Servire il popolo

by Yan Lianke, Patrizia Liberati (Translator)

Parodiando lo stile burocratico che irride alle regole della disciplina militare, Yan Lianke racconta la storia di un audace servitore del popolo il quale, seguendo "alla lettera" i dettami di Servire il popolo del Presidente Mao, offre i propri servigi sessuali alla moglie del suo comandante. Ventottenne ambizioso, Wu Dawang è infatti uno zelante rivoluzionario che sa recitare a memoria i 286 articoli del «libretto rosso» del Presidente Mao. Senza sapere di essere spiato con il binocolo dalla bella Liu Lian, moglie del comandante, si cimenta nel suo lavoro nell'orto, mostrando la splendida muscolatura lucida di sudore. Dopo un primo rifiuto e il rischio di essere licenziato per indisciplina, diventa l'amante della signora. Lianke descrive minuziosamente le decine di amplessi tra i due in ogni angolo della casa. Ma la signora ha ancora in serbo delle sorprese per il suo giovane amante. Censurata dal regime come pornografia, questa storia, che utilizza alcuni dei sacri oggetti del culto maoista, è una denuncia del travisamento dei precetti rivoluzionari per scopi personali.

Genres: China, Fiction, Historical Fiction, Chinese Literature, Asia, Literature, Romance

139 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

Yan Lianke (simplified Chinese: 阎连科; traditional Chinese: 閻連科; pinyin: Yán Liánkē; Wade–Giles: Yen Lien-k'e, born 1958) is a Chinese writer of novels and short stories based in Beijing. His work is highly satirical, which has resulted in some of his most renowned works being banned.

He started writing in 1978 and his works include: Xia Riluo (夏日落), Serve the People (为人民服务), Enjoyment (受活), and Dream of Ding Village (丁庄梦). He has also published more than ten volumes of short stories. Enjoyment, which was published in 2004, received wide acclaim in China. His literature has been published in various nations, and some of his works have been banned in China.

(Wikipedia)

Reviews

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

Yan Lianke is a simile machine, some of which may get lost in translation, but I wish I had kept a list from the very beginning, because there are some killers.

Check out this shamefully condescending, Euro-centric quote from the NYTimes review of this book:

"His story is memorable and strange, but it feels particular, not universal. Yan Lianke was born during China’s catastrophic Great Leap Forward and came of age during the Cultural Revolution. Did he have the opportunity to read Flaubert and Fielding, much less the contemporary Western writers whose humor is more pointed? Or does his satire start from scratch?"

"Start from scratch"? Particular, unlike the universality of Western writers? Uh-huh

[Dagio_maya · Rating 1 out of 5]

[Luglio 2016-]

Per caso mi era capitato tra le mani “Il sogno del Villaggio dei Ding” dello scrittore cinese Yan Lianke; un romanzo che mette in risalto le contraddizioni della Cina moderna e che ha come tema principale una vicenda a me sconosciuta, ossia, la massiccia campagna di donazione del sangue intrapresa negli anni '80. Avevo trovato il libro molto interessante
Questo preambolo per arrivare a spiegare che acquistando “Servire il popolo” mi aspettavo qualcosa di più concreto da arte dell'autore ma....

Il titolo -
è uno slogan di Mao Tse Tung con cui intitolò un intero capitolo che elencava citazioni estratte dal famigerato “Libretto Rosso”.

La copertina -
una bocca rosso scarlatto, aperta in una posa lussuriosa...uhm...che pensare?
Non a grandi lettere ma sicuramente in posizione mirata, l'editor declama:
«Censurato dal Partito Comunista Cinese come pornografia».
L'esca è lanciata...

Nella sinossi: -
«irriverente, sboccata, caustica: la novella erotica contro le degenerazioni del regime comunista che ha divertito e scandalizzato i cinesi. Subito sequestrata dal Partito, è poi riapparsa clandestinamente in Internet. »

In breve -
Wu Dawang è un diligente rivoluzionario che si sottometterà alle voglie carnali di Liu Lian, moglie del comandante, seguendo il precetto secondo cui per essere un buon rivoluzionario maoista occorre servire il popolo e ciò significa, innanzitutto, obbedire ai propri superiori.
Dunque quando Liu Lian comanda di calarsi i calzoni Wu Dawang non può far altro che obbedire: questo è il succo…

Pro -
La satira funziona.
Ripetendo i linguaggi della burocrazia politica si rende sia l'idea dell'assurdità insita nella cieca fede ideologica, sia la contraddizione tra quella che è l'enunciazione dei principi populisti e l'effettiva messa in atto degli interessi strettamente personali.

