"The Theory of Young China"

[Qing Dynasty] Liang Qichao

The Japanese also call us China, one is the Big Empire, and the other is the Big Empire. This is a language that is a translation of the words of Europeans and Westerners. Alas! Is it true that I am the boss in China? Ren Gong said: Evil! What to say! What to say! There is a young China in my heart.

If you want to talk about the old and young of the country, please first talk about the old and young of the people. Old people often think about the past, young people often think about the future. Thinking only about the past creates nostalgia; thinking only about the future creates hope. It’s just nostalgia, so it’s conservative; it’s just hope, so it’s aggressive. It is only conservative, so it will remain the same forever; it is only progressive, so it is new day by day.

Thinking only about the past, everything is as it has been, so we only know that it is the same as usual; only thinking about the future, everything is as it has been before, so we always dare to make exceptions.

Old people often worry a lot, while young people often enjoy themselves. If you are worried too much, you will be discouraged; if you are happy, you will be energetic. But he is discouraged, so he is cowardly; but he is energetic, so he is heroic. But he is cowardly, so he remains contented; but he is heroic, so he takes risks.

You can destroy the world just by being idle; you can create the world by taking risks. Old people are often tired of things, young people are often happy with things. But he is tired of things, so he always feels that there is nothing he can do; he is just a good thing, so he always feels that there is nothing he cannot do. Old people are like the sunset, young people are like the rising sun. The old are like barren cattle, and the young are like suckling tigers.

The old are like monks, and the young are like knights. The elderly are like dictionaries, and the elderly are like dramas. Old people are like opium smoke, young people are like brandy wine. Old people are like meteorites from other planets, young people are like coral islands in the ocean.

The elderly are like the pyramids in the Egyptian desert, and the young are like the railways in Siberia.

The elderly are like willows after autumn, and young people are like grass before spring. Old people are like the dead sea's stagnant water, and young people are like the Yangtze River's origin. This is probably because the personalities of old people and young people are different. Ren Gong said: It is inherent in people, and it is appropriate for the country.

Ren Gong said: What a shame, the boss! A pipa woman at the head of the Xunyang River, when the bright moon circles the boat, the maple leaves rustle, and the quilt is as cold as iron, it seems like a dream but not a dream, recalling the beauty of spring flowers and autumn moon in the dust of Luoyang.

In the south of the West Palace, there are white-haired palace maidens, with a lamp like a spike, sitting opposite each other, talking about the legacy of Kaiyuan and Tianbao, and composing "The Song of Colorful Clothes and Feathers".

The melon growers in Qingmen, facing the children on the left, looking after the children, recalling the grand event of the Hou family running around like pearls on the sea.

Napoleon and his companions were exiled in Emi, and Alaf was secluded in Ceylon. Together with a few supervisors or those who came to visit, they recalled that in those days, daggers and horses galloped through the Central Plains, swept through Europe, and fought bloody battles across the sea. , with a roar, all nations were shocked by his great achievements. First he slapped the table, then he caressed his forehead, and finally he held the mirror.

Oh, my face is chapped and all my teeth are gone, my hair is white, and I am slumped and old! If this is the case, there will be no thoughts except the gloom, there will be no heaven and earth except the miserable place, there will be no sun and moon except the decadence, there will be no sound except the sighs, there will be no career except waiting for death.

It’s true that beautiful people are heroic, but what about ordinary people? All his relatives and friends are in the tomb in the ruins; his daily life and food are all waiting for others.

Let’s pass today, let alone the future? Let this year go by, let alone next year? There is no one who is more discouraged and short-tempered in the world than the boss. Is it possible for this person to desire to use the means of grabbing clouds, to achieve great achievements, and to have a spirit that transcends mountains and seas?

Translation:

The Japanese call us China, one is the Big Empire, and the other is the Big Empire. This title is probably inherited and translated from the words of European Westerners. It’s really deplorable! Is China really the big empire? Liang Rengong said: No! What words are these! What kind of words are these! There is a young China in my heart.

If you want to talk about the old and the young in the country, please let me first talk about the old and the young in the people. Old people often like to recall the past, while young people often like to think about the future. Reminiscing about the past creates nostalgia; thinking about the future creates hope. Because of nostalgia, we are conservative; because of hope, we are aggressive. Because it is conservative, it is always outdated; because it is enterprising, it is updated every day.

Because he recalls the past, everything he has experienced has already happened, so he only knows how to do things as usual; because he thinks about the future, all things he has never experienced before, so he often dares to make exceptions.

