Awakening New Youth

Youth Magazine and New Youth

"New Youth" (LA JEUNESSE), formerly known as "Youth Magazine", was founded on September 15, 1915, edited by Chen Duxiu and issued by Shanghai Qunyi Publishing House. On September 1, 1916, the first volume of the second volume was renamed "New Youth". "New Youth", collected in the National Museum of China, is 25.3cm long, 18.5cm wide and 0.5cm thick. It can be seen from the cover that the revised "New Youth" has an article "New Youth" in which Chen Duxiu called on young people to be "new youth"; there are also articles written by Li Dazhao to expose the harm brought to China by the feudal system, and to emphasize the need to place hopes on "The Rebirth of Youth China.
After the failure of the Xinhai Revolution, China's advanced elements were immersed in extreme anguish and hesitation. The original dream was shattered, the founding of the Republic of China did not bring people the expected national independence, democracy and social progress, and the warlord forces continued to use feudal traditional ideas to imprison the people's minds. In the face of the harsh reality, advanced intellectuals and young students, including teachers and students of Peking University, deeply feel that in order to oppose the decadent rule of feudalism, we must criticize feudal ideas with great fanfare and vigorously publicize scientific and democratic ideas.
In the early years of the Republic of China, the school-running purpose of Peking University began to change from "following the instructions and correcting the trend, training generalists" to "teaching advanced academic, cultivating masters and talents, and responding to the needs of the people. In terms of disciplines and curriculum, the Department of Economics has been abolished, and Eastern and Western philosophy and Chinese and foreign historical and local literature have been advocated as "eclectic and inclusive".
In September 1916, Hu Renyuan, then president of Peking University, borrowed 200000 yuan from a Belgian company to build a four-story dormitory with more than 300 rooms on the playground of Han Garden (now the beach). In August 1918, the building was completed, because the building is made of red brick, red tile top, so called "red building". After the completion of the building, it was not used as a dormitory building, but as the liberal arts campus of the school-based department, the library and the first college.
In the autumn of 1916, when the construction of the Red Building of Peking University started, Cai Yuanpei, who was far away in France to investigate European education, received a telegram from Fan Yuanlian, the chief education officer, asking him to return to China to serve as the president of Peking University. Cai Yuanpei is a former Qing Hanlin who studied in Europe. He is full of academic accomplishment and democratic spirit. He is a backbone member of the League led by Sun Yat-sen and participated in the Revolution of 1911. Cai Yuanpei recalled later: "Many friends persuaded that it was not necessary to take office. They said that Peking University was too corrupt and went in. If it could not be rectified, it would hinder their reputation. Of course it means to love me. However, there are also a few who say that since they know that he is corrupt, they should go in and rectify it. Even if they fail, they have done their best. This is also the love of virtue. After I obeyed, I said, enter Beijing."
In January 1917, Cai Yuanpei became president of Peking University. He has built a free and autonomous platform for all kinds of academic talents. In order to implement the school-running policy of "freedom of thought and inclusiveness", Cai Yuanpei carried out a series of rectification and reform in Peking University.
Among them, it is especially worth mentioning that Cai Yuanpei made great efforts to invite Chen Duxiu to teach at Peking University. At the beginning of 1917, Chen Duxiu formally took office as the senior of liberal arts in Peking University and moved the editorial department of New Youth from Shanghai to Beijing.
Chen Duxiu's article "Salute to Youth" published on the inaugural issue of "Youth Magazine" clearly put forward the slogan of democracy and science, and challenged feudal ideology and culture. It was the first programmatic document of the New Culture Movement and opened The prelude to the New Culture Movement. In the article "To the Youth", Chen Duxiu eulogized with passion, "Youth is like the early spring, like the morning sun, like the sprouting of hundreds of flowers, like the new development of a sharp blade, and the most precious period of life". From the evolutionary point of view, he argued that youth is in society, "the fresh and lively cells are still in the human body. Metabolism, the old and decadent are not in the way of natural elimination all the time, and the fresh and lively are based on the position of space and the life of time... The society follows the way of metabolism, and the old and decadent elements fill the society, and the society dies".
The content of "Youth Magazine" is novel and unique. It has set up two banners of democracy and science, and discussed with young people the academic and ideological trends of various countries, blowing a breeze to the dull ideological and educational circles, and making people blind and ignorant caused by feudal despotism. Freed, it is known as "the golden needle of the youth world" and "good teacher and helpful friend".
Chen Duxiu combined the editor-in-chief of "New Youth" with the reform of Peking University, and helped Cai Yuanpei Luo to bring talents. In August of that year, just a few months after Chen Duxiu came to Beijing, Hu Shi, a 26-year-old student studying in the United States, was also hired by Cai Yuanpei as a liberal arts professor. Hu Shi advocated the vernacular, opposed the stale classical Chinese, and responded to the literary revolution initiated by Chen Duxiu with practical actions, which had a great influence in Chinese intellectual circles.
