Bei Dao

Bonnie S. McDougall (Chinese University of Hong Kong)
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  • The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 10.2.1.02: Chinese Writing and Culture: Modern and Contemporary, 1900-present.

Bei Dao (pen name of Zhao Zhenkai) is the most distinguished poet of his generation and one of the major writers of modern China. He began writing poetry and fiction during the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976), and by its end he had already achieved fame as an underground writer. During the late 1970s and 1980s, his poetry was published in a large range of literary magazines in China and began to attract attention abroad. His poems have now been translated into over thirty languages. After several years of teaching Chinese literature in the U.S., he moved to the Chinese University of Hong Kong in August 2007, where he is currently teaching while also continuing to write poetry and essays.

Bei Dao is often described as a dissident poet, and his most famous verses have inspired people

2041 words

Citation: McDougall, Bonnie S.. "Bei Dao". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 09 September 2007 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=11822, accessed 29 March 2024.]

11822 Bei Dao 1 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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