Life and Death in Shanghai
Encyclopedia
Life and Death in Shanghai is an autobiography published in November 1987 by Nien Cheng
from exile in the United States
which details Cheng's six-year imprisonment during the Cultural Revolution
.
The book tells the story of Cheng's arrest during the first days of the Cultural Revolution, her imprisonment, release, persecution, efforts to leave China, and early life in exile.
Cheng was arrested in late 1966 after Red Guards
looted her home. During her imprisonment, she was pressured to make a false confession that she was a spy for "the imperialists" because for many years after the death of her husband she had continued to work as a senior partner for Shell
in Shanghai
. Cheng refused to provide a false confession, and was tortured as a result.
She was eventually paroled under the pretense that her attitude had shown improvement. However, Cheng resisted leaving prison without receiving acknowledgment from her captors that she had been unjustly imprisoned.
When released from jail in 1973, Cheng found that her daughter Meiping, who was studying to become a film actress, had been murdered by the Red Guards, although the official position was that she had committed suicide. Cheng conducted a discreet investigation and found that this scenario was impossible.
After being relocated from her spacious home to a mere two bedrooms on the second floor of a two-story building, Cheng continued her life under constant surveillance, including spying by the family on the first floor.
She lived in China until 1980, when the political climate warmed enough for her to apply for a visa to the United States
to visit family. She never returned, first emigrating to Canada
, and later to Washington, D.C.
, where she wrote the autobiography.
The autobiography goes into great detail about her persecution, imprisonment and torture, so much so that the author had to put the manuscript away many times as she wrote it because the memories were so troubling.
Nien Cheng
Nien Cheng was a Chinese author who recounted her harrowing experiences of the Cultural Revolution in her memoir Life and Death in Shanghai. In 1966, she became a target of attack by Red Guards due to her former management of a foreign firm in Shanghai, Shell...
from exile in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
which details Cheng's six-year imprisonment during the Cultural Revolution
Cultural Revolution
The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, commonly known as the Cultural Revolution , was a socio-political movement that took place in the People's Republic of China from 1966 through 1976...
.
The book tells the story of Cheng's arrest during the first days of the Cultural Revolution, her imprisonment, release, persecution, efforts to leave China, and early life in exile.
Cheng was arrested in late 1966 after Red Guards
Red Guards (China)
Red Guards were a mass movement of civilians, mostly students and other young people in the People's Republic of China , who were mobilized by Mao Zedong in 1966 and 1967, during the Cultural Revolution.-Origins:...
looted her home. During her imprisonment, she was pressured to make a false confession that she was a spy for "the imperialists" because for many years after the death of her husband she had continued to work as a senior partner for Shell
Royal Dutch Shell
Royal Dutch Shell plc , commonly known as Shell, is a global oil and gas company headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands and with its registered office in London, United Kingdom. It is the fifth-largest company in the world according to a composite measure by Forbes magazine and one of the six...
in Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
. Cheng refused to provide a false confession, and was tortured as a result.
She was eventually paroled under the pretense that her attitude had shown improvement. However, Cheng resisted leaving prison without receiving acknowledgment from her captors that she had been unjustly imprisoned.
When released from jail in 1973, Cheng found that her daughter Meiping, who was studying to become a film actress, had been murdered by the Red Guards, although the official position was that she had committed suicide. Cheng conducted a discreet investigation and found that this scenario was impossible.
After being relocated from her spacious home to a mere two bedrooms on the second floor of a two-story building, Cheng continued her life under constant surveillance, including spying by the family on the first floor.
She lived in China until 1980, when the political climate warmed enough for her to apply for a visa to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
to visit family. She never returned, first emigrating to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, and later to Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, where she wrote the autobiography.
The autobiography goes into great detail about her persecution, imprisonment and torture, so much so that the author had to put the manuscript away many times as she wrote it because the memories were so troubling.