Jiangsu Province 江 苏 省 简 介 - Zhenjiang 镇江市

Zhenjiang is situated in the central part of Jiangsu Province at the confluence of the southern Yangtze River and the Grand Canal. It is an ancient city, founded under the Eastern Zhou Dynasty in 545 BC, with streets lined with hundreds of shade-giving sycamore trees planted since 1949 to absorb the summer heat. The American Nobel prize-winning writer, Pearl S. Buck (1892-1973), known in China as Sai Zhenzhu赛珍珠, is acknowledged as one of the most popular American authors of her day, author of The Good Earth and other novels about China, lived in Zhenjiang for 18 years before attending boarding school in Shanghai. Pearl S. Buck was a noted humanitarian, crusader for women’s rights, editor of Asia magazine, philanthropist, and famous for her novels on China. Daughter of Christian missionaries, Pearl S. Buck was brought up and educated in Zhenjiang. She received a university education in America, but returned in 1917 to China where she lived until 1935. She became a university instructor and writer, eventually authoring novels about China, some of which were turned into Hollywood films, including “The Good Earth” (1937), “Dragon Seed” (1944), among others. Her 1931 novel, “The Good Earth,” a poignant tale of a Chinese peasant and his slave-wife and their struggle upwards, was a best-seller which won the author legions of faithful readers, almost unanimous critical praise, the 1932 Pulitzer Prize and membership of the American Academy of Arts and Letters. It established Pearl S. Buck as an interpreter of the East for the West and the novel was adapted for stage and screen. The book also formed a solid foundation for the body of work cited in 1938 by the Nobel Committee when they awarded Pearl Buck the Nobel Prize for literature, making her the first American woman to receive the coveted award. Although her portrayals of China and Chinese people may not be always accurate and have received mixed reviews from literary critics, Pearl Buck is considered an outstanding American writer who contributed greatly to promoting mutual understanding between China and Western countries based on her experiences in China. Since 1992, nine of this Pulitzer Prize and Nobel Prize laureate’s literary works have been translated and introduced to Chinese readers. Her missionary parents’ house still stands in the northern part of the city. At her death in 1973, she had written 70 books as well as children’s literature and translations from Chinese. Raised in China since she was an infant, Buck said she saw China as her “fatherland.” She returned to America where she went to school and later college, but came back to China as a young woman where she spent the first half of her adult life. Buck often said she lived in two worlds: During the first half of her life, she was an American living in China; throughout the remainder of her life, she considered herself a Chinese woman living in America. In China she was mistrusted because she did not clearly express her political views. While her novels were sympathetic to the Chinese people, especially the plight of Chinese peasants, her work would not be widely accepted for several decades. She taught at Nanjing University for 13 years before returning to the United States in 1934. In 1972, after seeing signs of improved Sino-US relations, Buck wrote to the Chinese Government of her desire to visit China, and was dealt a heavy blow when her request was rejected. She died the following year at the age of 81. In the years since her death, both Americans and Chinese have come to appreciate her honest portrayals of the Chinese and her contributions to improving cultural understanding. She lived in China off and on for 38 years. The former residence of Buck in Zhenjiang, Jiangsu Province has been newly renovated and opened to the public as part of the province’s celebration in her honour. Her home is a showcase of acceptance of different culture. In her bookshelves, Chinese classics sit alongside Western works. Handicrafts in the city include jade carving, palace lanterns and screens of natural stone. Zhenjiang (population 2.66 million) is also known for its black vinegar and pickled vegetables.

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