The final lecture of the series studied science fiction literature from the late Qing Dynasty. During that period, the common concept of "science fiction" had not been established, and such works were categorized as "philosophical," "political," "ideal," or "military." This ambiguity in classification reflects the hybrid knowledge system resulting from the introduction of Western science and the new literary landscape shaped by Liang Qichao’s reform of fiction writing. Writers from this era combined romantic tales with interstellar adventures and blended traditional supernatural elements with modern technology, creating a unique multi-layered phenomenon.
The lecturer focuses on two works, Moon Colony (1904) by Huangjiang Diaosou and New Era (1908) by Biheguan Zhuren, illustrating how their writers incorporated modern concepts of space and time into traditional exotic travel novels, and how they imbued magical artefacts inspired by classical fantasy—such as the "Ring of Arbitrary Control," the "Inspector of Nine Abysses," and the "Soul-Shattering Dust"—with scientific bases.
Monthly workshops will follow the lecture series, dedicated to annotating The New Story of the Stone (1905) and Flowers in the Mirror (1828). Prospective participants must apply and will be honored for their contributions. Application details will be announced on RAM's WeChat account.
Speaker:
Ren Dongmei is a science fiction researcher and critic, and an associate researcher at the Institute of Taiwan Studies, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. She is the author ofThe Culture of Fantasy and the Literary Image of Modern China (2016) and co-author of History of Chinese Science Fiction in the 20th Century (2022). Her research has received recognition from the Galaxy Award and Xingyun (Nebula) Awards for Chinese Science Fiction.
“‘新小说’计划”的最后一场讲座打开了晚清科幻文本。在并未确立一般“科幻小说”概念的晚清，此类文本散见于“科学小说”“哲理小说”“政治小说”“理想小说”“军事小说”等标签下。文体的模糊性和多样性折射出西方科学引入后不甚明晰的知识体系，也体现了梁启超发起的“小说界革命”带来的虚构写作新气象。反映到科幻创作中，就出现了才子佳人与星际探险相叠合、传统神魔与现代科技相交织的新旧杂陈、多声复义的现象。
讲者主要以荒江钓叟的《月球殖民地小说》（1904）和碧荷馆主人的《新纪元》（1908）两部小说为例，分别讨论晚清写作者如何在看似传统的章回体异域旅行小说中表达出现代的时间和空间观念，以及怎样为“如意艮止圈”、“洞九渊”和“追魂砂”等取材自古典幻想的法宝赋予新科学依据。
系列讲座结束后，本项目将围绕《新石头记》（1905）和《镜花缘》（1828）组织月度的文本注释工作坊。工作坊采取申请制并提供津贴，申请详情请查阅上海外滩美术馆微信公众号。
讲者：
任冬梅，科幻研究者、评论家，中国社会科学院台湾研究所副研究员。出版专著《幻想文化与现代中国的文学形象》（2016），合著有《20世纪中国科幻小说史》（2022）。她的研究受华语科幻星云奖和银河奖等奖项认可。
