Simon Leys

Simon Leys was a writer. He used a pen name. This name helped him stay safe. He loved to study China. He learned how to do fine brush writing.

He lived in many lands. He lived in Belgium and Taiwan. He also lived in Australia. He taught many students in school.

He wrote books about art. He wrote about old paintings too. He wrote about how people lived. His books told true stories.

He saw hard times in China. He wrote about these things. He wanted people to know the truth. This was his important work.

He was a very busy man. He had a wife and four children. He loved his family very much.

Pierre Ryckmans was a writer from Belgium. Many people know him by his pen name, Simon Leys. He used this name to stay safe while writing. He was a sinologist, which means he was an expert on China. He also studied art history and fine brush writing, called calligraphy.

Ryckmans traveled to many places. He lived in Belgium and Taiwan. He also lived in Hong Kong and Australia. In Hong Kong, he lived in a small place. He called it the "hall of uselessness." He worked hard to learn about Chinese culture. He even wrote about a trip on a tuna boat.

He wrote many important books. Some books were about Chinese art and old paintings. Other books were about the politics of China. During the Cultural Revolution, he wrote about the hard times in China. He wanted to tell the truth about what was happening. His books were very famous but also caused much debate. He taught many students at universities in Australia. He lived with his wife and four children. He died in 2014 at the age of 78.

Pierre Ryckmans was a man who lived many different lives. Most people know him by his pen name, Simon Leys. He was a writer, a teacher, and an expert on China. This job is called a sinologist. He also studied art history and the art of fine brush writing, known as calligraphy.

His life was filled with many different tasks. He studied law and art history at the Université catholique de Louvain in Belgium. Later, he went to Taiwan to study at the Fine Arts department of National Taiwan University. There, he studied under a man named Puru, who was a cousin of the last emperor. He even worked on a tuna boat in France once. He also spent time teaching at Nanyang University in Singapore and the New Asia College in Hong Kong.

Ryckmans had a very big interest in Chinese culture. This started when he was nineteen years old. He traveled to the People's Republic of China and met Premier Zhou Enlai. This trip made him want to learn the Chinese language very well. He believed people needed to know the culture to understand the world. He even wrote a book about a famous Chinese painter named Shitao.

He wrote books that changed how people thought about China. His trilogy, which includes "Les Habits neufs du président Mao," described the Cultural Revolution. These books talked about the hard things happening in China. Because of his writing, he chose the name Simon Leys to stay safe. He moved to Australia in 1970 to teach at the Australian National University. He later became a professor at the University of Sydney.

His life shows how much one person can learn from the world. He lived in Belgium, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Australia. He married Han Fang Chang and had twins in 1967. He eventually had four children named Etienne, Jeanne, Louis, and Marc. He passed away in 2014 at the age of 78. His work remains a way for people to study history and art.

Pierre Ryckmans, widely recognized by his pen name Simon Leys, was a multifaceted scholar and writer. He served as a sinologist, which is a specialist in Chinese language, history, and culture. Beyond this, he was an essayist, a literary critic, a translator, and an art historian. His diverse intellectual interests spanned from traditional Chinese calligraphy to French and English literature. He also wrote about nautical fiction and the changing nature of modern universities. Through his many roles, he sought to bridge the gap between Western perspectives and the complex realities of Chinese life.

Ryckmans' academic journey began in Belgium at the Université catholique de Louvain. There, he studied both law and art history. A pivotal moment occurred in 1955 when he was one of ten young Belgians invited to visit China. During this trip, he participated in a conversation with Premier Zhou Enlai. This experience deeply influenced his worldview. He concluded that living in the modern age required a direct access to Chinese culture and a mastery of its language. Following this, he traveled to Taiwan to enroll at the National Taiwan University. He studied in the Fine Arts department under the guidance of Puru, a Manchu scholar and cousin of the last emperor, Puyi. This period allowed him to begin deep research into the Qing empire painter, Shitao.

His career involved several distinct geographic and professional stages. After his studies in Taiwan, he returned to Belgium, where he chose to serve as a conscientious objector. This meant he performed civil service instead of military service. He later moved to Singapore to teach at Nanyang University. In 1963, due to political suspicions regarding his views, he relocated to Hong Kong. While living in a Kowloon squatter area, he shared a small residence called Wu Yong Tang, or the "hall of uselessness." During this time, he taught at the New Asia College and supplemented his income by writing reports. He summarized Chinese press articles and collected testimonies from refugees to understand the political climate.

Ryckmans' writing often addressed the intense political shifts in China. In the 1970s, he published a famous trilogy: "Les Habits neufs du président Mao" (1971), "Ombres chinoises" (1974), and "Images brisées" (1976). These works provided scathing descriptions of the Cultural Revolution. He used these books to denounce the destruction of Chinese culture and the hypocrisy of Western intellectuals who defended the Maoist regime. Because these writings were controversial, his publisher advised him to use a pseudonym. He chose "Simon Leys" to avoid being declared persona non grata in the People's Republic of China. The name "Simon" refers to the original name of the Apostle Peter, while "Leys" honors the character René Leys from a novel by Victor Segalen.

In 1970, Ryckmans moved to Australia, marking a new chapter in his life. He taught Chinese literature at the Australian National University in Canberra. During his time there, he supervised the academic work of future Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd. Later, from 1987 to 1993, he served as a Professor of Chinese Studies at the University of Sydney. His presence in the academic world was often marked by vigorous debate. A notable example occurred in 1983 on the French television show "Apostrophes." During a discussion with author Maria-Antonietta Macciocchi, Ryckmans sharply criticized her work for factual errors regarding China. He argued that her research lacked the necessary verification.

Throughout his life, Ryckmans remained a dedicated scholar of art and history. He completed a PhD thesis focused on translating and commenting on the painting treatises of the artist Shitao. This work was published in 1970 by the Institut Belge des Hautes Etudes Chinoises. His interests were not limited to politics; he also possessed a deep appreciation for the technical beauty of calligraphy. Even his earlier, less political writings showed his range. In 1958, he recorded an account of a fishing expedition on a tuna boat in Brittany, a work titled "Prosper" that was not published until 45 years later.

In his later years, Ryckmans expressed concerns about the direction of higher education. He noted that "deep modifications" were affecting universities globally. He felt these transformations were moving institutions away from the academic models he had spent his life supporting. He eventually took early retirement and returned to Canberra. Pierre Ryckmans passed away in Sydney in August 2014 at the age of 78. He died from cancer, surrounded by his wife, Han Fang Chang, and their four children: Etienne, Jeanne, Louis, and Marc. His legacy remains tied to his efforts to provide honest, detailed insights into the intersection of art and politics.