INTRODUCTION TO ZHONGGUO FUNÜ

Zhongguo funü (hereafter ZGFN) is an exception among all the women’s magazines dealt with here. ZGFN is, very clearly and openly, a propaganda magazine. All articles are bound to the socialist ideology, and the reader can find versions of speeches by Mao and other politicians of the period.

The first issue of ZGFN (known in English as "Women of China") came out on June 1, 1939 and the price was listed as one jiao (a tenth of one yuan). That issue contains a calligraphy by Mao Zedong, his compliments to the first publication of ZGFN and an introduction to the first issue (發刊詞 fakanci) in which the editors express their hope that ZGFN would become the mouthpiece (喉 舌 houshe, ZGFN, I,1, p.3) of all Chinese women. The fakanci is unsigned. Holdings in Heidelberg are a reprint from 1983.

ZGFN is a wartime product; it was first published in summer 1939 by the Women’s Committee of the Central Committee of  China’s Communist Party (中共中央婦女運動委員會 Zhonggong zhongyang funü yundong weiyuanhui). In its earliest incarnation, the magazine existed for less than two years. In March 1941 the Central Committee of China’s Communist Party decided to "temporarily suspend" the publication of ZGFN, together with two other magazines, the China Youth (中國青年 Zhongguo qingnian) and the China Workman (中國工人 Zhongguo gongren)[Decision of 26 March 1941]. However, it was published again after the foundation of the People's Republic of China.

Although ZGFN is the product of an editorial committee, (as many communist actions are undertaken by a group rather than an individual) it seems that the driving force behind this magazine was Wang Ming (Zhou 1989: p.383). ZGFN is filled with a lot of material designated to educate (young) women. The obvious purpose of this education-- although the authors never mention this explicitly-- is to encourage women in their fight against the enemy.

From the layout of the magazine, one can see that it was produced during wartime. The printing technique very likely is wood print, and there are no photographs in any of the issues. The only visual images are pieces of wood print art. The imprint claims that ZGFN was available throughout the whole country, but it probably circulated only among the comrades and was not produced in large numbers.

	cover of the first issue (1939.6)	calligraphy by Mao Zedong, his compliments to the first issue (1939.6)	introduction by the editors (fakanci 發刊詞); ZGFN I,1 (1939.6)	cover of the last issue (1941.3)

Sources:

Decision of 26 March 1941: 中共中央關於調整刊物問題的決定, 一九四一年三月二十六日 as printed in: 中囯共産黨新聞工作文件匯編, 1980, 上卷, p.96, 中國社會科 學院新聞研究所編新華出版社.

Zhou 1989: 週國全 et al.,王明評傳, 1989, 安微人民出 版社.