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Editorial Report

 
No. 42 Editorial Report

 

  1. This issue of the Bulletin of the Department of Chinese Literature, National Chengchi University (“the Bulletin”) received a total of 28 submissions (18 from Taiwan and 10 from overseas). 6 submissions were rejected and returned after preliminary editorial committee review. Of the remaining 22 submissions, 21 submissions excluding the feature article went through double-blind reviews by at least two extramural experts for each submission. Excluding the feature article, 3 out of 27 submissions were accepted, resulting in an acceptance rate of 11.1 percent, and a rejection rate of 88.9 percent. This issue publishes 5 academic articles, with 0 articles by full-time teachers of the Department of Chinese Literature, National Chengchi University, the rate for internal release is 0 percent. The Bulletin aims to enhance academic quality, broaden research perspectives, and cordially invites submissions from scholars.

  2. In this issue, we feature “ The Historical Evolution of Illness Perceptions in Japan under Sinographic Cultural Influence”, written by Professor Emeritus Tohru Ohgata, Osaka Prefecture University. In the East Asian Sinographic cultural sphere, the causes of disease are often attributed to the invasion of external harmful forces into the human body. This perspective aligns with the “Qi-Centered Etiology” developed under the influence of Traditional Chinese medicine’s cosmological theory of Qi transformation. Building on this foundation, the article highlights the presence of a “Spirit-Centered Etiology,” which attributes illness to malevolent spirits or ghosts possessing the body, as evidenced in Chinese and Japanese texts and cultural practices. The study also emphasizes the need for further research in this area. For example, ancient characters such as “疫” (epidemic), “役” (service), and “御（禦）” (to defense) frequently appear in contexts related to expelling epidemic spirits. Additionally, Chinese and Japanese materials, including excavated and historical texts, silk paintings, stone carvings, modern illustrations, and stamps, as well as ritual practices like Nuo ceremonies, Nagoshinoharae (summer purification rites), and the Gion Matsuri, often carry symbolic references to the elimination of malevolent spirits. The author emphasizes that despite modern medicine’s dismissal of spirits as disease causes, exploring “Spirit-Centered Cultural Theory” and “Spirit-Centered Etiology” is vital for a fuller understanding of religion, culture, literature, and aesthetics in the Sinographic cultural sphere.
  3. This issue originally planned a special article column section “Historical Narratives in the Study of Modern Chinese Literature—Multiple Paths of Reality, Conventions, and Situational Presentations”, but after review, the number of articles recommended for publication was limited, which made it difficult to demonstrate the richness of the designed theme. Therefore, this special section was canceled. The submissions were reassigned as general submissions.
  4. The special article column section of the 43th issue, titled “The Multiple Narratives of Material, Images, and Myth” is curated by Professor Gao Li-fen, Department of Chinese Literature, National Chengchi University. The development of academic research is a process of discovering phenomena, uncovering truths, and proposing explanations, reflections, and solutions through continuous dialogue across different fields. Therefore, the pursuit of knowledge and truth should include both orthodox, mainstream academic thought and unorthodox, non-mainstream ideas and cultures for a comprehensive understanding. Michel Foucault (1926-1984)’s works, such as “The Order of Things” (French: Les Mots et les choses: un archeologie des sciences humaines), highlight that the concept of “Man” is shaped by recent knowledge. Foucault’s research is particularly enlightening for contemporary humanities in exploring the interaction between words and objects. While traditional humanities have long focused on textual records, “Objects” possess greater visual and physical reality, playing a crucial role in the genealogy of human knowledge. In modern humanities research, there is an increasing focus on “material” and “material culture,” interpreting diverse cultural messages from objects, artifacts, and images that textual records may not capture. With the growing interest in material and image studies within the humanities, the boundaries between disciplines such as archaeology, history, literature, art, religion, philosophy, and communication are increasingly blurred. Mythology, inherently interdisciplinary, has adopted the multiple evidence approach. Modern research now extends beyond textual limitations, incorporating excavated documents, oral traditions, non-material culture, objects, and images to explore dynamic oral narratives and the narratives of “things.” Myths, both as sacred narratives and broader oral traditions, convey human interpretations of existence, the world, and the universe. These narratives are preserved in ancient histories, literature, and various material cultures such as ritual vessels, everyday objects, paintings, sculptures, and architecture. They are crucial for understanding human thought and culture. In this context, the special topic “Material, Images, and Myth” invites scholars and experts to contribute. The aim is to foster dialogue and reflection on human knowledge, enriching the understanding of the humanities through diverse narratives. Submission for this special article column section ends by the beginning of March 2025.
  5. The Bulletin continues to win subsidies this year. It was selected as a THCI Core journal in 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015, and won the highest biennial ranking of THCI consecutively in 2016, 2018, 2020 and 2023, by the Research Institute for the Humanities and Social Sciences, Ministry of Science and Technology of Taiwan. We hereby thank all of our supporters in the academic fields and the Research Institute for the Humanities and Social Sciences for their recognition and acknowledgement.
  6. In order to provide a platform for smooth submission and communication, to promote specialization, internationalization and digital accessibility, the Bulletin established a new and designated website sponsored by Research Institute for the Humanities and Social Sciences with multilingual user interfaces supporting Chinese, English and Japanese in June 2023. The main content on the website includes latest news, submission requirements, and provides access to view and download past issues. The website facilitates viewing and circulation, as well as integration with domestic and overseas academic circles. The new website address is https://bdcl.nccu.edu.tw
  7. The Bulletin has been publishing electronic versions simultaneously with paper versions since inception. The content of the Bulletin is included in and downloadable from databases of academic journals including Airiti Library (www.airitilibrary.com), HyRead (https://www.hyread.com.tw), TOAJ (https://toaj.stpi.narl.org.tw), LawData (https:// lawdata.com.tw), NCL Taiwan Periodical Literature(https://tpl.ncl.edu.tw/NclService), Taiwan Citation Index – Humanities and Social Sciences (https://tci.ncl.edu.tw), Taiwan Journals Search (https://p.udpweb.com/soc), etc. In addition, the Bulletin is also included in the NCCU academic journal database system (https://nccur.lib.nccu.edu.tw), available for all scholars to use.
  8. We hereby extend our sincere gratitude and appreciation for all the support and hard work by submitters, reviewers, the editorial committee, special article column coordinators, editors and Showwe Information Co., Ltd., who made the successful publication of this issue possible.

The Bulletin of the Department of Chinese Literature
National Chengchi University Editors Dec 2024