Nien Cheng was a Chinese author known for recounting her experiences during the Cultural Revolution in her memoir Life and Death in Shanghai.
11 Facts About Nien Cheng
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Nien Cheng studied at Yenching University and later went to London to obtain a master's degree at the London School of Economics.
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In 1966, Nien Cheng was targeted by the Red Guards and accused of being a British spy, as she was both Western-educated and the widow of a former manager of a foreign firm in Shanghai.
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Nien Cheng cited Mao Zedong's teachings to counter her interrogators, frequently turning the tide of the struggle sessions against them.
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In 1973, when offered parole on the basis that her attitude had shown improvement, Nien Cheng resisted leaving the detention house without first receiving official acknowledgment from her captors that she had been unjustly detained.
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Nien Cheng continued her life under constant surveillance, including spying by the family on the first floor.
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When released from jail, Nien Cheng was told that her daughter Meiping Nien Cheng had committed suicide.
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Nien Cheng stated that the main reason she remained in her self-imposed exile was that she could not bear the constant reminder of her dead daughter at the sight of other young Chinese women.
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Meanwhile, Nien Cheng suspected that she was still a constant target of surveillance by the Chinese government.
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Nien Cheng was a close friend of Suzanne Hiltermann-Souloumiac, who encouraged her to write about her experiences.
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Nien Cheng died of renal failure in Washington, DC, on November 2,2009.