Lu Xun

Lu Xun(1881-1936)

Birthplace and surroundings

	He was born in Shao xing of Zhejiang province, China. His family was a rich land owner, but when he was 13 years old he had a mishap and left in a relative’s care. At 18 years old, he left his hometown, Shao xing and studied in Nanjing, where he met modern ideas and science. After graduating from two departments, he was sent abroad to Japan.
The statue of Lu Xun, Tohoku University Katahira campus

Visiting Japan

While studying at a preparatory school in Tokyo which taught Japanese Language and culture, he made a decision to major in medicine. That was because he believed that new Western medical science had helped Meiji Restoration a lot.

Studying abroad in Sendai

	He wanted to enter a medical school without other Chinese students, and entered Sendai Special School of Medicine (now the medical department of Tohoku University), exempted from the entrance examination, entrance fee, and other school fees. Japan was right in the middle of Russo-Japanese War at that time.
Tohoku University Katahira campus Road in front gate.

Lu Xun and Prof. Fujino

It was Prof. Genkuro Fujino that cared about the first Chinese student, Lu Xun and helped his Japanese comprehension. Prof. Fujino corrected Lu Xun’s lecture notes with a red writing brush. Later, Lu Xun say, “My lecture note was all corrected with a red brush from the first page to the end, and what is more, very many lacking part was added and even the grammar mistakes were checked.” ,in his book, “Fujino Sensei”. He wrote Prof. Fujino’s memory in his literature, and kept great respect for him after returning hometown.

Medicine to Literature

While at Sendai Special School of Medicine, he determined to change his course to literature. It was spare time between lectures, when he watched a movie about Russo-Japanese war. He watched the scene that Chinese spectators saw the execution of a Chinese man who was arrested as a spy by Russian army.He got certain that however strong they were, people were not able to save their homeland without revolution of awareness and mind, and he quit the medical school to begin a literature movement. Then he returned Tokyo again, and devoted himself to literature. He was especially interested in Soseki Natsume, a novelist.

For the hometown

Returning from Japan, Lu Xun took part in educational reform in Beijing as a bureaucrat of education. On the other hand, he began a revolutionaly movement of literature and writing. He was the first person who published a novel, “a Lunatic’s Diary” in colloquial style in China.

“the True Story of Ah Q” is the most popular novel in southeast Asia. Lu Xun not only brought the modern innovation to China, but also effected a lot to the other countries.

President Jiang Zemin visited Sendai

	In November 1998, Chinese President Jiang Zemin visited Sendai, and saw the monument of Lu Xun and the lecture theater. He wrote the following poem. Orange maples light the autumn mountains like fire Blue water flows in the Hirosegawa forever Let us see him goes miles riding the sky East ocean and Yu’s land should enter into friendly relations
Hirose river

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