China in Ten Words

(read in school)

yu hua’s prose shifts between detached and intimate so effortlessly. like chang, he incisively depicts human violence and human pain, with an expertise clearly developed by his inability to continue sinking himself in blood without some gentleness with himself, some removal. i cried often.

"These days the West is astonished by the speed of China's makeover. With the flick of a wrist Chinese history has utterly changed its complexion, much the way an actor in Sichuan opera swaps one mask for another. In the short space of thirty years, a China ruled by politics has transformed itself into a China where money is king" (5) Picking up "China in Ten Words", I assumed this little volume would be a collection of short stories based on the ten words Yu Hua has provided for us on the cover. It was only when I had read the tab did I realize it was not the case. Instead, Yu Hua argues for these ten little words (nine words and Lu Xun, a famous author in the early twentieth century) represent what China is at the time of writing; some of it involving Yu's early life. They depict a China on the move--from a focus to politics to money, from chaste relationships to a country where teenage pregnancy is normal. I approached this as a series of different vignettes, which worked quite efficiently. Yu would incorporate the word in question into his essay through what it reflects. For example, "Leader" focuses on Mao Zedong's image in China--frequently interacting with the poor and knowing "very well how to whip the masses into a frenzy" (17). The Cultural Revolution has Mao as the "Leader", whom people would push to shake their hands to someone comforting in a dream. After his death, Yu argues "ersatz leaders are sprouting up everywhere in China. Since 1990, as beauty contests have swept across the country, competitions to select different kinds of leaders has followed hot on their heels" (19). From that, it implies that Mao Zedong was the main ruler, and his death saw a splintering of leadership with its own cliques. Based on that, I wonder if Xi Jinping, who took power after the book was published, would have the same intrigue about him. The same chapter had two other interesting anecdotes; one featured on the Chinese imagination on bringing the dead Mao back to life. One poll featured 85% thinking that it would be a good thing, but another joke pokes fun on how fans would mistaken the deceased Mao for an actor playing him. In addition, Yu's vignette on how he laughed after sobbing for Mao that he hid it behind the chair to make sure nobody saw. And everyone interpreted it as Yu really mourning Mao. The "Reading" and "Writing" parts really got to me, because of how much I like both of those aspects. The former focused on how limited books were in China, with how the only reading material featured Mao Zedong's works and dazibao--big character posters. One fun anecdote was Yu receiving a gray book, only to find out that it would be another copy of Mao's little book. An important quote which stood out was how Yu sums it up, "If literature truly possesses a mysterious power, I think perhaps it is precisely this: that one can read a book by a writer of a different time, a different country, a different race, a different language, and a different culture and there encounter a sensation that is one's very own" (61). With this works, he sums it up well, especially with his struggle to write and get published. He made money pulling teeth, but wrote to not pull teeth again. Catchphrases and slogans also expanded to famous figures--one of which was Lu Xun. I remember reading a part of his memoirs for a Chinese class, but didn't know how Mao held him up in esteem. This was to the point during the Culture Revolution, "Lu Xun says" was part of the national parlance, not unlike "Mao Zedong says", to make things more personal. even though according to Yu, "true readers of his work were few and far between" (107). The evolution of Lu Xun from a controversial author to catchphrase to just another one actually irritated Yu, which connects to a story where he enters Norway while they were celebrating Henrik Ibsen! "China in Ten Words" is a happy surprise, in that we get a neat analysis of modern day China through simple little words. In addition, Yu adds his own anecdotes with both wit and humor, which adds color to a China which can easily go through the scanner of black and white. Considering I'm reading another book about Chinese international relations, this is simultaneiously informative and interesting! (8/10)

I enjoyed this a lot more than expected. Yu Hua is a wonderful teacher on life during the Cultural Revolution. He's funny! I particularly enjoyed "Leader", "Reading", and "Writing", and "Bamboozle".

10 essays on various aspects of growing up and living in China. I particularly liked the one one reading & the thirst for new books & stories.

China in Ten Words is a fine combination of two books: autobiography and a history of modern China. Yu Hua's plan is unusual and refreshing, to pick out ten Chinese words that reveal much about both of those books. The words seem random and disconnected at first glance: people (人民), leader (领袖), reading (阅读), writing (写作), Lu Xun (鲁迅), revolution (革命), disparity (差距), grassroots (草根), copycat (山寨), bamboozle (忽悠) (thanks, Wikipedia). Yu Hua takes each one through Communist China's history and culture, using them as prompts to riff on official corruption, bumptious capitalism, revolutionary politics, and many stories of individual Chinese navigation turbulent waters. Each also lets the author dive into his past, from school days to his first job (a basic dentist), learning to love literature and understand his family. This structure also lets Yu Hua vary his tone. Some of the stories are hilarious, while others are baldly humanitarian disasters. Tragicomedy occurs more than once, along with narratives of passion, ambitious, and scheming. It's hard to tell where an individual story will go. I was fascinated by the layering of time, with the Cultural Revolution intertwined with contemporary capitalism, the Great Leap Forward and the first post-Mao years. Yu Hua's life is similarly present all at once, as he takes us from his infancy to professional success and back again. I listened to this as narrated by Don Hagen, who did a fine job. Happily recommended to anyone interested in China or autobiography.