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Before I became fascinated with the Tang dynasty and early Imperial Chinese history I read a lot of books on the civil war period of 20th century Chinese history. (Mostly because these books were very cheap and very easy to come across in Seattle). In these books the writers would occasionally mention Agnes Smedley as reporter who was travelling with the communist army. I also came across her name in connection with Ding Ling. Ding Ling was a Chinese author of the May Fourth era she wrote one of the most beautiful short stories I've ever read. Miss Sophie's Diary was the story of a young girl who was suffering from Tuberculosis, largely confined to her bed, who was being pursued romantically by a man she wasn't really interested in and missing her old girlfriend. It was just so insightful and tragic. I know that Ding Ling and Agnes Smedley spent a lot of time together and I did have to start wondering if Smedley was a bit of a lesbian. (At one point Smedley smuggled her out of Shanghai). This book didn't answer my question, though it did have a wonderful scene where Smedley was tracking down the women's weavers associations in the South of China having heard they were communist lesbians!
Portraits of Chinese Women in Revolution was actually not a book that Smedley wrote, rather it is a collection of her work edited and published by the Feminist Press, as many of her works were out of print at the time. There was a great diversity in these stories but they all came across as very frank and honest. They were a collection of character sketches, incidents, and social and political struggle. Some stories read more like fiction than fact. "The White Army" which was by far the most brutal of the stories featuring a gang rape and murder, was told in such a way that the details could not have been known exactly as it happened. However, other stories seem to be actual biographies of people that Smedley met during her years in China. There was the rich girl who left home to become a revolutionary who was then captured and sentenced to death, then rescued by her father and now lives in his home with his 8 concubines smoking opium having lost all hope. There was a traditional Chinese woman who married to a "modern" man who was carrying on an affair with a Russian dancer. There was an old woman who was leading a group of women in attempting to get the opium den closed in their town.
In every story you felt you had a glimpse into the lives of these people, and their dreams and their suffering. It was simply amazing and the most moving thing I've read in years. I have one other book by Smedley, Battle Hymn for China, of which several excerpts were taken for this book and I shall have to start reading it very soon. I still don't know if Smedley was a lesbian but she was an excellent writer and a fascinating person. I'm looking forward to finding more out about her, and reading more of her books. -
Portraits of Chinese Women in Revolution was actually not a book that Smedley wrote, rather it is a collection of her work edited and published by the Feminist Press, as many of her works were out of print at the time. There was a great diversity in these stories but they all came across as very frank and honest. They were a collection of character sketches, incidents, and social and political struggle. Some stories read more like fiction than fact. "The White Army" which was by far the most brutal of the stories featuring a gang rape and murder, was told in such a way that the details could not have been known exactly as it happened. However, other stories seem to be actual biographies of people that Smedley met during her years in China. There was the rich girl who left home to become a revolutionary who was then captured and sentenced to death, then rescued by her father and now lives in his home with his 8 concubines smoking opium having lost all hope. There was a traditional Chinese woman who married to a "modern" man who was carrying on an affair with a Russian dancer. There was an old woman who was leading a group of women in attempting to get the opium den closed in their town.
In every story you felt you had a glimpse into the lives of these people, and their dreams and their suffering. It was simply amazing and the most moving thing I've read in years. I have one other book by Smedley, Battle Hymn for China, of which several excerpts were taken for this book and I shall have to start reading it very soon. I still don't know if Smedley was a lesbian but she was an excellent writer and a fascinating person. I'm looking forward to finding more out about her, and reading more of her books. -