Contro-
Scontato e prolisso.
Mi sono largamente annoiata.

Nb -
Ovviamente la pornografia citata in copertina è uno specchietto per le allodole occidentali.
Molto probabilmente in Cina considerano pornografico ogni dileggio al grande Mao...

[Matthew Ted · Rating 3 out of 5]

159th book of 2023. #5 in my challenge with Alan: read a book that has been banned [this, of course, was banned by the Chinese government].

Lianke published this in 2005 and it was banned. It's easy to see why. Just over 200 pages of sex between a solider and a Commander's wife. Old school military affair. The catch is, the Commander's wife is turned on by the destruction of Chairman Mao memorabilia. A bust of his head is ground into powder as she lies naked on the bed. Her way of communicating to the solider, for when she's ready for him, is to take the sign that reads "Serve the People!" down from the wall and leave it somewhere. As well as being a soldier, he's the Commander's orderly. He'd find it on the table, in a flowerbed, and he'd bolt up the stairs to get laid.

I generally prefer my satires a bit more loopy, but this was fun. It nearly got 4-stars because I found the ending surprisingly poignant considering the rest is a farce. On GR this book doesn't seem well liked, but I'm unsure why.

[Maja - BibliophiliaDK ✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was really surprised to see how low a rating this book has on here. Especially since I myself really enjoyed it. So I started wondering, "Why don't more people like this book same as I did?" And I think I might have the answer; I don't think all that many people are used to the flowery and slightly melancholic writing style that most Chinese authors use. The writing is filled with metaphors, most of them industrial or homely, and the tone is sorrowful. The telling of the story is indirect and in this one book with a clear narrator, who knows what the future will bring and isn't afraid to share a little once in a while. And I think that's really what puts people off - they don't get it! I'm not saying that I totally got it, I'm just saying that am able to appreciate what I've just read for what it is: a litterary phenomenon.

[Quân Khuê · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nhan đề bản tiếng Việt là Người tình phu nhân sư trưởng. Nhan đề đúng phải là Vì nhân dân phục vụ. Một vài motif trong cuốn này về sau DLK sử dụng lại và "nâng cấp" trong Kiên ngạnh như thuỷ. Điểm nổi bật nhất của cuốn này, mà cũng có thể của văn DLK, là kiểu giễu cợt về chính trị rất cay. Trong cuốn này, đôi tình nhân vụng trộm, phu nhân sư trưởng và cậu lính cần vụ, lấy tấm biển Vì nhân dân phục vụ làm ám hiệu cho các vụ trên bộc trong dâu :). Sau, để cảm hứng dữ dội hơn, họ đập phá ảnh, tượng, và lời dạy của lãnh tụ.

Văn trong cuốn này còn nhiều chỗ biền ngẫu, đích thực văn Tàu!

[Ana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very pleasantly surprised by this book. A short, tumultuous and ultimately disastruous love story set in the Mao period of China serves as a window through which the reader can analyze military, political, social and economical details of said world.

[Стефан Русинов]

Беше ми доста интересна с безцеремонното омаловажаване на идеологията, която публично е вездесъща и насъщна, но лично се оказва просто изкуствен лозунг пред користта и любовта. Въпреки че българското издание изобилства от дребни недоразумения, дължащи се предимно на това, че иначе нелошият превод на Радост Владимирова е от френски, но и на не съвсем внимателното издателско изпълнение, все пак беше добро запознаване с Йен Лиенкъ (би ми коствало много усилия да го изпиша Ян Лянкъ). Определено ще прочета и нещо друго.

[Bên Phía Nhà Z · Rating 2 out of 5]

mình nghĩ ông này rất hóm, nhưng sau thì mất hóm, thành melodrama. đoạn đập tượng xé xiếc mình thấy cheap, cái kết thì bi đát nhưng không thấy quá xuất sắc gì cả.

theme đọc sách tháng này của mình đúng là chịch và cheap

[flaminia · Rating 5 out of 5]

finite da poco le 600 pagine di “pechino è in coma”, piene di puzze, secrezioni e merda, eccomi alle prese con un centinaio di paginette dove ricorrono ciprie, talchi, raffinatissime saponette di shangai, e l’erotismo è il mezzo per prendere per il culo mao e il suo mito. Mi è piaciuto tantissimo, ma prenderei a mazzate chi si è inventato quell’orribile copertina, degna di un pornazzo scadente.

