Utilizing Overseas Chinese-related Journals to Integrate Resources and Promote Work on Overseas Chinese Affairs

(by YAO Ting)

Abstract: Overseas Chinese-related journals are an important tool in today’s external publicity, play an important role in the field of overseas Chinese affairs, and perform a series of intended functions. All this depends on the existing organizational structure and the resources within the operating mode. Faced with the impact of changes on the forms of overseas Chinese affairs and information technology, one way to maintain the value of the journals is to re-understand, integrate and optimize existing resources so as to promote people’s overseas Chinese affairs at multiple levels and through multiple channels.

Keywords: Overseas Chinese-related journals; resources; People’s overseas Chinese affairs

ASummaryoftheResearchonRemittanceLettersbyOverseasWuyiPeople

(by DENG Wen-hua)

Abstract: The content of research in recent years on “Wuyi remittance letters”have focused on the definition, origin, evolution and value terms, and the macro view have been focused on literature, history, communication studies, and sociology. Compared with the research on Chaozhou and Shantou remittance mail, research on Wuyi remittance letters started late. To make more comprehensive and more systematic research on Wuyi remittance letters, the horizons have to be further expanded, for example, to include media culture, narrative studies and ethics.

Keywords: Wuyi remittance letters; research; summary

ASurveyofDiplomatsofWuyiOriginintheLateQingPeriod

(by GAO Dong-hui)

Abstract: The establishment of embassies and consulates is an important symbol of modern diplomacy by the late Qing government. The diplomats working in these embassies and consulates were the pioneers of the late Qing government to contend with western powers. Against the background of a weak motherland and an impoverished populace, these diplomats faithfully performed their duties and made the utmost efforts to safeguard national dignity. Among them, the diplomats of Wuyi origin made important contributions in the diplomatic history of the late Qing Dynasty.

Keywords: Late Qing; Wuyi; consuls; diplomacy

TextualResearchonHistoricalFactsaboutTanYingandTanZongjunRecordedinLateQingPeriod’sChorographyofNanhai

(by XU Shi-zhong)

Abstract：The father and son Tan Ying and Tan Zongjun of the county of Nanhai, Guangdong, were both famous literati and historians. The 1872 and 1912 editions of The Chorography of Nanhai both contained their biographies. However, owing to the negligence of the compilers in verifying facts, there exist some errors in the records. Correcting the errors will be beneficial to the research on the famous cultural figures in the Lingnan region.

Keywords: The Chorography of Nanhai; Tan Ying; Tan Zongjun; historical facts; textual criticism.

TheSpiritualWorldofLuoYing-gong’sPoetry

(by FENG Shan-shan)

Abstract: As a famous figure in the late Qing Dynasty, Luo Yinggong excelled at composing poems and left behind two volumes of poems. He and Liang Dingfen, Zeng Xijing, and Huang Jie were jointly known as the Four Masters of poetry in the Lingnan region in the modern time. His poetry is characterized by aloofness and far-reaching significance, and reflects his poverty, his concern about national destiny and people’s livelihood, his cynicalness, indifference to fame and wealth, and mental seclusion in the operatic world. Also his poetry is a window for people to learn about the mentality of the literati in the late Qing period.

Keywords: Luo Yinggong; poetry; spiritual sustenance; cynicalness; indifference to fame and wealth; spiritual world

OnWuKeping’sArchetypalFiction

(by CHENG Hui-fang)

Abstract: Wu Keping’s fiction can be seen as the paragon of Overseas Chinese folk writing because its characteristics and value are highly consistent with archetypal aesthetics. HerMarryaGoldMountainMan, by virtue of its “anti-narrative” narrative character, dialogue-style narrative mode, overseas Chinese language, and archetypal characters, lifts a seemingly commonplace folk writing to a paradigm. In exhibiting the archetypal narrative character, it also highlights the special value of such writing.

