Scholars devoted to modern literature from Taiwan will be very saddened to learn of the passing of Ko Ch’ing-ming (Ke Qingming) 柯慶明 (March 12, 1946-April 1, 2019). Professor Ko was a voluminous publisher of books of literary scholarship, prose essays, and poetry. His knowledge spanned the premodern and modern periods and both sides of the Taiwan Strait. For over thirty years, his wide-ranging essays on poetry and aesthetics were a regular feature, especially in journals such as Chung-Wai Literature, Lianhe Wenxue, Shi Tansuo, and other prominent venues. Professor Ko was a beloved teacher and mentor to countless students at National Taiwan University and served in a number of leadership roles, including as Director of the Graduate Institute of Taiwan Literature and the Taiwan University Press as well as a consultant to the government on cultural, literary, and linguistic matters. All of this would be enough for an illustrious career, but Professor Ko will likely be best known for his ebullience, warmth, and supportive attitude in his interactions with all sorts of students, colleagues throughout Taiwan, mainland China, and Hong Kong, and internationally in Japan, North America, and Europe. He was especially talented in public settings where he would offer his unique blend of intellectual acumen, stunning humor, and gentle treatment of others. He was a delight to know and one of a kind. The last couple years he had been encountering health issues and was mainly confined to a wheelchair. Despite this, he was still always bubbling over with enthusiasm, insight, and kind words. Recently, he participated in a ceremony awarding an honorary doctorate to the scholar Pang-yuan Ch’i (Qi Bangyuan 齊邦媛). I was really looking forward to seeing him during a planned visit to Taiwan in September and am sorry that we won’t have that chance. Colleagues can find more details on his life from the Department of Chinese Literature, National Taiwan University, which has posted a lengthy tribute and a bibliography, and most major newspapers in Taiwan. A very large tree has fallen. Rest In Peace, 慶明兄.

Christopher Lupke <lupke@ualberta.ca>
University of Alberta

Colleagues interested in Taiwanese literature may wish to know that the renowned stalwart of Taiwan literary scholarship Lin Ruiming 林瑞明 also known by his penname Lin Fan 林梵 passed away on Monday. Lin was probably best known for being the founding director of the National Museum of Taiwan Literature (國立台灣文學館), which he headed up in its early planning days of 2003-2005. Lin was ever present at the Museum. His other major achievement was his work on the doyen of early Taiwan literature, Lai He 賴和, whose complete works he edited. He also compiled a collection of Lai He’s original manuscripts.

Lin Ruiming wrote poetry under his penname Lin Fan. He studied history at National Chenggong University 國立成功大學 and received an MA in history from National Taiwan University. He lived most of his life in his hometown of Tainan, where the Museum is located. He had an effervescent personality and a convivial way of welcoming people to Taiwan. For years, he battled kidney disease and was regularly tethered to dialysis, but he never spoke of it and he never let it slow him down. He championed the culture of Taiwan as few others have and his presence will be missed but not forgotten.

Christopher Lupke lupke@ualberta.ca
University of Alberta