Hu Shih

In this Chinese name, the family name is Hu.
Hu Shih
胡適
Chinese Ambassador to the United States
In office
29 October 1938 – 1 September 1942
Preceded byWang Zhengting
Succeeded byWei Tao-ming
Chancellor of Peking University
In office
1946–1948
President of the Academia Sinica
In office
1957–1962
Preceded byZhu Jiahua
Succeeded byWang Shijie
Personal details
Born(1891-12-17)17 December 1891
Shanghai, Qing China
Died24 February 1962(1962-02-24) (aged 70)
Taipei County, Taiwan, Republic of China
Occupation
  • Diplomat
  • literary scholar
  • philosopher
  • political ideologue
  • writer
Known forChinese liberalism and language reform
Philosophical schools
RegionChinese philosophy
Philosophical interests
Influences
Academic background
Alma mater
Academic work
Institutions
Main interestsChinese language and literature, redology
Writing career
Language
PeriodModern (20th century)
Genres
SubjectLiberation
Literary movementNew Culture and May Fourth
Years activefrom 1912
Notable worksPreliminary Discussion of Literature Reform (1917)
Signature
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese胡適
Simplified Chinese胡适
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinHú Shì
Wade–GilesHu2 Shih4
IPA[xǔ ʂɻ̩̂]
Yue: Cantonese
Yale RomanizationWùh Sīk
JyutpingWu4 Sik1
IPA[wu˩ sɪk̚˥]
Southern Min
Hokkien POJHô͘ Sek
Tâi-lôHôo Sik

Hu Shih[1][2][3] (Chinese: 胡適; 17 December 1891 – 24 February 1962)[a] was a Chinese diplomat, essayist and fiction writer, literary scholar, philosopher, and politician. Hu contributed to Chinese liberalism and language reform and advocated for the use of written vernacular Chinese.[6] He participated in the May Fourth Movement and China's New Culture Movement. He was a president of Peking University.[7] He had a wide range of interests such as literature, philosophy, history, textual criticism, and pedagogy. He was also a redology scholar.

Hu was editor of the Free China Journal, which was shut down for criticizing Chiang Kai-shek. In 1919, he also criticized Li Dazhao. Hu advocated that the world adopt Western-style democracy. Moreover, Hu criticized Sun Yat-sen's claim that people are incapable of self-rule. Hu criticized the Nationalist government for betraying the ideal of Constitutionalism in The Outline of National Reconstruction.[8]

Hu wrote many essays attacking communism as a whole, including the political legitimacy of Mao Zedong and the Chinese Communist Party. Specifically, Hu said that the autocratic dictatorship system of the CCP was "un-Chinese" and against history. In the 1950s, Mao and the Chinese Communist Party launched a campaign criticizing Hu Shih's thoughts.[9] After Mao's passing, the reputation of Hu recovered. He is now widely known for his high moral values and influential contribution to Chinese politics and academia.

  1. ^ "The Bureau at the Fair". Abmac Bulletin. 2 (7): 4. August 1940. Dr. Hu Shih, Chinese Ambassador to the United States, Mayor Fiorello H. La Guardia,{...}
  2. ^ "Department of State bulletin". 10 June 1944. p. 537. The representative of the National University of Peking is Dr. Chen-sheng Yang, who has been acting dean of the College of Arts and Literature in the absence of Dr. Hu Shih.
  3. ^ "Introduction". Archived from the original on 27 June 2019. Retrieved 27 June 2019. The Hu Shih Memorial Hall located on the Nankang campus was the residence where Dr. Hu Shih (1891–1962) lived from 1958 to 1962, during his tenure as the president of Academia Sinica.
  4. ^ H. G. W. Woodhead, ed. (1922). The China Year Book 1921-2. Tientsin Press, Ltd. p. 905. Hu Shih, (Hu Suh). (胡適)–Anhui. Born Dec. 17, 1891.{...}
  5. ^ The Youth Movement In China. 1927. p. xii. I am also indebted to many friends in China, especially to Dr. Hu Suh of the National University of Peking{...}
  6. ^ Ji'an, Bai (March 2006). "Hu Shi and Zhang Shizhao". Chinese Studies in History. 39 (3): 3–32. doi:10.2753/CSH0009-4633390301. ISSN 0009-4633. S2CID 159799416.
  7. ^ "Nomination Database – Literature". Nobelprize.org. Retrieved 3 February 2012.
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference :5 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference :6 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).


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