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Jung Chang, in 2010 By Guy Aitchison from London, UK –

Top 10 Remarkable Facts about Jung Chang

Jung Chang is a Chinese-British writer is now living in London. She was born on the 25^th of March 1952, and is best known for her family autobiography Wild Swans. It went on to sell over 10 million copies worldwide, despite its success, it was banned in the People’s Republic of China. Here are the top ten remarkable facts about Jung Chang.

1 She spent her early life in China

Chang spent her early life in China and was born on 25^th March 1952 in Yibin, Sichuan Province. Her parents were both Chinese Communist Party officials, and life was relatively good at first. Her father was greatly interested in literature which made her developed a love of reading and writing. This also included composing poetry.

Her father was a party cadres and a successful propagandist at a regional level. Owing to being one of the most important cadres, the Communist Party provided her family with a dwelling in a guarded, walled compound. They also gave them a maid and chauffeur, as well as a wet-nurse and nanny for Chang and her four siblings.

2 She鈥檚 a writer

Chang is best known for her family鈥檚 autobiography Wild Swans which was really successful all around the world. In the book, Chang paints a vivid portrait of the political and military turmoil of China during the generations of her grandmother, mother, and herself. The book was translated 38 languages and sold 20 million copies worldwide.

She also co-authored with her husband Jon Halliday a biography of Mao, called Mao: The Unknown Story. This was done in 2005 and it portrays Mao in an extremely negative light. The couple had traveled all over the world to research the book and it took them 12 years to write. She also published a biography of Empress Dowager Cixi, who led China from 1861 until her death in 1908. This happened in October 2013. Chang argues that Cixi has been “deemed either tyrannical and vicious, or hopelessly incompetent and she went on to portray her as intelligent, open-minded, and a proto-feminist.

3 She had previously done several jobs

Back in China the university system was closing down, this led Chang and most of her generation to be pushed back from the political maelstroms of the academy. Therefore, she spent several years doing a couple of jobs. She was a peasant, a steelworker and an electrician, though she received no formal training.

The training was prevented by Mao鈥檚 policy, however, the jobs did not require formal instruction as a prerequisite for such work. When the universities finally re-opened, she studied English at Sichuan University. Later she became an assisting lecturer there and then moved to study in the West.

4 Her family was targeted during the cultural revolutions

Chang鈥檚 parents opposed Mao Zedong’s policies. This happened after the failures of the Great Leap Forward. They were targeted along with other high-ranking officials during the Cultural Revolution. When Chang’s father criticized Mao by name, it exposed them to retaliation from Mao’s supporters.

As she writes in her book Wild Swans, her parents were publicly humiliated. They had ink was poured over their heads and forced to wear placards denouncing them around their necks. They would also kneel in gravel and to stand outside in the rain 鈥� followed by imprisonment. This caused her father lasting physical and mental illness. Their careers were destroyed and they were forced to leave their home.

5 She is fond of Britain

In a new foreword to her book Wild Swans, Chang describes her new life in Britain as exciting. She loved the country and found it especially diverse in its range of culture, literature and arts. While there she found even colorful window-boxes worth writing home about 鈥� Hyde Park and the Kew Gardens were inspiring. She also took every opportunity to watch Shakespeare’s plays in both London and York. Even though she is fond of Britain, she stated in an interview with HarperCollins, “I feel perhaps my heart is still in China”.

6 How she became a celebrity

Jung Chang. She signing By Guy Aitchison from London, UK –

 Jung Chang published a second book Wild Swans which generated large numbers of sales. The book was sold around the world and translated into nearly 40 languages. Following its popularity, Jung Chang became a celebrity. This success came because of her unique style. She also used personal descriptions of the life of three generations of Chinese women, highlighting the many changes that the country went through.
Chang went on travel across Britain, Europe, America, and many other places in the world. During this period, she became a popular figure for talks about Communist China.

7 She had a good Academic Background

In 1978, Chang moved from China to Britain to study on a government scholarship. She stayed first in London but later moved to Yorkshire. At the University of York, she studied linguistics with a scholarship from the university itself. She became the first person from the People’s Republic of China to be awarded a PhD from a British university in 1982.

Since then she has been awarded honorary doctorates from the University of Buckingham, the University of York and the University of Warwick just to mention some. She focused on her writing in the 1990鈥檚, but lectured for some time at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London.

8 She asked for her name to be changed

The-Hindu-Lit-For-Life-2015-Jung-Chang By Destination8infinity –

Originally her name was Er-hong as Chang writes, and it directly translated to 鈥楽econd Swan鈥�. It also sounded like the Chinese word for “faded red” while communists were “deep red”. This made her ask her father to rename her when she was 12 years old. She specified that she wanted “a name with a military ring to it” and her father suggested 鈥淛ung.鈥� It means “martial affairs.”

9 She currently resides in Britain

Chang currently lives with her husband in west London, Britain. She describes the country exciting and loves its diverse range of culture, literature and arts. Jon Halliday, her husband is an Irish historian and they both published a biography of Mao Zedong in 2005.

10 Back home her books are banned

Her book Wild Swans was a major success. It became an international best-seller with 20 million copies sold. It was also translated into 38 languages and received praise from authors such as J. G. Ballard. In the book, Chang paints a vivid portrait of the political and military turmoil of China through three generations of Chinese women in 20th century China. This was her grandmother, mother, and herself describing in length their experiences.

Despite the book being well received worldwide, it is banned in mainland China along with all her other books. Meanwhile, many pirated versions have circulated with translations in Hong Kong and Taiwan.