Lili by Annie Wang
What I really want is a knowledgeable, contemplative, serious witness to the world of modern China - but it's so hard to tell when Annie Wang is being that -- and when she's just pandering to an American audience that wants a story about love and freedom.
On the positive side - she puts some very articulate, thoughtful speeches into the mouths of various characters (or maybe we should call these speakers "informants" rather than characters --as they represent certain points-of-view on society rather than credible portraits of flesh and blood people.
But on the negative side -- these informants are all on the same side of the fence -- they're all people who, like Lili, the narrator, have issues with the Communist regime -- so the entire story is something of a melodrama: good, powerless people versus the evil, powerful state.
Back to the positive side -- the characters of Lili's family seem real and fascinating -- and she puts them through some changes. And the time that we spend being with them -- just seems real to me.
Lili seems real, too -- her voice -- her attitude -- what catches her attention -- what doesn't. But as a severely abused, un-educated, humorless person with an attitude from Hell --
she's just not that interesting (we're told she's a good classical Chinese musician -- but we don't get to hear her play) -- while her boyfriend, the Jewish-American journalist, is completely unbelievable. (but maybe that's not such a problem: after all, I'm reading this book
to learn about China, not about Jewish Americans)
But more than any of the these characters -- the real subject of this book is the June 4 Incident, or as it's known in the West, the Tianamen Square protest and massacre. Although it only occurs in the final few chapters, it pulls together all the narrative threads, and gives me, former student protester that I am, a real sense of the confusion, the thrill, stench, and the danger of being there -- at one of the those amazing moments when a populace seems to spontaneously rise up to assert that government requires the consent of the governed.
Wang's next book, "People's Republic of Desire", shows the aftermath, ie. a populace -- or more specifically, the intellectual class -- spending its energies in pursuit of "where's mine" -- so no wonder it's less serious -- that's the theme of a comedy, not a tragedy.
I know that the real value of this book is in its details --its little moments of interaction -- as they define the life the Chinese intellectual class -- the "stinking ninth" class
as revolutionary ideology would have it -- but novice that I am -- I'm not yet sure which moments are the important ones. Lili's interrogation by the state security agents (with the fat caterpillar fingers) seems oh-so-real.
One thing that feels important is the length of the entire Tianamen protest. That central public square in the capitol city was occupied day and night by protesters for 50 days --
which I don't think would be permitted in even the democracies of the West. (how long was the "Bonus Army" of protesting WWI veterans allowed to camp out in Washington DC before soldiers were sent to evict them ? -- and they weren't even camped next to the capitol building)
Comparing this story to the one I've been writing -- the big difference is that when the dust settled after the cultural revolution, my subject had a network of well-placed family connections to help her build a life -- and Lili had nothing left but a beautiful face and a bad attitude.
But on further thought :
My visit to the Wikipedia entry on the Tianamen Square protest reminded me of that big statue of liberty that the students had built there. This enthusiasm for "liberty" is not just an American ideology -- it had been picked up by that generation of students - most of whom had probably studied English. And maybe the same thing with our American idea of "Love".
These young Chinese have been adopting things from American culture --- just as I and some of my fellow "big noses" have been borrowing things from the Chinese.
(I'm just hoping that Ms. Wang didn't also borrow another American attitude: telling people whatever they want to hear so that she can make a sale)
On the positive side - she puts some very articulate, thoughtful speeches into the mouths of various characters (or maybe we should call these speakers "informants" rather than characters --as they represent certain points-of-view on society rather than credible portraits of flesh and blood people.
But on the negative side -- these informants are all on the same side of the fence -- they're all people who, like Lili, the narrator, have issues with the Communist regime -- so the entire story is something of a melodrama: good, powerless people versus the evil, powerful state.
Back to the positive side -- the characters of Lili's family seem real and fascinating -- and she puts them through some changes. And the time that we spend being with them -- just seems real to me.
Lili seems real, too -- her voice -- her attitude -- what catches her attention -- what doesn't. But as a severely abused, un-educated, humorless person with an attitude from Hell --
she's just not that interesting (we're told she's a good classical Chinese musician -- but we don't get to hear her play) -- while her boyfriend, the Jewish-American journalist, is completely unbelievable. (but maybe that's not such a problem: after all, I'm reading this book
to learn about China, not about Jewish Americans)
But more than any of the these characters -- the real subject of this book is the June 4 Incident, or as it's known in the West, the Tianamen Square protest and massacre. Although it only occurs in the final few chapters, it pulls together all the narrative threads, and gives me, former student protester that I am, a real sense of the confusion, the thrill, stench, and the danger of being there -- at one of the those amazing moments when a populace seems to spontaneously rise up to assert that government requires the consent of the governed.
Wang's next book, "People's Republic of Desire", shows the aftermath, ie. a populace -- or more specifically, the intellectual class -- spending its energies in pursuit of "where's mine" -- so no wonder it's less serious -- that's the theme of a comedy, not a tragedy.
I know that the real value of this book is in its details --its little moments of interaction -- as they define the life the Chinese intellectual class -- the "stinking ninth" class
as revolutionary ideology would have it -- but novice that I am -- I'm not yet sure which moments are the important ones. Lili's interrogation by the state security agents (with the fat caterpillar fingers) seems oh-so-real.
One thing that feels important is the length of the entire Tianamen protest. That central public square in the capitol city was occupied day and night by protesters for 50 days --
which I don't think would be permitted in even the democracies of the West. (how long was the "Bonus Army" of protesting WWI veterans allowed to camp out in Washington DC before soldiers were sent to evict them ? -- and they weren't even camped next to the capitol building)
Comparing this story to the one I've been writing -- the big difference is that when the dust settled after the cultural revolution, my subject had a network of well-placed family connections to help her build a life -- and Lili had nothing left but a beautiful face and a bad attitude.
******************************************
But on further thought :
My visit to the Wikipedia entry on the Tianamen Square protest reminded me of that big statue of liberty that the students had built there. This enthusiasm for "liberty" is not just an American ideology -- it had been picked up by that generation of students - most of whom had probably studied English. And maybe the same thing with our American idea of "Love".
These young Chinese have been adopting things from American culture --- just as I and some of my fellow "big noses" have been borrowing things from the Chinese.
(I'm just hoping that Ms. Wang didn't also borrow another American attitude: telling people whatever they want to hear so that she can make a sale)
posted by chris miller | 5:46 PM
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