Lung Ying-tai
Encyclopedia
Lung Ying-tai (born February 13, 1952 in Kaohsiung
) is a Taiwan
ese essayist and cultural critic. She occasionally writes under the pen name 'Hu Meili'.
Lung's poignant and critical essays contributed to the democratization of Taiwan
and as the only Taiwanese writer with a column in major Chinese
newspapers, she is an influential writer in Mainland China
. She has written 17 books.
soldier and the family had to escape to Taiwan after the KMT lost the civil war in China
in 1949. She is her parents' second child and has four brothers. The first character of Lung's given name, ying (應), is her mother's family name
, and the second character, tai (台), is to signify that she is the first child in the family to be born in Taiwan.
After attending National Tainan Girls' Senior High School
(國立台南女子高級中學), Lung received her bachelor degree in Foreign Language and Literature from the National Cheng Kung University
and a Ph.D.
from Kansas State University
in English and American Literature.
column in China Times
(中國時報) on the various conditions in Taiwan. Her essays were published together in 1985 in a book of social-political criticism, “The Wild Fire,” (Ye Huo Ji 《野火集》) when Taiwan was still under Kuomintang’s one-party rule, which cemented her role as an intellectual in Taiwan. She moved to Germany
in 1987, partly due to the response to her work that included death threats. Her translated essays had appeared in European newspapers such as the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung
. Her work has appeared in mainland Chinese newspapers since the early 1990s. Her essays include "Children Take Your Time," "Silver Cactus", "Rise of thinking," and in 2006, "Please Use Civilization to Convince Me", an open letter to Hu Jintao
following the temporary closure of Freezing Point
. She criticised Singaporean minister Lee Kuan Yew
and the government's restrictions on personal freedom in 1994 in an article titled, "Thank God I Am Not Singaporean".
She returned to Taiwan to become the first Director of the Cultural Affairs Bureau of Taipei
in September 1999, and her policies increased the visibility of the arts in Taipei during her four-year term. She resigned in March 2003 to return to writing, noting that "being an official is suffocating. I could hardly breathe."
She joined the Journalism and Media Studies Centre of the University of Hong Kong in August 2004. In July 2005, she established the Lung Ying-tai Cultural Foundation and used the foundation as a platform to sponsor literary and artistic endeavours as well as academic lectures. Since 2008 Lung Ying-tai has undertaken the position of Hung Leung Hao Ling Distinguished Fellow in Humanities of University of Hong Kong and Chair Professor of National Tsing Hua University
in Taiwan. She received the 2009 K.T. Li Chair Professor Award from NCKU.
Her 2009 book “Da Jiang Da Hai 1949” (“Big River, Big Sea — Untold Stories of 1949
”) is about the 1949 civil war and the escape to Taiwan of supporters of the Kuomintang. It sold over 100,000 copies in Taiwan and 10,000 in Hong Kong in its first month of release, but discussion of her work was banned in mainland China following the book launch.
man after moving there in the late 1980s, with whom she has two sons. She was also known as Ying-tai Walther. They were eventually divorced. One of Lung's books, Dear Andreas (《親愛的安德烈》), is a collection of letters and e-mails between her and her older son.
Kaohsiung
Kaohsiung is a city located in southwestern Taiwan, facing the Taiwan Strait on the west. Kaohsiung, officially named Kaohsiung City, is divided into thirty-eight districts. The city is one of five special municipalities of the Republic of China...
) is a Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
ese essayist and cultural critic. She occasionally writes under the pen name 'Hu Meili'.
Lung's poignant and critical essays contributed to the democratization of Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
and as the only Taiwanese writer with a column in major Chinese
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
newspapers, she is an influential writer in Mainland China
Mainland China
Mainland China, the Chinese mainland or simply the mainland, is a geopolitical term that refers to the area under the jurisdiction of the People's Republic of China . According to the Taipei-based Mainland Affairs Council, the term excludes the PRC Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and...
. She has written 17 books.
Early life
Lung's father, Lung Huai-sheng (龍槐生), was a KuomintangKuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
soldier and the family had to escape to Taiwan after the KMT lost the civil war in China
Chinese Civil War
The Chinese Civil War was a civil war fought between the Kuomintang , the governing party of the Republic of China, and the Communist Party of China , for the control of China which eventually led to China's division into two Chinas, Republic of China and People's Republic of...
in 1949. She is her parents' second child and has four brothers. The first character of Lung's given name, ying (應), is her mother's family name
Family name
A family name is a type of surname and part of a person's name indicating the family to which the person belongs. The use of family names is widespread in cultures around the world...
, and the second character, tai (台), is to signify that she is the first child in the family to be born in Taiwan.
After attending National Tainan Girls' Senior High School
National Tainan Girls' Senior High School
National Tainan Girls' Senior High School is located in the central-western region of Tainan City Taiwan.-External links:*...