Keywords: Chinese literature; folk writing; archetypal narrative; Wu Keping; Mary a Gold Mountain Man

CantonMerchantGroups’DramaActivitiesDuringtheQingPeriod

(by HAUNG Chun)

Abstract: Qing dynasty merchants’ drama activities in Canton can be divided into three types: those held in private gardens of itinerant merchants, those held in venues of merchant associations and the dramas enjoyed by merchants from the outside. The drama activities of the period were characterized by mobility, strong local flavors and the parasitic nature. Before the end of the late Qing period, drama activities of merchant groups had not yet gone beyond the context of local culture.

Keywords: the Qing Dynasty; Canton; merchant groups; drama activities; local cultural identity

ReasoningFeaturesandFunctionsofParallelStructuresintheArgumentativeArticlesoftheWei,JinandSouthernandNorthernDynasties

(by YANG Zhao-lei)

Abstract: Parallel structures abound in the writings of Wei, Jin and Southern and Northern Dynasties. These structures combine reasoning and aesthetic functions and enhance the strength of logical thinking. The reasoning functions mainly lie in command of concepts, emphasis of meaning, and the making of maxims.

Keywords: Wei, Jin and Southern and Northern Dynasties; argumentative papers; parallel sentences; reasoning nature; functions

TheDiversifiedNarrationofChinainTheJoyLuckClub

(by WANG Lan)

Abstract:“China” is the key word in Amy Tan’s novels. Straddling the Chinese and American cultures, she shows China in her narration from an alienated viewpoint and reveals the discrimination against and rejection of Chinese by the mainstream American society. She also realizes that the Chinese culture is the silver bullet for Chinese in a foreign culture to resolve, coordinate, and balance various conflicts and crises or even a survival strategy.

Keywords: China; otherness; multiculturalism; globalization

AnExplorationofGroupsofAdherentsoftheLateQingDynasty

(by LI Dan )

Abstract: Guangdong is one of the few areas of modern China with a relatively large number of adherents of the late Qing Dynasty. This can be attributed to historical origins, influence of traditional education, and geographical reasons. The political attitudes and behavior of the adherents in Guangdong were complex, but they mostly showed their loyalty and feelings to the former dynasty by aiding some projects left from it and compiling its history, and stories of deeds of the adherents.

Keywords: Late Qing;Guang dong;adherents

ZhenGuangAcademyandGuangdongWomen'sChristianSchools

(by BAO Jing-jing)

Abstract: The Zhen Guang (True Light) Academy founded in 1872 developed with its unique course. The first stage (1872-1917) Zhen Guang Academy, with its educational philosophy, faculty, its cooperation with Boji Medical School and some charity schools, and its teacher training attempts, developed a paradigm for Christian women education in Guangdong or even in China; it also opened up a way for girls’ education and women’s vocational education in Guangdong.

Keywords: Zhen Guang Academy; Zhen Guang Middle School; Women's Christian School

TheDisruptiveInnovationinInternetFinancialPaymentSystems

(by LIU Xiu-guang)

Abstract: As a mixture of traditional finance and internet, internet finance is a finance mode supported by internet technology to realize such services as fund accommodation, payment and credit intermediary services. The disruptive innovation made by internet finance to traditional payment systems is characterized by the operating efficiency of internet financial payment systems, the change of the forms of currency, emergence of “non-cash-society” and the development of shadow banks. The internet financial payment systems need both encouragement and ever- improving supervision.

Keywords:traditional finance; internet finance; payment systems; disruptive innovation

AnExplorationoftheCommonCausesfortheRevivaloftheNewTextConfucianismandtheVariousOtherSchoolsofPhilosophyintheLateQingPeriod

(By LUO Yan-min)

Abstract: The revival of the new text Confucianism and various other schools of philosophy was a noteworthy phenomenon in the late Qing period. Though the factors behind the revival were very varied and complex, some factors were common. From an academic perspective, the revival was the result of on-going development of textual criticism; from the perspective of social situation, the pursuit of knowledge of practical use to society played a role; and from the perspective of cultural environment, China was then impacted by western culture and influenced by a blend of Eastern and Western cultures. Exploring the common factors for the revival of the new text Confucianism and the various other schools of philosophy can help us to understand the academic development trend and evolution in the late Qing period.

