I am reading the sharing of fragility between Jeffrey Raymond, Vice President of the University of New York, and Chen Yinchi, Library Director of Fudan University. Professor: Fudan University
Summer reading leads to long days. Reading in summer can relieve the heat. In this issue of the Liberation Book List, the sub book list is titled "I am Reading", which is a dynamic column that takes us to see what books famous scholars are reading.
Their book list may add more nutrition to "cooling off".
Jeffrey Raymond, Executive Vice President of Shanghai New York University
Among the books I have read in the past few months, I highly recommend the following two books with vastly different styles.
The first book is "Angela's Ashes" by New York University alumnus Frank McCourt. In this book, McCarthy tells the story of his childhood in Ireland. My grandparents are Irish immigrants, so my mother recommended me to read this book, hoping that I can learn more about my cultural roots.
The book is filled with the heaviness of poverty, alcoholism, depression, illness, and death, but it is also full of laughter, anecdotes, religious beliefs, and the relaxed joy of neighborhood assistance. This book has given me a deeper understanding of another culture, although it is very different from the environment in which I grew up, it also makes me feel closely connected to this culture.
I believe that readers from different cultural backgrounds will also be moved by Maicott's works. By understanding different worlds, their life experiences will also become more diverse.
The second book I read is "Anti Fragility: Benefiting from Uncertainty". In this book, New York University professor Nassim Nicholas Taleb systematically analyzes "fragility" and "anti fragility" by introducing the concept of concavity and convexity of function curves. He found that when a "concave" or "fragile" system encounters pressure, it is weakened, while a "resilient" system can barely support it, while only a "convex" or "anti fragile" system becomes stronger when faced with pressure.
Professor Taleb believes that we need to work hard to cultivate the ability to resist vulnerability, because no one can have a completely stress free life. Escaping pressure only makes us more vulnerable and less able to withstand pressure. Professor Taleb believes that it is futile to completely isolate harm and failure, rather than willingly accepting the uncertainty in life; It is also unlikely to avoid all risks. It is better to face the occasional failures and setbacks and learn from them; Constant stability may not necessarily be a good thing, the twists and turns of life are often more worth cherishing; There is no complex model in the world that can accurately predict what will happen in the future, and following simple empirical methods is often more effective - but not always effective.
Nowadays, I believe most people will agree with Professor Taleb's viewpoint. Instead of seeking a security that does not actually exist, we should strive to grow ourselves and constantly learn from misfortune, which is the great wisdom. Some readers may have reservations about certain viewpoints in this book, but it is meaningful enough to provide readers with the opportunity to understand these viewpoints and engage in dialectical thinking.
Chen Yinchi, Director of Fudan University Library and Professor of Chinese Department
Although on vacation, there were no plans for a long trip, but my heart was somewhat moved. I picked up Professor Shang Wei's "Cloud Sail Collection" and looked at the topic, naturally feeling happy. Another friendly aspect is that the compilation of this book was due to the invitation of Professor Zheng Peikai. Last year, it was published in traditional Chinese by City University of Hong Kong Press. I am also very grateful for Professor Zheng's favor. Two years ago, he integrated his previous academic speeches into the book "Literary Time and Space and Scholar Beliefs" and included them in his "Sitting and Watching Clouds Rise" series edited by Cheng Da Publishing House. The simplified version of "Cloud Sail Collection" has added four articles, and other texts have also been added and modified.
The first edition of "Cloud Sail Collection" has collected twelve manuscripts. Regarding the parts of ancient novels such as "Dream of the Red Chamber" and "The Scholars", Professor Shang Wei has been deeply studying and specializing in them for many years. His "Li and the Cultural Turning Point of the 18th Century: A Study of the Scholars" is already a must read masterpiece in related fields; The two articles in this book about "Dream of the Red Chamber" are set against the backdrop of early "globalization" of material and cultural contact and exchange, from the perspectives of material and visual culture, full of novelty.
At the beginning of the book, there are two articles discussing modern vernacular Chinese, one above and the other below. It re examines this significant turning point in literary and cultural history and reflects on its connection with the transformation of modern China's nation state; This discussion has a broad comparative research background, and the book's postscript provides a detailed retrospective of a series of presentations and workshops conducted under the leadership of Professor Elman at Princeton University.
Tang poetry was the focus of Professor Shang Wei's initial study and work at Peking University. The book discusses the issue of Tang Dynasty poets inscribing scenic spots, which further explains the author's book "Inscriptions of Scenic Spots: From Yellow Crane Tower to Phoenix Terrace" published in Sanlian Bookstore two years ago; We have reason to look forward to the completion and publication of Professor Shang Wei's second book, "Poetic Prisoners and Creatures: A Poetic View of the Middle Tang Dynasty and Poets' Self Imagination," which was written by Du Fu and guided his return to Tang poetry.
The second part consists of six chapters, which not only cover the experiences and insights of reading and studying on both sides of the ocean, but also review the touching articles on the teaching and academic achievements of three teachers, Lin Geng, Yuan Xingpei, and Han Nan.
The last time I met Professor Shang Wei was at Professor Yuwen Suoan's retirement meeting. I remember a few friends drinking beer together at Harvard Square, which lasted for five years. In the heat of summer, flipping through the "Cloud Sail Collection" felt like meeting in person. The book left a profile of many of his academic works, all of which were significant, but by no means grandiose lectures, speaking with ease.
