Editing New Youth (section)

===Hu Shih===
[[Hu Shih]] was arguably the most influential Chinese intellectual in the 20th century. He frequently published speeches at Beijing University and other places. Over his lifetime authored 44 books and numerous articles which influenced tens of thousands of Chinese people. Hu Shih promoted family planning, female equality, free marriage, and the need to have a child or not<!-- what? -->.<ref>China’s Great Liberal of the 20th Century – Hu Shih Founders of Modern Chinese Language,” Hong Kong, 2023, https://asiasociety.org/hong-kong/events/chinas-great-liberal-20th-century-hu-shih-founder-modern-chinese-language</ref> [[Hu Shih]] was one of the early editors. He published a landmark article "Essay on Creating a Revolutionary `New Literature" (Chinese: 建设的文学革命论) in the April 18, 1918 issue. He wrote that the mission of this language revolution is "a literature of the national language ([[Standard Chinese|Guoyu]], Chinese: 国語), a national language of literature" (Original Text: 国语的文学，文学的国语。). Hu then went on to reason that for thousands of years, the written language was bound by scholars using [[Classical Chinese]], a dead language. The [[Written vernacular Chinese|vernacular]], on the other hand, is living and adapts to the age. He urged authors to write in the vernacular in order to describe life as it is, reasoning that Chinese literature had a limited range of subject matter because it used a dead language. Using a living language would therefore open up a wealth of material for writers. He also argued that massive translations of western literature would both increase the range of literature and serve as examples to emulate. This was a seminal and prescient essay about the modern Chinese language. Hu Shih was an important figure in the transformation of the modern Chinese written and printed language.<ref name="Cambridge-270">{{Cite book|last=Ebrey|first=Patricia Buckely|title=The Cambridge Illustrated History of China|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=1996|isbn=0-521-43519-6|location=London|page=270}}</ref>

In the July 15 issue, Hu published an essay entitled, "Chastity" (Chinese: 贞操问题). In the traditional Chinese context, this refers not only to virginity before marriage, but specifically to women remaining chaste before they marry and after their husband's death (Chinese: 守贞). He wrote that this is an unequal and illogical view of life, that there is no natural or moral law upholding such a practice, that chastity is a mutual value for both men and women, and that he vigorously opposes any legislation favoring traditional practices on chastity. (There was a movement to introduce traditional Confucian value systems into law at the time.) Hu Shih also wrote a short play on the subject (see Drama section below).

These are examples of Hu Shih's progressive views. They were quite radical at that time, which was only a short six years after the overthrow of the Chinese imperial system. The [[Xinhai Revolution]], as it was called, created two branches in the 1920s: the [[Kuomintang|Nationalist (Kuomintang)]] and [[Chinese communist party|Chinese communist]] parties. Hu Shi tried to focus the editorial policy on literature. Chen Duxiu and others insisted on addressing social and political issues. Hu was a lifelong establishment figure in the [[Republic of China|Nationalist government]] and left "La Jeunesse" when its communist direction became clear.