Science Fiction Literature in China
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Reynolds 1 THE ELECTRIC ERA: SCIENCE FICTION LITERATURE IN CHINA By Hannah C. Reynolds In partial fulfillment of the degree Bachelor of Arts with Honors in East Asian Studies Wittenberg University 1 May 2019 Reynolds 2 I. Introduction China is no stranger to writing, consuming, and cherishing highly imaginative works of literature, whether it be in the ancient dynastic ages or in modern Chinese libraries. The fantastical adventures of The Monkey King are loved by the entire nation, and mystical romances of A Dream of Red Mansions are being adapted into screenplays more than 200 years after the tale’s conception. Confucian values, while traditionally associated with their realistic and grounded nature, may have boosted China’s cultural fascination with the intangible oddities of life. Many of Confucius’ analects call for people to be realistic and focused on understanding the here and the now: “When you do not yet understand life, how could you understand death?” (Weizhi sheng, yanzhi si 未知生, 焉知死).1 But an important element of Confucian philosophy is the emphasis put on the connection between societal structures and the cosmic order of the universe; the connections between parent and child, husband and wife, and ruler and subject are not upheld merely for convenience—they keep the yin and yang of the universe in balance. Disruption of social order would be, in the eyes of Confucius, a blatant opposition of the higher cosmic order that is intrinsically connected to our mortal existence. Elements of fantasy are also more intertwined in modern, everyday Chinese life than in the lives of Westerners. Ghosts, demons, gods and dragons are staples of Chinese culture that are unironically found in homes and workplaces as auspicious or historical symbols. This love for the mysterious nature of life, the fantastical figures in Chinese culture, and the potential for human impact on a much greater universe is perhaps what laid the groundwork for a new age of literature in China: science fiction. 1 "The Analects of Confucius 論語," Resources for East Asian Language and Thought, Tokyo University, http://www.acmuller.net/con-dao/analects.html (accessed February 24, 2019). Reynolds 3 The apparent beginnings of the science fiction genre as we know it today—intertwining advanced technology and human life with motifs of robots and space travel—can be found in the late Qing dynasty (1644-1912). Hand in hand, Liang Qichao (梁超啟 , 1873-1929) and Zhou Shuren (周人树 , 1881-1936) (better known by his nom de plume, Lu Xun 鲁迅) introduced Western science fiction to China. Liang praised “philosophical science fiction” in a 1902 issue of his magazine New Fiction (Xin xiaoshuo 新小说), and Lu Xun wrote a Chinese translation and commentary on Jules Verne’s De la guerre a la lune (Yuejie lüxing 越界旅行) and Voyage au centre de la terre (Didi lüxing 地底旅行).2 Lu Xun’s contribution to and promotion of science fiction in China is especially notable considering his influence as an author and reputation as “The Father of Modern Chinese Fiction.” In his introduction to one of his translations of a Jules Verne novel, Lu Xun wrote: “The fictional heritage in our country abounds in works dealing with sentimental, historical, satirical, and bizarre subjects. But only science fiction is scarce. This is one of the reasons for the primitiveness of our knowledge. Therefore, if we wish to fulfill the gap of today’s translations and lead the Chinese people toward progress, we must begin with science.”3 Lu Xun also commented on the effectiveness of science fiction in bringing scientific knowledge to a large audience that may not be fascinated by science in its raw textbook form: “The typical reader is bored by the tediousness of science books and cannot finish them. But when dressed up in the form of fiction, the science can seep into readers’ minds without boring them. ... As the reader’s heart is touched, the reader gains insight and wisdom without taxing the mind, knowledge that would break down legacy superstitions, improve their thoughts, 2 Wu Yan and Yao Jianbin, “A Very Brief History of Chinese Science Fiction,” trans. Andrea Lingenfelter, Chinese Literature Today 7, no. 1 (2018): 45-46, https://doi.org/10.1080/21514399.2018.1458378 (accessed January 11, 2019). 