Yeh Shih-tao
Encyclopedia
Yeh Shih-tao (1925 - December 11, 2008) was a pioneering Taiwanese writer
and historian, who specialized in the literary history of Taiwan
and the lives of ordinary Taiwanese people
.
He was considered a seminal figure in Taiwanese literary criticism
.
Yeh Shih-tao was born in Tainan
, Taiwan
, in 1925 at a time when Taiwan was under Japanese rule
. His early writings were in Japanese
, but he switched to Chinese
after the Nationalists under Chiang Kai-Shek
gained control of Taiwan following the end of World War II
. He was arrested by the Chiang Kai-Shek
regime in 1951 and imprisoned for three years for allegedly harboring "communist agents."
Author of No Land, No Literature (沒有土地, 哪有文學), The Dilemmas of Taiwan Literature and History of Taiwanese Literature (台灣文學史綱), he chronicled 300 years of the island's literary history and gained renown "for his searing portrayals of ordinary Taiwanese". His best known work was likely The Chronicle of Taiwanese Literature, a compilation of Taiwanese historical literature published in 1987.
Yeh later served as an adviser of the Teacher Human Rights Advocate Committee in Kaohsiung
, and was appointed a national policy adviser to the Chen Shui-bian
government.
Yeh Shih-tao died of intestinal cancer in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, on December 11, 2008, at the age of 83. He had been continuously hospitalized since February 2008. Yeh was survived by his wife and two sons.
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
and historian, who specialized in the literary history of Taiwan
Literature of Taiwan
Taiwanese literature refers to the literature written by Taiwanese, which can use any language ever used generally in Taiwan, like Japanese, Taiwanese, Taiwanese Mandarin.- Novels, short stories, and poetry :...
and the lives of ordinary Taiwanese people
Taiwanese people
Taiwanese people may refer to individuals who either claim or are imputed cultural identity focused on the island of Taiwan and/or Taiwan Area which have been governed by the Republic of China since 1945...
.
He was considered a seminal figure in Taiwanese literary criticism
Literary criticism
Literary criticism is the study, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. Modern literary criticism is often informed by literary theory, which is the philosophical discussion of its methods and goals...
.
Yeh Shih-tao was born in Tainan
Tainan
Tainan City is a city in southern Taiwan. It is the fifth largest after New Taipei, Kaohsiung, Taichung, and Taipei. It was formerly a provincial city, and in 2010, the provincial city merged with the adjacent Tainan County to form a single special municipality. Tainan faces the Taiwan Strait in...
, Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
, in 1925 at a time when Taiwan was under Japanese rule
Taiwan under Japanese rule
Between 1895 and 1945, Taiwan was a dependency of the Empire of Japan. The expansion into Taiwan was a part of Imperial Japan's general policy of southward expansion during the late 19th century....
. His early writings were in Japanese
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
, but he switched to Chinese
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
after the Nationalists under Chiang Kai-Shek
Chiang Kai-shek
Chiang Kai-shek was a political and military leader of 20th century China. He is known as Jiǎng Jièshí or Jiǎng Zhōngzhèng in Mandarin....
gained control of Taiwan following the end of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. He was arrested by the Chiang Kai-Shek
Chiang Kai-shek
Chiang Kai-shek was a political and military leader of 20th century China. He is known as Jiǎng Jièshí or Jiǎng Zhōngzhèng in Mandarin....
regime in 1951 and imprisoned for three years for allegedly harboring "communist agents."
Author of No Land, No Literature (沒有土地, 哪有文學), The Dilemmas of Taiwan Literature and History of Taiwanese Literature (台灣文學史綱), he chronicled 300 years of the island's literary history and gained renown "for his searing portrayals of ordinary Taiwanese". His best known work was likely The Chronicle of Taiwanese Literature, a compilation of Taiwanese historical literature published in 1987.
Yeh later served as an adviser of the Teacher Human Rights Advocate Committee in Kaohsiung
Kaohsiung
Kaohsiung is a city located in southwestern Taiwan, facing the Taiwan Strait on the west. Kaohsiung, officially named Kaohsiung City, is divided into thirty-eight districts. The city is one of five special municipalities of the Republic of China...
, and was appointed a national policy adviser to the Chen Shui-bian
Chen Shui-bian
Chen Shui-bian is a former Taiwanese politician who was the 10th and 11th-term President of the Republic of China from 2000 to 2008. Chen, whose Democratic Progressive Party has traditionally been supportive of Taiwan independence, ended more than fifty years of Kuomintang rule in Taiwan...
government.
Yeh Shih-tao died of intestinal cancer in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, on December 11, 2008, at the age of 83. He had been continuously hospitalized since February 2008. Yeh was survived by his wife and two sons.