Guigen and Tianjin-Style Humor: Liu Yunruo’s Editorial Practice in Beiyang Pictorial

Abstract

This article examines how Liu Yunruo’s editorial practice at Beiyang Pictorial (Beihua) contributed to the articulation of guigen (归哏), a locally grounded form of Tianjin-style humor. Drawing on periodical materials, Liu’s fiction and essays, and contextual readings of modern humor discourse, it traces the interaction of crosstalk conventions, urban print culture, and translated comic writing. The 1929 April Fools’ Day feature demonstrates how staged images, delayed disclosure, and reader expectations generated humor through the specific affordances of pictorial journalism. Rather than ranking Liu’s humor against more philosophical formulations, the article argues that its social criticism and accessible amusement served the cultural needs of an urban readership. This case contributes to the study of modern Chinese popular literature by showing how editorial experimentation mediated between local performance traditions and modern mass-media forms.