Keywords: Late Qing; New Text Confucianism; various school of philosophy; textual criticism; pursuit of knowledge of practical use to society; Western learning

OntheMethodologicalSignificanceofPracticalMaterialismtoEcologicalCivilizationBuilding

(by DU Zao-hua, ZOU Ping-lin)

Abstract: Karl Marx did not discuss eco-environmental problems directly in his 1844 Economic and Philosophical Manuscripts, but he had basically established the Practical Materialism concept with nature as the premise, with practice as the core, with the humanized nature as the main line and with liberty as the objective, and thereby opened up a broad theoretical horizon for ecological civilization. It not only expounded the value principle, established the basic direction, pointed out the fundamental way, and therefore constructed the general theory frame for ecological civilization building.

Keywords: Practical Materialism; ecological civilization; methodology; 1844 Economic and Philosophical Manuscripts

ANewUnderstandingoftheThreeCardinalGuidesandFivePermanentRelations

(by LI Xu )

Abstract: The “Three Cardinal Guides” (ruler guides subject, father guides son, and husband guides wife) and “Five Constant Relations” governing (1) ruler and subject, (2) father and son, (3) elder brother and younger brother, (4) husband and wife, and (5) friend and friend) are basic traditional Chinese values. In the present world, the three guides are outdated, but the five constant relations still apply. New interpretations must be made of the concepts to determine what is to be retained and what is to be discarded. As the five relations are the basic attributes of humans, they are the focus of our interpretation efforts.

Keywords: Three Cardinal Guides and Five Constant Relations; benevolence, righteousness, propriety, knowledge, and sincerity

CommentaryonYangShuda’sLinguisticTheoryoftheRelationshipBetweenSoundandMeaning

(by BIAN Ren-hai)

Abstract: Yang Shuda carried forward the Qianjia School of Chinese linguistics and in the meantime accepted western etymology theories and developed his own scientific and systematic linguistic theory of the relationship between sound and meaning. Also Yang put his theory to much exegetics practice. However, there also exist some defects in his practice where occur random explanations of the meaning of the pictographic and ideographic parts of some logographic Chinese characters.

Keywords: Yang Shuda; seeking meaning from sound; relationship between sound and sense; exegetics

AnEmpiricalStudyofTEM4TestReliability

(by TIAN Wen-yan)

Abstract: Reliability and validity are two extremely important criteria for testing quality, and a test must have reliability prior to validity. This study analyzed the reliability of the TEM4 test papers from 2006 -2010 based on analyses of the scores of 24 students randomly selected from the class of 2009 who did the 2006 -2010 TEM4 test papers in mock tests and sat for the 2011 TEM4 formal test. The results show that 1) The six years’ TEM4 test papers are of high reliability; 2) As for subjective items, especially the passage dictation part, there is a big range of variation between the students’ achievement at various times, and a big difference in difficulty values, and therefore the reliability of this part is lower; 3)In terms of objective items, the students maintained relatively high stability and consistency in achievement and the reliability of these items is higher.

Keywords: TEM-4 test papers；reliability；levels of difficulty

ChangesinChina-relatedReportsinBritishMainstreamNewspapersfromthePerspectiveofTransitivity

(by CEN Yue，WU Wen-hao)

Abstract: The transitivity system in Systematic Functional Grammar is an important method of discourse analysis. It can effectively reveal the ideology hidden in news reports. This paper, from the perspective of transitivity system, compares the China-related reports in British mainstream newspapers from 2008 to 2011, with a view to examining the dynamic changes in British mainstream newspapers’ attitude towards China. It indicates that these China-related reports still reflect the ideology and stand of the British mainstream newspapers, but they are being increasingly more objective and authentic.

Keywords: the transitivity system; British mainstream newspapers; China-related reports