Lin Yutang (1895–1976) was a Chinese scholar, writer, philologist, and journalist. Talented in both English and Chinese, he used both in his creative writing. He is best known for his many novels and essays on, and anthologies of, Chinese wisdom and culture, and as a co-author of the official Romanization (‘Gwoyeu Romatzyh’) plan for the Mandarin Chinese alphabet.
Born in Zhangzhou, Fujian, Lin was the son of a Presbyterian minister. He studied at Shanghai, Harvard, and Leipzig. He became a professor of English at Peking University 1923–26 and Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs 1927. He lived mainly in the USA from 1936 and was Chancellor of Singapore University 1954–55.
In the 1930s, Lin founded several Chinese magazines specializing in social satire and Western-style journalism. He made highly acclaimed English translations of Chinese literary masterpieces, such as Famous Chinese Short Stories Retold (1952.)
Lin established his international reputation after his best-known work Wu guo wu min (My Country and My People) was published in 1935. He also produced The Importance of Living (1937,) The Wisdom of Confucius (1938,) Moment in Peking (1939; novel,) and The Wisdom of China and India (1942.)
Lin’s writings, humorous and witty, played an essential part in disseminating Chinese culture to American readers and are noted for their joyful and optimistic outlook toward life.
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Probably the difference between man and the monkeys is that the monkeys are merely bored, while man has boredom plus imagination.
—Lin Yutang
Topics: Boredom
A good traveler is one who does not know where he is going to, and a perfect traveler does not know where he came from.
—Lin Yutang
Topics: Travel
Today we are afraid of simple words like goodness and mercy and kindness. We don’t believe in the good old words because we don’t believe in good old values anymore. And that’s why the world is sick.
—Lin Yutang
Topics: Value
Besides the noble art of getting things done, there is the noble art of leaving things undone. The wisdom of life consists in the elimination of the nonessentials.
—Lin Yutang
Topics: Simplicity, Time Management, Living, Forgiveness, Wisdom
When small men begin to cast big shadows, it means that the sun is about to set
—Lin Yutang
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