tears every time, and now that I read the script, I shed tears again!When the Southern Anhui Incident happened, I was in Chongqing. It was just as Chairman Mao said: "This struggle shows the decline of the KMT's status and the improvement of the Communist Party's status, forming the key to a certain change in the balance of power between the KMT and the Communist Party." The front army of "Xinhua Daily" under the leadership - the soldiers of the "Xinhua Army" - newsboys, in the dark and foggy Chongqing, surrounded by the radiant image of Premier Zhou, and the cunning and cruel The Kuomintang launched a brave and resourceful struggle.This collectively created children's play has both historical facts and the characteristics of a children's play, full of children's sense of justice, sense of humor and fantasy.For example, the "fight" between Cao Mang and Cricket in the first scene, Cricket's image and his Sichuan accent gave me a very friendly feeling.And in the fifth scene, the dialogue between Shi Lei and Cao Mang in the prison and the vision for the future are also very moving.In short, this is a very good children's play.The first shot of this anthology is fired!

Both "Children's Corps" and "Children's League" describe the stories of children's regiment members cooperating with the Eighth Route Army and militia against the enemy during the Anti-Japanese War. Although the background and plot are different, the struggles are thrilling and tortuous.Here, Wang Yutang, the head of the children's regiment who won a pistol from the enemy, although he couldn't bear to let go of his prize, gave it to Battalion Commander Sun who was the most unselfish "starting from work and thinking about comrades" , making this image of a child not only cute but also respectable, it also shows the significance of the "Children's League" as a communist school. The enemy agents in "Children's Regiment" are more cunning and cruel. Niu Wa, the leader of the children's regiment, cleverly and deliberately let the enemy catch him, took the opportunity to rescue the children's regiment members who were locked in the cave by the enemy, kept the buried machine, and finally introduced the enemy. In the ambush circle, the plot is thrilling and the struggle is sharp and complicated.

"Little Geese Flying Together" and "Little Football Team" can be said to be very popular scripts that have come and gone from children's lives.It's all about the "contradictions" in the lives of children in and out of school.These two plays were also seen and appreciated by the beloved Premier Zhou.Premier Zhou once asked with concern about the reaction of "Little Geese Flying Together", a play that shows young people's love for science, among small audiences. After listening to the report, the Prime Minister was very satisfied, and said affectionately: You should make more contributions to the children and perform more performances for them, so that the children love you and regard you as their teachers and friends.After watching "Little Football Team", the Prime Minister stepped onto the stage, held the hands of the director and director, and said:

You have chosen an important subject and you have dealt with it very well... The business of educating proletarian successors is not only in the classroom, but also on the field and in the theater.I deeply feel that these entrustments of our beloved Premier Zhou will be like a raging fire to the authors of these two scripts, and to many children’s script writers in the future, igniting their fiery hearts, adding With infinite power, he created better and more scripts for the 200 million Chinese children who are running fast on the new Long March of the four modernizations. "Little Sisters of the Prairie" is a sensational real story that happened in the Mongolian prairie in 1964.I have seen this script performed on TV, so I was very impressed. (I have also met the two little heroes, Long Mei and Yu Rong.) The script describes these two little girls, who are about ten years old, on the vast grassland in the snowstorm, and they risk their lives to protect the sheep in the commune. The group, the heroic spirit and the spirit of serving the public wholeheartedly moved people very much.There is also an extremely strong atmosphere of mutual assistance and unity between the Mongolian and Han peoples.On the stage, the author also asked a boy of Han nationality to represent the small audience, as a reciter, to run through the story, so that the stage and the audience are connected together. This is also a good way of handling it.

"Shuangshuang and Grandma" is a very interesting short play. It has dialogues and lyrics. It is about three generations who are enthusiastic about building a reservoir. A middle-aged couple has already gone to the reservoir, and only one grandma appears on the stage. and a pair of twin grandchildren.This pair of brothers wanted to go up to the reservoir. Taking advantage of their resemblance, they fought wits with their grandma, "hidden cats" and went in and out, but they were discovered by their grandma, and the three of them went to the reservoir together. up.I like this kind of funny drama very much, and I think the children will like it too.

"Plum Blossoms" is based on plum blossoms. In a plot about respecting teachers and loving students on New Year's Eve, the story of the happy reunion between the teacher and her betrayed brother in the old society is inserted, and the plot reaches its climax. "Mother is by Your Side" describes how the poor children in Taiwan are bullied by the imperialists and their puppet Kuomintang, as well as their sympathy and mutual assistance, and their yearning for a bright motherland.The girl sang: Beaten by the rain! Mom will reach out...and lead you home! This mother is the motherland!Children who are enjoying the joy of International Children's Day every year, let us all extend our hands!

