Ouyang Tzu

Who is Ouyang Tzu?

Ouyang Tzu is the penname of Hong Zhihui, a female Taiwanese writer. She, along with fellow students of National Taiwan University Bai Xianyong, Wang Wenxing, and Chen Rouxi, created the literary magazine Modern Literature Xiandai wenxue in 1960, under the guidance of Professor Hsia Tsi-an.

Ouyang Tzu's short stories are modernist in the sense that they employ novelistic techniques of literary modernism: stream of consciousness, multiple perspective narration, symbolism, probing of psychological depths instead of drawing social canvases. Such techniques flourished briefly in Taiwan during the 1960s and were in response to the socio-political "Recover the Mainland" trend of the 1940s and 1950s.

Ouyang Tzu's writing is experimental as well in terms of challenging social mores, especially concerning sex. Her stories are filled with violence, sexuality and abnormal psychology.

In terms of literary merit, her writing is easily digestible, soap-operatic, and melodramatic.

Ouyang Tzu is also a noted literary critic. She has produced a book-length study of Taipei People.