This is a collection of Lin's essays on the Chinese life and culture. Written in Chinese and English spanning two decades from 1930s to 1950s, the essays pose questions on the cultural turn of the time and on the role a Chinese intellectual assumed in translating his native culture to the West. The author was most well-known for introducing 'humour' to Chinese literature and culture. The essays are of great literary and cultural importance, both because of the provenance and their quality.