"Morning on the Front Line of Coastal Defense" is the story of the struggle between the young pioneers on the East China Sea front line and Jiang Gang's airborne secret agents after liberation.This is different from the struggle against the enemy of the "Children's Corps" before liberation.Under the situation of being outnumbered, the spies became more cunning and fierce, and the struggle of the young pioneers became more difficult and tense.Although Xiaoyong, who was going to report the enemy's situation, and Liying, who was on guard, were beaten into a coma by the spies and drugged, they still struggled and fought hard. Finally, the militiamen and the People's Liberation Army surrounded them!When this arduous and thrilling struggle ended in victory, the small audience would applaud after holding their breath nervously. "Attack the Weakness" is a funny play with a sense of irony.Xiang Liangneng, the leader of the No. 1 Squadron, is writing "Offensive Weakness" Xiao Changfa, the mission officer of this team, played the small drum to "tune the tiger away from the mountain", so that other squadrons would not pay attention to what they should do because they all came to listen to the small drum, so that they could "attack" other people's "weaknesses" ".As a result, because their squadron only cared about writing their own plans and "turning the tiger away from the mountain", Wu Hong, the captain of the second squadron, came to sort out the scattered books for them, "attacking" their "weakness".This is very ironic for the "plan" that is only empty talk but not practical. "Treasure Boat", "Malan Flower" and "Smart Wife" are all relatively large children's plays adapted from folk stories.There are popular folk stories of the Han people, and there are also popular folk stories of the Tibetan people.The scripts are all written by old writers, and the writing is quite wonderful. The sharp struggles between good and evil, oppressed and oppressors in these stories are written very vividly.In the play, there are singing, dancing, and small animals and plants that children love or hate, and they stand on the opposite side respectively.It made the stage look very bright, lively, and vivid. In the end, goodness defeated evil, and the singing on the stage was full of joy. The two dramas "The Big Bad Wolf" and "Sisters in the Orchard" have similarities.They are all based on the folk tales of Grandma Wolf that we are familiar with, and they all have prologues and epilogues, as well as small animals and plants that help the three sisters.With the help and reminder of these small animals and plants, the brave and witty three sisters defeated the old wolf who had "a sweet mouth and a sword in his belly".This tells the young audience that disguise cannot deceive people, and the wolf's tail will eventually be exposed and caught.Lin Biao and the "Gang of Four" are "people" like Grandma Wolf. The lessons we have learned are already painful enough! There are similarities between "The Proud Little Swallow" and "Little Rooster". Both the little swallow and the little rooster think they are great, and laugh at the frog and the duckling, only to find that they are not very capable and much inferior to others.So that the young audience can learn the lesson of "humility makes people progress, pride makes people lag behind". It was a short play, and the elder sister who "can do things for mother" fell asleep while coaxing her younger brother to sleep.She had a dream, dreaming that the little old man chained to her little brother's cradle took him away, but it turned out that the little wooden horse and the puppy helped her find him back.This shows the young lady's sense of responsibility, even in her sleep and dreams, she never forgot her responsibility! "Golden Apple" is also a children's play based on libretto.Two brothers, Jindandan and Yindandan, went to the forest together to find golden apples.On the way, Jin Dandan helps Grandpa Lin to put out the wildfire, but Yin Dandan only looks for golden apples and refuses to go. He meets a wolf woman who pretends to be very "kind" and leads him to the hill.Jin Dandan came back to look for his younger brother and disappeared. At this time, the white rabbit and the black rabbit brought golden apples, saying that they were for "the hero who cares about his friends and bravely put out the fire". They also helped him rescue Yin Dandan. The wolf cornered the trap.Yindandan shyly rejected the golden apple given to him; saying, "We have only one happiness, which is to rejoice and enjoy together."Grandpa Forest said, "Then let all those who need friends be happy with us."The story ended with a burst of joy. After reading these twenty-one children's plays, I feel that the dialogues and lyrics in these plays are relatively lively and concise, without lengthy preaching or esoteric lyrics that children cannot understand.The "anthropomorphic" animals and plants that are loved by the characters and children in the play are also smart and brave to stand with the positive characters and fight bravely with the bad guys and other bad "anthropomorphic" animals (such as wolves). struggle. The storyline generally has extremely obvious love and hate, and extremely lively dialogue, which will arouse children's sense of justice and sense of humor.I think young audiences will enjoy the staging of these plays, and will be greatly moved and educated, (some plays have been staged, and in fact they are!) My authors and editors of these plays and the selection of this play Comrades, I would like to extend my deep respect and thanks! The above are my experience and impressions after studying these scripts.Where it is inappropriate, please criticize and correct me!Now please allow me, as a reader and audience, to express my most sincere hope and request to children's playwrights!Through this study, I deeply feel that children's drama is the brightest flower in the children's literature garden.Through the actions, colors and sounds on the stage, it leaves vivid and moving impressions in children's minds that other forms of literature cannot do!These deep impressions will forever educate and inspire them to strive forward toward the lofty goal of the four socialist modernizations. After Lin Biao and the "Gang of Four" were overthrown, the earth rejuvenated and a hundred flowers bloomed. The voice of "Creation must go up, writers must go down" is getting louder and louder!There are 200 million children in Chinese society, which is a vast world for children's playwrights.The 200 million children in our country, like adults, have gone through the rampant era of Lin Biao and the "Gang of Four", and now they look up and see the sky again!They will also recall the past when they were devastated, deceived, and corrupted five or six or ten years ago. They have also experienced, heard, and witnessed many tragedies in society, schools, and families caused by Lin Biao and the "Gang of Four". They also have their own hatred, confusion and sorrow, and looking forward to the future, they are all excited and joyful to see the renewal of Vientiane, and now that everything has been done away with, this huge team will realize our motherland by the end of this century. The new force of socialist modernization is rushing towards a bright and arduous future with boundless energy, boundless hope and endless imagination, with the speed and strength of ten thousand horses and ten thousand arrows.There are so many heart-stirring stories, materials that were impossible for children's playwrights in the past, and these materials will be compiled into scripts, which will emit fireworks like splendor on the stage!I know that many children's playwrights have already passed away, and I look forward to more and better works appearing on the stage earlier, so that I, an "old" writer, can also receive this happy education and encouragement with the young audience! November 13, 1978. ("Selected Scripts of Children's Literature from 1949 to 1979", People's Literature Publishing House