Mao Dun’s Former Residence 茅盾故居

Tucked away in a quiet hutong lies the former residence of modern writer Mao Dun (1896-1981). Born Shen Dehong in Zhejiang province, he took his pen name (which means “contradiction”) as a response to the conflicting revolutionary ideologies of the 1920s. His friend Ye Shengtao changed the “mao” character from 矛 (spear) to 茅 (straw) so that the name kept the same pronunciation without making him vulnerable
to political persecution. In 1921 he became the first writer to join the Communist Party of China (CPC) and he followed that up by joining the League of Left-Wing Writers in 1930.His most important work, Midnight, a critical and realistic look at business in Shanghai, was published in 1933. After the founding of the People’s Republic in 1949, he became Minister of Culture and secretary to Mao Zedong himself. During the Cultural Revolution, Mao Dun was dismissed and mistreated, and until his death in 1981 he went into self-imposed confinement, spending the last seven years of his life here.
Caretakers have preserved this traditional courtyard home much as the writer left it, with personal belongings and simple, socialist-style furniture in their original state. The desk calendar
even remains open to February 19, 1981, the last page the writer personally turned. The small exhibit includes some 400 mementos, including original manuscripts, letters and family photos (unfortunately, English translations are not available). This residence is certainly worth a stop on a leisurely stroll through the neighboring
hutongs and is an important site for anyone interested in contemporary Chinese literature.