Warning in a Prosperous Age (Shenshi Weiyan – 盛世危言, also called “Words of Warning to a Prosperous Age”) is the most concentrated and full reflection of Zheng Guanying’s reformist thought “Prosperity can save the nation”. Because of the great significance in this book, it became one of the most published in its era with the greatest number of versions in the history of Chinese modern publishing.
Unarguably, “Warning in a Prosperous Age” influenced the most leaders in early modern China including the founding of the People’s Republic of China. The Guangxu emperor of the Qing dynasty designated “Warning in a Prosperous Age” as required reading for provincial level officials. The book had an extraordinary influence in his times and later decades, providing inspiration to Kang Youwei, Sun Yat Sen, Lu Xun and Mao Zedong in their pursue for political reforms.
The text reproduced here is the “Warning in a Prosperous Age” initially published in 1894 and updated by Zheng Guanying in 1900. The numbered chapter notes are originally by Zheng Guanying – bolded text in these notes are annotations by Zheng Meizhen and Zheng Huashu.
Annotation and new notes within the book chapters are designated by asterisk (*).
