Fu Lei's Family Letters
The cover of the book Fu Lei's Family Letters [sznews.com] |
"We thought you may be writing to us before New Year and were expecting your letter as if it were a present. Your letter arrived this morning, bearing good news. Dear child, if we were at the concert, we would be weeping with tears of joy. One can find the most innocent and pure pleasure in art, better still, it was created by your hand and from your heart. ...We are so proud of you. But what comforted me most is that you are not blinded by your success. The fame, the praise and the applause, none of these lessened your humbleness towards art..."
This is one of the 200 letters Fu Lei wrote to his son Fu Cong from 1954 and 1966. They were published as a book titled Fu Lei's Family Letters in 1981. The book has sold over one million copies in China and was translated into Korean and Japanese.
Wang Shuhua, president of Shanghai's Fu Lei Research Center, says in today's fast paced modern society, people need to read Fu Lei's letters more than ever.
"The qualities we find in Fu Lei, such as magnanimity, integrity and innocence, are rarities in today's society. We look forward to seeing the revival of these traditional virtues."
A college student identified only by the surname Zhang, in Shanghai, is a dedicated reader of "Fu Lei's Family Letters."
"To college students like us, Fu Lei's words are inspirational. They help us to shape a positive attitude towards life and our future."
Fu Lei's letters are not only educational to young people, but also to parents.
When the correspondence took place, Fu Cong was in Poland, pursuing his dream of becoming a great pianist.
In one of Fu Lei's letters, he advises young Fu Cong that, instead of relying on sensation and sensibility, a true artist has to build a more stable and rational character.
Jin Shenghua, a Hong Kong scholar who wrote the foreword for the 2009 reprint of Fu Lei's Family Letters, described the father and son's devotion to art as "larger than life."
She was delighted to see the letters stood the test of time.
"It has been over 30 years since Fu Lei's Family Letters was first published in 1981. In Hong Kong, Macau and the Chinese Mainland, the book is not only a best seller, but its popularity sustains."
(Source: english.cri.cn)
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