Xungen movement

Xungen movement
Traditional Chinese	尋根文學
Simplified Chinese	寻根文学
Literal meaning	root-searching literature
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Xúngēn wénxué

The Xúngēn movement (simplified Chinese: 寻根文学; traditional Chinese: 尋根文學; lit. 'search for roots') is a cultural and literary movement in mainland China emphasizing local and minority cultures.[1][2] It began in 1980s and was similar to the back-to-the-land movement.[1] Its premise is that the Cultural Revolution damaged a pluralistic Chinese identity and traditions that had existed for centuries, and that the reconstruction of that identity requires a healthy appreciation of local cultures. Furthermore, the century of modernization and cultural and political iconoclasm had only severed Chinese traditions. Some of the key writers are Han Shaogong (韓少功), Mo Yan, Ah Cheng (阿城), and Jia Pingwa (賈平凹).

References

1. Esler, Joshua (May 28, 2020). Tibetan Buddhism among Han Chinese: Mediation and Superscription of the Tibetan Tradition in Contemporary Chinese Society. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 27. ISBN 978-1-4985-8465-4.
2. Zhong, Xueping (2000). Masculinity Besieged?: Issues of Modernity and Male Subjectivity in Chinese Literature of the Late Twentieth Century. Duke University Press. pp. 167–168. ISBN 978-0-8223-2442-3.