Pen Names in the "Seventeen Years Period" and the Ecology of Contemporary Chinese Literary Criticism
Abstract
It is a common phenomenon to use a pen name when a writer publishes his critical works in China's "seventeen years period". There are several causes: 1. the author worries that his work is not mature; 2. the author is not confident of his reputation; 3. the author intends to express particular ideas. Underneath these apparent causes are deeper psychological motivations: 1. to express opposite ideas to someone else’s; 2. to criticize a friend or a teacher; 3. to publish politically alternative works; 4. to reinforce the validity of criticism with another name; 5. to express special aims. Because of politics, ideology and individual personalities, some authors choose pen names on their own, and some others are forced to do so. The psychology of using a pen name in the seventeen years periods reveals a complicated ecology of Chinese literary criticism.
First Page
17
Last Page
28
Recommended Citation
Kou, Pengcheng. 2017. "Pen Names in the "Seventeen Years Period" and the Ecology of Contemporary Chinese Literary Criticism." Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art 37, (3): pp.17-28. https://tsla.researchcommons.org/journal/vol37/iss3/10