3 Leo Ou-fan Lee, Voices from the Iron House (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1987), 13. Reynolds 4 and supplement our culture. What a powerful tool is such fiction!”4 Lu Xun’s status as a revolutionary writer fighting for the enlightenment of the Chinese people through fiction brings much significance to his commentary on the importance of science fiction. While Lu Xun may have never written his own science fiction literature beyond his translation and commentary on Western science fiction, his collection of stories called Old Tales Retold (Gushi xinbian 故事新编) incorporates unique fantasy elements that allow the collection to stand apart from Lu Xun’s more popular works of realistic fiction. One of the short stories in this collection called “Forging the Swords” tells the tale of a young man who must avenge the death of his swordsmith father by slaying the king that killed his father. The story is wildly different from Lu Xun’s famous tales of the quixotic anti-hero in “The Real Story of Ah Q” or the bleak nostalgia of “Homecoming.” “Forging the Swords” is, however, worthy of the same praise that Lu Xun’s realistic fiction pieces often receive. The story is rooted in dichotomies and the balance of nature—fire and ice, male and female, soft and strong—and adheres to the East Asian fascination with yin and yang that is found in so many compelling works of East Asian art and literature. “Forging the Swords” is not necessarily a pure work of science fiction, but its fantasy elements attest to Lu Xun’s work in laying the foundations for science fiction literature to be written in China. The fact that Lu Xun—a highly respected author that motioned in a new age of modern Chinese literature—spent his time writing works of fantasy is incredibly significant for various reasons. First and foremost, his writing of fantasy suggests that he did not believe the new era of art and literature in China should be purely functional and somber; there is in fact room for the fantastic in legitimate and scholarly works of fiction. Secondly, Lu Xun effectively ties Chinese 4 Ken Liu, "The ‘Heroic Translators’ Who Reinvented Classic Science Fiction in China," Io9, December 16, 2015, https://io9.gizmodo.com/the-heroic-translators-who-reinvented-classic-science-1696944844 (accessed March 10, 2019). Reynolds 5 culture in with novel fantasy concepts, suggesting that Chinese culture can live in harmony with fantasy fiction rather than destroying (or being destroyed by) it. These factors attest to the incredible (albeit nuanced) influence Lu Xun had on promoting the creation and legitimacy of fantasy and science fiction literature. Some of Lu Xun’s other works border on being categorized as speculative fiction— science fiction’s close cousin. Lu Xun uses light criticism and expresses his frustration with outdated Chinese medical practices in his short story Medicine, which reflects the tragic story of his father passing away due to said medical practices. The death of Lu Xun’s father is often credited as the inspiration for his attending medical school in Japan and consequently putting emphasis on the progression of modern science and medicine. In turn, Lu Xun’s works of fiction sparked a wave of revolutionary readers and writers in a push for China’s introduction into an advancing a globalizing world. Who knows how many aspiring authors Lu Xun may have inspired to write science fiction with his revolutionary speculative works of fiction, his powerful words of hope for China’s scientific future, and his Chinese translations of Verne’s iconic works of science fiction? II. A New Chinese Genre China’s relationship with science fiction literature officially surpassed one based primarily on consumption and admiration when the Chinese satirist Lao She (老舍, 1899-1966) penned Cat Country (Maocheng ji 猫城记). Published in 1932, Cat Country was written as a whimsical tale of a Chinese space traveler crash-landing on Mars, where he finds a curious population of anthropomorphic cat-like creatures. These cats walk on two legs and do everything at a leisurely pace (in part because they do not have apposable thumbs), much like a common housecat. The lazy and nonsensical nature of these cats is meant to be a satirical Reynolds 6 criticism of Chinese culture, politics and life as seen from a native Chinese perspective. Lao She’s cat creatures on Mars serve as a reflection of the Chinese people on Earth, allowing Lao She to subversively criticize the perceived lack of ambition and gaudy lifestyle of his fellow Chinese.5 It is worth noting that Lao She saw Cat Country as a failure and considered it to be incoherent (which it is, at points) and more satirical than humorous; he fancied himself a humorist rather than a satirist, as “[a] humorist is warm-hearted; the heart of a satirist is cold.”6 The humorous narrative and rebellious criticism in Cat Country set the tone for future Chinese science fiction writers who used the genre as a way to introduce new ideas to Chinese readers in a way that was widely consumable to different ages and backgrounds. Whether Lao She approved of the novel’s final form or not, Cat Country’s lasting influence on this history of Chinese science fiction perhaps speaks for itself. As science fiction literature gained traction in Chinese magazines and novels, it eventually transformed from the serious scholarly genre that Lu Xun promoted to the more digestible whimsy of Lao She’s Cat Country, and eventually found its place in children’s literature.