(國立台南女子高級中學), Lung received her bachelor degree in Foreign Language and Literature from the National Cheng Kung University
National Cheng Kung University
National Cheng Kung University is a national university in Tainan City, Taiwan. Its abbreviation is NCKU. In Chinese, its name is shortened to 成大...
and a Ph.D.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
from Kansas State University
Kansas State University
Kansas State University, commonly shortened to K-State, is an institution of higher learning located in Manhattan, Kansas, in the United States...
in English and American Literature.
Career
After returning to Taiwan, she began writing an op-edOp-ed
An op-ed, abbreviated from opposite the editorial page , is a newspaper article that expresses the opinions of a named writer who is usually unaffiliated with the newspaper's editorial board...
column in China Times
China Times
The China Times is a newspaper published in the Republic of China in Traditional Chinese. It is one of the four biggest newspapers in Taiwan, the other three being the Liberty Times, United Daily News, and Apple Daily ....
(中國時報) on the various conditions in Taiwan. Her essays were published together in 1985 in a book of social-political criticism, “The Wild Fire,” (Ye Huo Ji 《野火集》) when Taiwan was still under Kuomintang’s one-party rule, which cemented her role as an intellectual in Taiwan. She moved to Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
in 1987, partly due to the response to her work that included death threats. Her translated essays had appeared in European newspapers such as the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung
The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung , short F.A.Z., also known as the FAZ, is a national German newspaper, founded in 1949. It is published daily in Frankfurt am Main. The Sunday edition is the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung .F.A.Z...
. Her work has appeared in mainland Chinese newspapers since the early 1990s. Her essays include "Children Take Your Time," "Silver Cactus", "Rise of thinking," and in 2006, "Please Use Civilization to Convince Me", an open letter to Hu Jintao
Hu Jintao
Hu Jintao is the current Paramount Leader of the People's Republic of China. He has held the titles of General Secretary of the Communist Party of China since 2002, President of the People's Republic of China since 2003, and Chairman of the Central Military Commission since 2004, succeeding Jiang...
following the temporary closure of Freezing Point
Freezing Point
Freezing Point is a news journal in the People's Republic of China which has been the subject of controversy over its criticism of Communist Party officials and the sympathetic ear it lent to a Chinese historian who had criticized official history textbooks...
. She criticised Singaporean minister Lee Kuan Yew
Lee Kuan Yew
Lee Kuan Yew, GCMG, CH is a Singaporean statesman. He was the first Prime Minister of the Republic of Singapore, governing for three decades...
and the government's restrictions on personal freedom in 1994 in an article titled, "Thank God I Am Not Singaporean".
She returned to Taiwan to become the first Director of the Cultural Affairs Bureau of Taipei
Taipei
Taipei City is the capital of the Republic of China and the central city of the largest metropolitan area of Taiwan. Situated at the northern tip of the island, Taipei is located on the Tamsui River, and is about 25 km southwest of Keelung, its port on the Pacific Ocean...
in September 1999, and her policies increased the visibility of the arts in Taipei during her four-year term. She resigned in March 2003 to return to writing, noting that "being an official is suffocating. I could hardly breathe."
She joined the Journalism and Media Studies Centre of the University of Hong Kong in August 2004. In July 2005, she established the Lung Ying-tai Cultural Foundation and used the foundation as a platform to sponsor literary and artistic endeavours as well as academic lectures. Since 2008 Lung Ying-tai has undertaken the position of Hung Leung Hao Ling Distinguished Fellow in Humanities of University of Hong Kong and Chair Professor of National Tsing Hua University
National Tsing Hua University
National Tsing Hua University is one of the most prestigious universities in Taiwan. The university has a strong reputation in the studies of science and engineering. Times Higher Education - World University Rankings is107in the world. Engineering and Science are the best in Taiwan...
in Taiwan. She received the 2009 K.T. Li Chair Professor Award from NCKU.
Her 2009 book “Da Jiang Da Hai 1949” (“Big River, Big Sea — Untold Stories of 1949
Big River, Big Sea — Untold Stories of 1949
Big River Big Sea—Untold Stories of 1949 is a collection of stories written by Taiwanese author Lung Ying-tai published in August 2009. It tells in detail, the events from the surrounding the conclusion of the Chinese Civil War including Chinese families that were broken up by the civil war that...
”) is about the 1949 civil war and the escape to Taiwan of supporters of the Kuomintang. It sold over 100,000 copies in Taiwan and 10,000 in Hong Kong in its first month of release, but discussion of her work was banned in mainland China following the book launch.
Personal life
She married a GermanGermans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
man after moving there in the late 1980s, with whom she has two sons. She was also known as Ying-tai Walther. They were eventually divorced. One of Lung's books, Dear Andreas (《親愛的安德烈》), is a collection of letters and e-mails between her and her older son.