Ye Shengtao

    Ye Shengtao (1894-1988, born Ye Shaojun, also known as Bingchen) was born in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province. A famous modern editor, educator, writer and social worker, Mr. Ye started his career as a primary school teacher upon his graduation from high school in 1912. Before the beginning of the May Fourth Movement of 1919, Mr. Ye had already written and published many stories and was active in a student organization called the “New Tide Society” with Li Dazhao and Lu Xun. In 1921, Mr. Ye launched and organized The Literature Research Association with Shen Yanbing, Zheng Zhenduo and others, and made “Literature is for Life” and critical thinking the focus of their work. Meanwhile, Mr. Ye, along with Zhu Ziqing and others, founded Poetry, the first poetry magazine of China’s modern literary world. Mr. Ye wrote and published many stories that reflected the bitter life and destiny of the people; he published fairy tales (e.g. “A Scarecrow”) and collections of short stories (e.g. “Gemo” and “A Fire”). In 1923, Mr. Ye began to work for the Shanghai Commercial Press as an editor. Mr. Ye was already the editor-in-chief of several magazines including Novel Monthly. In 1928 Mr. Ye published his famous autobiographical novel, “Ni Huanzhi” and a number of additional short stories. In 1930, Mr. Ye joined the Kaiming Press. He started the magazine, High School Students, which, during the 1930’s and ‘40’s, had a far-reaching influence on Chinese young people and Chinese society as a whole. After the Manchurian Incident, Mr. Ye threw himself into the Anti-Japanese and National Salvation Movements, and initiated the “Literary Alliance of Anti-Japanese Imperialism”.
    During the Anti-Japanese War, Mr. Ye settled in the Sichuan Province. At first he taught high school and college; then he worked as the managing editor for the Kaiming Press. At that time, Mr. Ye wrote numerous essays, short stories, and poems exploring, from different points of view, the bleakness of old society and the misery in peoples’ lives. He paid tribute to the efforts of society to persevere and struggle for national liberation. In Sichuan, Mr. Ye founded the Anti-Japanese Literary Society, which supported officers and soldiers in the Anti-Japanese front. Following the victory in the Anti-Japanese War, Mr. Ye took part in the battle for fighting against the Kuomintang Party and their suppression of democracy. He also fought for the freedom of press.
    In 1946, Mr. Ye returned to Shanghai, and dedicated his work to the Patriotism and Democracy Movement. He served as the director and manager of the Department of General Services, the China Association of Literary Circles. At the same time, Mr. Ye was a consultant to the League of Primary School Teachers for Advanced Studies in Shanghai and also to the Research Association of High School Education. In his magazines, articles, and speeches, Mr. Ye revealed and condemned the misdeeds of authorities (including civil war, autocracy and treachery); he called on the literary and education societies to ”have something to love, have something to hate, have something to do and have something not to do; strive for the same goal with the people”, “to turn democracy into reality depending on confluent and titanic power”, “to change the ethos, and to leave the world”, and to set up the ideal “to maintain peace for generations”.
    In early 1949, Ye Shengtao traveled to Beijing via Hong Kong, at the invitation of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, and served as the director of the North China People's Government’s Committee of Schoolbook Compilation. In June of the same year, Mr. Ye attended the preparatory meeting of the New Political Consultative Conference. In July, he attended the first representative meeting of the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles and was elected as a member of that organization. In September, Ye was present at the 1st plenary meeting of The Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference. After the founding of the People's Republic of China, Mr. Ye successively  held many important posts including: 
1.        Vice-Director of Publication Administration of the Central People's Government,
2.        Compilation Office Director,
3.        Vice-Minister of the Ministry of Education
4.        President and Editor-in-Chief of the People’s Education Press,
5.        Advisor to the Ministry of Education,
6.        Curator of the Central Research Institute of Culture and History,
7.        Member of the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles,
8.        Advisor of Chinese Writers Association
9.        Deputy of 1st - 4th National Peoples’ Congress and Standing Committee,
10.    Member of the 5th National Peoples’ Congress,
11.    Member of the 1st National Committee of CPPCC,
12.    Standing Committee member of the 5th National Committee of CPPCC and
13.    Vice-Chairman of the 6th National Committee of CPPCC.
    In 1962, Ye Shengtao joined the China Association for Promoting Democracy. In 1979, Mr. Ye was elected as Vice-Chairman of the 4th National Congress of the China Association for Promoting Democracy. In September 1984, Mr. Ye took up the post of sub-chairman of the China Association for Promoting Democracy.