Wang Tuoh (; 9 January 1944 – 9 August 2016) was a Taiwanese writer,
public intellectual
An intellectual is a person who engages in critical thinking, research, and reflection about the reality of society, and who proposes solutions for the normative problems of society. Coming from the world of culture, either as a creator or a ...
, literary critic, and politician. He was born in , then a small fishing village near the northern port city of
Keelung
Keelung () or Jilong () (; Hokkien POJ: '), officially known as Keelung City, is a major port city situated in the northeastern part of Taiwan. The city is a part of the Taipei–Keelung metropolitan area, along with its neighbors, New Taipe ...
. His name was originally Wang Hung-chiu (王紘久).
Writing career
Wang Tuoh published his first
short story
A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest ...
, ''The Hanging Tree'' in 1970, and went on to write a series of stories set in his home village of Badouzi that drew heavily on his own experiences in a small, insular
village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to ...
where everyone is part of a larger family that has been there for five generations. The most well-known of these stories is the
novella
A novella is a narrative prose fiction whose length is shorter than most novels, but longer than most short stories. The English word ''novella'' derives from the Italian ''novella'' meaning a short story related to true (or apparently so) facts ...
''Auntie Jinshui'' (金水嬸; published September 1976) which describes the story of the eponymous Auntie Jinshui. Auntie Jinshui is a street peddler who has successfully raised and educated six sons, but falls upon especially hard times after being swindled by a
priest
A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...
introduced to her by one of her sons. She then falls behind on her payments to her Hui (會), an informal village credit network, and finds herself gradually ostracized from her friends and family. This novella was also later made into a movie.
His
novel
A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itsel ...
s are ''The Story of Cowbelly Harbor'' (牛肚港的故事; published 1982) and ''Taipei, Taipei!'' (台北,台北!; published 1983), both written while he was in jail as a
political prisoner
A political prisoner is someone imprisoned for their political activity. The political offense is not always the official reason for the prisoner's detention.
There is no internationally recognized legal definition of the concept, although n ...
.
Political career
After being freed from prison in 1984, he joined the political opposition to the ruling
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang (KMT), also referred to as the Guomindang (GMD), the Nationalist Party of China (NPC) or the Chinese Nationalist Party (CNP), is a major political party in the Republic of China, initially on the Chinese mainland and in Tai ...
and in 1995 was elected to Taiwan's
Legislative Yuan
The Legislative Yuan is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of China (Taiwan) located in Taipei. The Legislative Yuan is composed of 113 members, who are directly elected for 4-year terms by people of the Taiwan Area through a parallel v ...
as a
Democratic Progressive Party
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) is a Taiwanese nationalist and centre-left political party in the Republic of China (Taiwan). Controlling both the Republic of China presidency and the unicameral Legislative Yuan, it is the majori ...
(DPP) member for
Keelung City
Keelung () or Jilong () (; Hokkien POJ: '), officially known as Keelung City, is a major port city situated in the northeastern part of Taiwan. The city is a part of the Taipei–Keelung metropolitan area, along with its neighbors, New Taipe ...
. Wang formed an alliance with the DPP's Formosa faction, which disbanded after its leader
Hsu Hsing-liang left the party. In 2002, Wang became a member of the Justice faction.
Wang was nominated by the DPP to run for Keelung City mayor in 2005. After contentious discussions with the
Taiwan Solidarity Union
The Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) is a political party in Taiwan which advocates Taiwan independence, and is affiliated with the Taiwanese localization movement. It was officially founded on 12 August 2001 and is considered part of the Pan-Gr ...
, the DPP agreed to withdraw Wang's nomination to support the TSU's Chen Chien-ming. However, Wang remained on the ballot, and finished fourth in the election.
Commenting on the 2007 summit between South Korean President
Roh Moo-hyun
Roh Moo-hyun (; ; 1 September 1946 – 23 May 2009) was a South Korean politician and lawyer who served as the ninth president of South Korea between 2003 and 2008.
Roh's pre-presidential political career was focused on human rights advocacy for ...
and
North Korea
North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...
n leader
Kim Jong-il
Kim Jong-il (; ; ; born Yuri Irsenovich Kim;, 16 February 1941 – 17 December 2011) was a North Korean politician who was the second supreme leader of North Korea from 1994 to 2011. He led North Korea from the 1994 death of his father Kim ...
, Wang noted that their talks offered a model for negotiations between China and Taiwan held on an equal footing and based on mutual respect.
Lamenting that China refuses to recognise Taiwan as a sovereign, independent state, he urged China to support a bid for UN recognition for Taiwan also called for the removal of the 900 Chinese missiles deployed along its southeastern coast that threaten Taiwan militarily.
After losing his seat in the legislature in January 2008, Wang was appointed chairman of the
Council for Cultural Affairs
The Ministry of Culture (MOC, ) is the ministry of the Republic of China (Taiwan) that promotes cultural and creative industries. The ministry also maintains thNational Repository of Cultural Heritage
History
Established in 1981 by Executive Y ...
, a cabinet-level position. From this position, Wang pushed for substantial increases to the culture budget. In May 2008, Wang was appointed by chairwoman
Tsai Ing-wen
Tsai Ing-wen (; born 31 August 1956) is a Taiwanese politician serving as president of the Republic of China (Taiwan) since 2016. A member of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), Tsai is the first female president of Taiwan. She served as ...
to serve as the Secretary General of the DPP. In taking on the position, Wang chose not to be paid. He helped the party out of a NT$150 million debt, while reducing its bureaucracy and infighting shortly after the 2008 elections.
Wang died in Taipei on 9 August 2016 at the age of 72, due to complications of a heart attack. His funeral was held on 6 September.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wang, Tuoh
1944 births
2016 deaths
Taiwanese male novelists
Democratic Progressive Party Members of the Legislative Yuan
Keelung Members of the Legislative Yuan
Party List Members of the Legislative Yuan
Members of the 3rd Legislative Yuan
Members of the 4th Legislative Yuan
Members of the 5th Legislative Yuan
Members of the 6th Legislative Yuan
National Taiwan Normal University alumni
National Chengchi University alumni
International Writing Program alumni
Taiwanese male short story writers
20th-century novelists
21st-century novelists
Prisoners and detainees of Taiwan
20th-century short story writers
21st-century short story writers
Taiwanese Ministers of Culture
20th-century male writers
21st-century male writers