A newspaper once complained that it had allocated huge sums of money to repair and paint the ancient buildings in Beiping, as if to say that in this era of war and hunger, we should not be busy doing these things to whitewash the peace. Originally, if it was really peaceful, this decoration might attract some foreign tourists and get some foreign exchange. Today's brilliant scene is only a strong contrast between the reality of war and hunger, and the strong irony is really shocking. This is naturally a utilitarian view, but there are too many people who have no clothes and food these days, and the utilitarian view is also natural. But then again, there is no overall plan for the public to spend money now. The money will not be used here, probably not for those who have no clothes or food, and maybe it will be used for some unimportant things. Then, it's good to preserve antiquities. If we can really make a comprehensive plan and prioritize, this kind of thing should probably be postponed. Although the author is also in favor of preserving antiquities, he has no intention of preserving them. It is not too late to preserve antiquities after food and clothing; In case I am late, I will regret it. Food and clothing is always fundamental. The author does not agree to overemphasize the preservation of antiquities and the cultural city of Beiping, but it is right to "strengthen the management and utilization of cultural relics and maintain ancient sites" without spending more money.
The crisis of old books refers to woodcut books, especially big books. The second-hand book industry has been depressed for a year. Some shops sell bulky woodcut books by weight to make resurrection paper. It's a pity, but also a little sad. So some scholars came out to call for help. Now that the Ministry of Education has allocated 1 billion yuan to buy this kind of old books, the rescue of the market has begun, which is naturally good. But the author wants to point out that the crisis of old books has been lurking for a long time, not suddenly. Interpretation of printed ancient books was popular in the late Qing Dynasty, which was convenient to carry and reasonable in price. This is really the beginning of the second-hand book crisis. But at that time, lithographs were not elegant; It is said that there are many typos, but the main thing is the lack of that antique. Therefore, Mr. Adult disdains to take care of it. But after all, it's fair and convenient, and it doesn't occupy the bookshelf position. Scholars in general, especially young people, are willing to buy it. Since the Republic of China, there have been photocopies, such as "Four Editions", and the original versions are almost all rare, so there is no typo in photocopying, and there is no lack of antique. This has further affected the sales of second-hand books. Later, there were four series of simplified versions, which were not so old, but more convenient. There are also printed ancient books, such as Four Notes and Wan You Library, which are also very convenient and fair. Another example is the basic series of Chinese studies. According to some methods of interpreting printed books, it is more convenient to click on a sentence in the book. Before the Anti-Japanese War, there was a so-called "book with 10% discount and 20% discount". There are not many typographical errors, which are extremely cheap and widely circulated, and many young students take care of them. Compared with the earthenware book during the Anti-Japanese War, this book with a 20% discount has now become a good version. Nowadays, young students often prefer this typesetting method to woodcut; They want convenience and don't care about antiques. Since most people who buy books can buy photocopies or typography, people who buy books are more willing to buy typography or Shi Yinben, technological innovation doomed the decline of old books! After the development of microfilm books, the photocopied and printed versions will probably decline, right?
As for the brush, fate seems worse. Compared with "fountain pen", its inconvenience is more obvious. To use a writing brush, you have to use an inkstone and ink, at least an ink box or an ink boat (Shanghai has this thing, which is shaped like a boat, I don't know what its name is, and it is filled with ink paste, which is packed in a toothpaste-like tube and squeezed out when it is used). It is not as convenient as a pen, nor can it be hung on the lapel or inserted in the bag. More importantly, writing with a brush is much slower than writing with a pen, which is the fatal wound of the brush. When it comes to price, including accessories and short service life, a brush is not necessarily much cheaper than a pen. A good imported pen is naturally expensive, and a good writing brush is not cheap. Recently, someone saw a pen with a price tag of10 million yuan in Beiping. The pen naturally needs foreign exchange, it is made in China, and the materials have to be bought from abroad, but the writing brush is made in China; However, it is still necessary to make the fountain pen localized. In the past, the Ministry of Education asked students to use writing brushes, which seemed to focus only on "preserving the quintessence of the country" or "standardizing culture". Students can ignore this set, but more and more people use pens. Modern life needs pen and ink, which is imperative and reasonable, but the empty name of "standard culture" is irresistible. It is enough for a few painters to save the brush. It is not feasible to force everyone to use it.
As for the students' poor handwriting now, it is the reason that they have not been carefully trained, and it has nothing to do with using a brush. Students' handwriting is clear and neat, just like using a pen and a brush.
Students don't like paying attention to writing and reading ancient books? Although some people buy typesetting ancient books, they are not many.
They have too much homework and busy things, so they can't appreciate the art of calligraphy, and even ignore the role of writing. They just want to hurry, the handwriting is unbelievable. China's ancient books are difficult to understand. They think it's not worth the effort to read. Fundamentally speaking, it is because they no longer attach importance to history and old culture. This is also a necessary process, and we don't need to marvel.
However, we must make young people write clearly and neatly to meet the basic function of writing. On the one hand, we should strive to compile some ancient books with detailed annotations for young people to read. We should critically accept history and old culture, and it is wrong to erase them as part of the materials for creating new cultures. In fact, young people didn't really wipe out China's ancient books at once. As long as you look at China's View on Ancient Literature and 300 Tang Poems, you will know that there is still a great demand for such books. And the buyer is likely to be young. So we should know the direction of our efforts. As for the specialized research on calligraphy art and China ancient books, let a few interested people do it. These people should be trained in universities or independent colleges.
Considering the promotion of traditional Chinese painting and peaceful drama, these two tasks are now working hard. I talked to a young colleague about these two issues the other day. He feels that Chinese painting and peace drama have been fully developed and stereotyped, and there is no need for improvement. Reluctantly improve, I am afraid that there will only be things that are neither old nor new, and the result may not be good. He believes that folk art is naive and has not yet developed, but we may be able to promote their development; Like Chinese painting and peace drama, it has reached its peak and it is time to decline. I'm afraid it will be thankless to pull them in the end. In my opinion, the creation of our new culture and art has to critically adopt the old culture and art, which are needed by the literati and the people as well as by foreign countries, but can be dominated by this era and this country. I'm afraid that improvement will inevitably be dragged down by the old times and I won't go far. Maybe not at all. It is better to start a new stove, but the old materials can be used.
The past is always the past.
The above is Zhu Ziqing's essay "Cultural Relics" brought to you by the composition column. Old books? Brush, I hope you like it. Thank you for reading.
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