Shanghai Jiao Tong University–Heidelberg University Faculty Short-Term Exchange Program Successfully Launched with In-Depth Academic Dialogue on Lu Xun and Lianhuanhua Adaptation

On October 14, the academic dialogue “Gained in Adaptation: Lu Xun and his Fiction in Lianhuanhua Adaptation” was held at Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU). Jointly organized by SJTU’s School of Humanities, Heidelberg University’s Confucius Institute, and Centre for Asian and Transcultural Studies (CATS) in 2024, this event was part of The 2025 International Week & International Cultural Festival of the School of Humanities and the Modern China and Regional Studies program series, supported by a faculty exchange initiative between the two universities.

Professor Lena Henningsen of Heidelberg University presented her research on the adaptation of Chinese literature and films into lianhuanhua (serial picture-story books) since the 1940s, sparking in-depth discussions with attendees. The panel featured Professor Wang Xirong (SJTU visiting professor and former Director of Lu Xun Memorial Hall), Professor Liu Jialin from the Department of Chinese Literature, and doctoral candidate Liu Shinan (modern and contemporary literature). Faculty members including Professors Cai Wenjing, Long Qilin, Han Lei, Associate Professor Li Juan, and Dr. Zhao Yiran, alongside Heidelberg researchers Lennart Riedel, Song Jiu, and Astrid Yuwen Xiao, participated in the dialogue.

Professor Henningsen introduced her ERC-funded project ChinaComx on Chinese comics culture and her collaboration with CATS to digitize lianhuanhua collections. Using adaptations of Lu Xun’s works as case studies, she analyzed how lianhuanhua’s visual language adds interpretive ambiguity to literary classics—"revitalizing texts through creative transformation in popular culture" despite potential simplifications. Professor Wang Xirong then examined artistic techniques in original lianhuanhua, decoding panel layouts and woodcut styles in Lu Xun adaptations. Professor Liu Jialin framed adaptations as "semantic transformations", exploring intersections between reader experience and literary theory, while Liu Shinan showcased rare New Era lianhuanhua depicting Lu Xun and raised taxonomic questions on film-style adaptations.

The session concluded with a vibrant Q&A followed by a tour of the exhibition Carving and Writing: Lu Xun’s Print Collection, curated by Professor Wang. This exchange builds on recent collaborations including Associate Professor Shi Donglai’s productive visit to CATS in July 2024, with both universities planning further faculty exchanges in 2026 to deepen research cooperation.

Written by: Juan Li
Photography by: Peilin Kan, Yihan Zhang