Old people often worry more, while young people often like to have fun. Because we are sad, we are easily discouraged; because we want to have fun, we are full of vitality. Because he is discouraged, he is cowardly; because he is energetic, he is heroic. Because of cowardice, we can only settle down; because of heroism, we dare to take risks.

Because you stick to the rules, you will inevitably lead to the death of society; because you dare to take risks, you can create the world. Old people are often tired of doing things, and young people often like to do things. Because I hate doing things, I often feel that everything in the world is impossible to do; because I like to do things, I often feel that everything in the world is impossible to do.

Old people are like the setting sun, young people are like the rising sun. The elderly are like lean old cows, and the young are like newborn tiger calves. The elderly are like sitting monks, and the young are like flying knights. Old people are like dictionaries of explanations, and young people are like lively dramas. The elderly are like smoking opium and foreign cigarettes, and the young are like drinking brandy.

The elderly are like the meteorites falling from the planet into the darkness, and the young are like the coral islands that are constantly growing in the ocean. The elderly are like the pyramids standing in the desert of Egypt, and the young are like the great railway that stretches continuously in Siberia.

Old people are like willow trees after autumn, and young people are like green grass before spring. The elderly are like the Dead Sea that has gathered its water to form a great swamp, and the young are like the Yangtze River that has just begun to trickle down. These are the general situations in which the personalities of the elderly and young people are different. Liang Rengong said: Although people are different, so should countries.

Liang Rengong said: What a sad boss! The pipa girl at the head of the Xunyang River, just as the bright moon is lingering around the empty boat, the maple leaves are rustling in the autumn wind, and the quilt is as cold as iron. In the hazy moment that seems like a dream but not a dream, she recalls admiring the spring flowers in the prosperous world of Chang'an. The beauty of the autumn moon.

In the cold Taiji and Xingqing Palaces of Chang'an, the white-haired palace maids sat opposite each other under the lamps with flowers like ears, talking about the past events of the Kaiyuan and Tianbao years, and composed the poems. The song "Nancy Clothes and Feather Clothes" was popular in the palace at that time.

Zhaoping, who was planting melons outside the east gate of Chang'an, teased his children with his wife beside him, recalling the grand occasion of singing and dancing and pearls scattered on the ground in the tightly guarded Houmen.

Napoleon was exiled to the Island of Elba, and Arabi was imprisoned in Sri Lanka. He and the three or two jailers who were guarding him, or the good people who came to visit, talked about how he rode alone in the Central Plains with a short sword. Sweeping the land of Europe, fighting bloody battles in seaports and buildings, shouting angrily, shocking and frightening the great achievements of all countries, at first they were so happy that they slapped the table, then they slapped their thighs and sighed, and finally they took a picture of themselves in the mirror.

What a pity! His face is full of wrinkles, his teeth are missing, his hair is as white as a handful, and he is already aging! For people like these, there is no other thought except melancholy, no other world except misery, no other spiritual sustenance except dejection, no other sound except sighing, and no other thing except waiting for death.

This is true for beauties and heroes, not to mention ordinary, mediocre people? All the relatives and friends in his life are in the grave; he depends on others for his daily life and food.

I am just getting by today, how can I know what the future will be like in such a hurry? This year is just muddling through, so where is the time to think about next year? There is nothing more discouraging in the world than the boss. For such a person, it is possible or impossible to hope that he has the means to reach the clouds from the sky, the ability to turn things around, and the willpower to cross mountains and seas?

Extended information:

Young China is a prose written by Liang Qichao (1873-1929) in the late Qing Dynasty. It was written in 1900 after the failure of the Reform Movement of 1898. The article extols the vitality of young people. , pointed out that China under feudal rule was the "eldest empire" and fervently hoped that a "young China" would emerge to inspire the people's spirit.

The article is informal and uses metaphors, which is highly encouraging. It has a strong enterprising spirit and expresses the author's love and expectations for young China.

"Young China" is one of Liang Qichao's masterpieces. It was a famous article published in "Qing Yi Bao" at that time.

This article has great influence. It is a long political essay. The author stands from the standpoint of a bourgeois reformist. In the article, he compares feudal ancient China with the young China in his mind. In sharp contrast, it strongly praises the young people's courage in reform, encourages people to shoulder the important task of building young China, and expresses the desire and enterprising spirit for the prosperity and strength of the motherland.

It is recognized as the chapter with the most positive ideological significance and the most passionate emotional color in Liang Qichao's works. The author himself also regards it as his representative work of "creating a new style of writing and stimulating the undercurrent of the people."

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