The Great Wall of China
Things Chinese being of the moment with the world’s focus on Beijing I thought I’d write about Gao Xingjian, a Chinese writer whose works are banned in China and who in 2000 became the first and only writer in Chinese to win the Nobel prize for literature. I haven’t read any of his work but after reading this piece in the Guardian I definitely will. The library has some of his work in Chinese and two titles in English - One man’s Bible and Buying a fishing rod for my grandfather
I was drawn to this quote “It’s in literature that true life can be found. It’s under the mask of fiction that you can tell the truth”
A further quote from his book The Case for Literature talks about his philosophy of “without isms”.
“Without Isms is neither nihilism nor eclecticism; nor is it egotism or solipsism. It opposes totalitarian dictatorship but also opposes the inflation of the self to God or Superman. It hates seeing other people trampled on like dog shit. Without Isms detests politics and does not take part in politics, but is not opposed to other people who do. If people want to get involved in politics, let them go right ahead. What Without Isms opposes is the foisting of a particular brand of politics on to the individual by means of abstract collective names such as ‘the people’, ‘the race’ or ‘the nation’.”
7 August 2008 at 10:23 am
One of those authors I always meant to, but haven’t got around to, read. Next on my list. Thanks for the Guardian link.
7 August 2008 at 6:40 pm
Also on books Chinese…
Try reading Mao’s Last Dancer by Li Cunxin. The sixth son in a peasant family suffering from the backlash of Mao’s Great Leap Forward, Li was selected for Madame Mao’s Peking Ballet Academy at the age of 10 when his teacher had the temerity to tap on the shoulder of some visiting officials and ask “What about that one?” With no comprehension of what ballet was, let alone ballet technique, Li trained for years to make the most of his opportunity to improve the lot of his family, and became one of China’s most promising young dancers, before he defected to the West while visiting the US.
I had the great luck to hear Li speak about his experiences – he was a wonderful speaker, very gentle and humble, but also very charming – and after that I just had to read his book.