Facing widespread condemnation from the conservative elite, Zhang Jingsheng pioneered sex education and sexology in the early 20th century.
By Xie Ying
Despite 30 years of economic growth transforming almost all aspects of Chinese life, sex remains a taboo subject throughout society. A “don’t ask, don’t tell” attitude to sexuality encouraged by the government, the education system and the official media has ensured that frank discussions about sex remain off the agenda for all but the most liberal circles.
However, some pioneering educators have sought to buck this trend. Sociologist Zhang Jingsheng, one of China’s earliest advocates for sexual freedom and author of the controversial book The History of Sex, remains a divisive figure in a country deeply conflicted by sexuality.
Born in 1888 to a rich rural family in Guangdong, Zhang rebelled against his father’s expectations that his son might become a member of the gentry. Instead, he left home to join the democratic revolution of Sun Yet-sen, which successfully toppled the Qing monarchy in 1911. The new government sent Zhang to France, then a training ground for Chinese revolutionaries, in 1912. During his seven-year stay, he led a bohemian life which stirred a fascination with Western aesthetics and would determine the direction of his future studies.
‘Doctor Sex’
Zhang came back to China on the eve of the “New Cultural Movement,” commonly referred to as China’s Enlightenment, a nationwide rejection of China’s traditional arts and philosophies. Confucian doctrines and ideas seen as synonymous with the country’s “feudal past” came under particular attack. Zhang’s educational background and his avowed dedication to the movement landed him a teaching job at Peking University, then a rallying point for contemporary intellectuals including writers Chen Duxiu, Hu Shi and Lu Xun.
Zhang’s lectures on aesthetics, sexology and romantic love became a smash hit with students. His Epicurean pamphlet Outlook for a Beautiful Life, extolling the pleasures derived from good food, fine clothes, comfortable housing and regular sex, was widely circulated on campus and praised by leading intellectuals.
One contemporary writer commented: “Zhang Jingsheng’s works stand out from others for their daring exploration of taboo areas. How exciting that he energetically advocates life’s pleasures in our morbid society policed by moralists.”
Zhang had only just got started, and was soon pushing the boundaries of the movement itself. In 1926, he took out an ad in the Beijing Newspaper inviting contributions from ordinary people relating individual sexual experiences. Such blatant questions as “when was the first time you experienced sexual desire?” or “have you ever slept with a prostitute?” soon caused a flood of responses. He selected seven pieces and had them published in a book – The History of Sex (Volume I), predating Michel Foucault’s identically-titled masterwork by half a century. An article by his second wife Zhu Wenjuan entitled My Sexual Experience was also included in the book.
In his preface, Zhang stated “we should view sex as a subject for study, or an art.” He wrote frank commentaries on each submission, instructing people on the improvement of their sex lives, encouraging frequent sex and offering suggestions as to how a wife might arouse her husband.
The book was an instant hit, with copies soon unobtainable nationwide. On its debut at Shanghai’s Guanghua Bookstore, such a large crowd of people clogged the street that police had to clear the sidewalk with water cannons. In Guangzhou, the Minguo Daily reported that almost all local students had read Zhang’s book. “They are so fascinated with this book it’s as if they were drugged,” ran the report.
However, despite its enormous popularity, The History of Sex outraged educators and public figures and soon sparked a wave of vitriolic criticism. Four months after its publication, Zhang Boling, then president of the prestigious Nankai University in Tianjin, called on the local police to seize all copies of this “pornographic book” which was “poi-soning young people’s minds.” His protest eventually led to a complete ban, first in Tianjin and later the whole country.
Under overwhelming pressure, Zhang Jingsheng had to cancel plans to reprint his work, and curtail publication of subsequent volumes. However, pirate copies of the first volume were already circulating illegally throughout the country. Worse still, fake sequels to The History of Sex were flooding the market. Zhang soon earned the nickname “Doctor Sex.”
Beauty Bookstore
The controversy surrounding his masterwork made life in Beijing hard for Zhang. When Cai Yuanpei, the liberal president of Peking University, was relieved of his post, Zhang lost his final high-level defender. He moved to Shanghai and opened the Beauty Bookstore, publishing and selling books on sex education, religion, ethics and the arts.