Lu Xun, formerly known as Zhou Shuren, was from Shaoxing with Cai Yuanpei. After the founding of the Republic of China, Cai Yuanpei was invited to the Ministry of Education. After Cai Yuanpei became the president of Peking University, Lu Xun was employed as a lecturer in the Department of Chinese literature (according to the regulations of Peking University, he can only be employed as a lecturer if he works part-time in Peking University). Although he joined the New Literature Movement a little later, Lu Xun played an important role in the struggle against feudalism. His first vernacular novel is "Diary of a Madman", published in Volume 4, No. 5 of "New Youth". Although the length is not large, the criticism in the book extends to all aspects of feudal society, from feudal powers., Family chiefs, running dogs, to feudal ethics, customs, ideology and culture, without pain and flogging.
"New Youth" is a comprehensive academic journal, each with about 100 pages and No. 6 as a volume. From Volume 1, No. 1 (September 15, 1915) to Volume 3, No. 6 (August 1, 1917), written by Chen Duxiu. Starting from Volume 4, No. 1 (January 15, 1918), New Youth was changed from Chen Duxiu's personal editor-in-chief to a fan publication. Volume 4, No. 3, "New Youth" published a "Notice for the Editorial Department of this Chronicle": "Since Volume 4, No. 1, the articles of association for submission of this Chronicle have been canceled. All translations shall be jointly undertaken by the editorial department and no additional manuscripts shall be purchased. If the previous manuscript has not been recorded, can you give me a gift? Shang Xi submitted articles to all of you, the letter of grant stated that you will not be consulted one by one. Since then, those who have made great contributions will not be rewarded."
At that time, Mao Zedong, a student of Hunan Provincial First Normal University, commented on "New Youth": "New Youth" is a famous magazine of the New Culture Movement, edited by Chen Duxiu. When I was a student in a normal school, I started reading this magazine. I especially like Hu Shi, Chen Duxiu's article. They replaced Liang Qichao and Kang Youwei and became my model for a while. "for a long time, in addition to attending classes and reading newspapers, they read books and read" New Youth "; they talked about" New Youth "; they also thought about the questions raised in" New Youth."
In November 1918, Li Dazhao published "the victory of the common people" and other articles, representing the new awakening of China's advanced elements. In May of the following year, Li Dazhao was the editor-in-chief of "New Youth" "Marxism Research", and personally wrote the article "My View on Marxism", which is the three components of Marxism-political economy, scientific socialism and The basic viewpoints of historical materialism are introduced systematically. This is the first time in Chinese writings to make a systematic and complete introduction to Marxism.
When Mao Zedong first came to Beijing, he rented three north rooms at No. 7 Dongjiadao of Ji'an, not far from the Red Mansion. He worked as a library assistant in the library of Peking University, commuting between the Red Mansion and the small Jiadao of his residence every day. The Red Mansion, in a sense, also became a starting point of Mao Zedong's red revolutionary career. With the practical knowledge of journalism he learned at Peking University, he founded Xiangjiang Review, which enthusiastically eulogized the October Revolution.
In his diary on May 4, 1919, Mr. Lu Xun used one word to describe the weather in Beijing: "Tan". This is the meaning of dark clouds. With the "dark clouds" in their hearts, the students set out from the Red Mansion to Tiananmen Square, Dongjiaomin Lane, and Zhaojialou. They were angry all the way, shouting all the way, and passionate speeches all the way. The massive May Fourth patriotic and democratic movement swept the country and shocked the world.
After experiencing the baptism of the New Culture Movement and the May Fourth Movement, more and more advanced Chinese elements gathered under the banner of Marxism. The spread of the red trend of thought and the gathering of believers in socialist doctrines made it possible to further establish revolutionary organizations. In March 1920, under the advocacy of Li Dazhao, China's first Marxist Theory Research Association was born in the Red Mansion of Peking University, bringing together a group of young people with communist ideas such as Deng Zhongxia, Gao Junyu, Huang Rikui, He Mengxiong, and Luo Zhanglong.
The early communists in Beijing organized the Marx theory research society, studied and studied Marxism, and at the same time, they also carried out their work among the workers and peasants. Through the Peking University civilian education lecture group, they went deep into the rural areas and factories in the suburbs of Beijing to publicize the masses and organize the masses. At this time, Li Dazhao began to realize that it is not enough to establish a Marxist theory research society in China, and it is necessary to prepare for the establishment of a proletarian party. In October, Li Dazhao secretly convened a meeting in the director's room of the library in the southeast corner of the first floor of the Red Building of Peking University, that is, the 119 room, to announce the establishment of the early organization of the Communist Party of Beijing, and publicly announced that he would donate 80 yuan from his personal salary of 120 yuan a month for the early organization of the Beijing Party. When Li Dazhao bid farewell to Vyjingsky, who came to China to help build the party under the orders of the Communist International, he said: "We are just a few seeds of revolution. We must work hard and cultivate the seeds in the future. There will be gains in the future."
On the evening of July 23, 1921, the first National Congress of the Communist Party of China was held in Shanghai. From the gestation and preparation of the founding of the party to the development of various tasks after the establishment of the organization, under the influence of "New Youth", in the Red Mansion of Peking University, there are advanced young people who save the people from water and fire, and have a firm belief in the pursuit of ideals. Although the early Communists have the national blood of tens of millions of people, they have the broad-mindedness of perseverance and joy.
(Excerpted from "Red Genes in Cultural Relics-Family and Country Feelings Volume" published by China Founder Publishing House)