[két con · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 sao rưỡi hoặc 4. Đang đọc quyển này cùng lúc với Đinh Trang Mộng (một tiểu thuyết khác của Diêm Liên Khoa bối cảnh về ngôi làng mà người dân bán máu đến mức gần như toàn bộ dân số trong làng bị AIDS, thế mà con người trong tình cảnh này vẫn có thể đan tâm trục lợi kiếm chác. Có một phim Chương Tử Di và Quách Phú Thành đóng dựa trên tiểu thuyết này nhưng tên Diêm Liên Khoa vì một lí do nào đó không được nêu) sao thấy như hai người hoàn toàn khác nhau viết :)). Chắc Diêm Liên Khoa hợp thể loại trào phúng.

Đinh Trang Mộng bối cảnh chấn động và nhiều cảm xúc như thế nhưng đọc hoài không xong vì quá chán, viết rất lê thê, không dứt khoát. Trong khi truyện này cái tựa thật ra đã nói lên hết toàn bộ nội dung nhưng dẫn dắt tài tình, bay bổng mà vẫn gãy gọn, tác giả cũng gợi lên nhiều câu hỏi để mình suy ngẫm nên thấy thú vị.

[Song · Rating 4 out of 5]

这本书文学性虽然差了些，但阎连科的创作胆量令人佩服。这么有胆子的文化人少见。性事在这个故事连引子都算不上，最多就是个噱头。当然性也意味着对禁忌的蔑视和突破，这一点与王小波《革命时期的爱情》是一致的，但阎连科走得更远更彻底，直接指向偶像和权威本身，让性爱中的男女裸身把雕像和画片打破撕碎，踩在赤裸的脚下。

我是很佩服这样的胆量的，时至今日更加没人敢这么写了。

[Gangstabytch2 1 · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book. Love it, love it, love it. The writing is beautiful and simple, the story is intense and troubling yet sexy all at the same time. It's a small book but again the writing is gorgeous. I got so into the book that I would forget where I was. Communist China and a fucked up love story, what else could you ask for?

[Reb tra le pagine · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Servire il popolo" è una novella satirica di Yan Lianke, prontamente censurata in Cina a seguito del suo iniziale e capillare successo.
Il perché della censura potrebbe non essere immediatamente comprensibile; il titolo, infatti, cita proprio uno dei precetti contenuti nel "Libretto rosso" di Mao Zedong, "Servire il popolo".
Tuttavia, quello che si manifesta solo unicamente trascinandosi tra le pagine di "Servire il popolo" è come questo precetto sia stato volutamente travisato - e da qui la nascita della satira.

Wu Dawang, protagonista della novella, è un soldato preparato, che nutre una fede incrollabile nei confronti della Rivoluzione e del Partito. Per via della sua preparazione, viene chiamato a lavorare come attendente presso la casa del suo comandante e della sua bella moglie Liu Lian.
In questa casa sono presenti ovunque oggetti che richiamano la figura di Mao: ci sono statuette, citazioni scritte su tavolette tra cui, anche una che recita "Servire il popolo".

Proprio la tavoletta "Servire il popolo" diventerà il mezzo con cui Liu Lian richiede l'attenzione di Wu Dawang, arrivando a chiedergli delle vere e proprie prestazioni sessuali. Perché, sostiene Liu Lian, anche questo è "Servire il popolo". Liu Lian può permettersi di trasfigurare il senso della frase di Mao, perché lei è una donna borghese, conscia del suo privilegio e della sua posizione di potere nei confronti dell'attendente.

La critica nei confronti della classe dirigente cinese, opportunista ed egoista, è evidente e viene fuori anche dal sentimento di odio che in alcuni frangenti manifesta Dawang nei confronti di Liu Lian, per poi tornare a "Servire" la sua amante. Un po' come dire: possiamo odiarci quanto vogliamo, ma siamo sempre servo e padrone. Una punta di amarezza sempre attuale.

[Larou]

Satire does not criticise; indeed, the best satire is the very opposite of criticism: It is relentless, unflinching affirmation. Satire embraces the way things are with boundless enthusiasm, joyfully relishes in the state of the world, perceives every bit of propaganda as the truth it claims to be, takes every pretense at face value and thus makes them shine in all their utter absurdity.

This makes the Good Soldier Svejk the ultimate satirist, and “the People’s Liberation Army’s three rules of thumb” as recorded in Yan Lianke’s novel Serve the People! certainly sound like Svejk could have formulated them: “Don’t Say What You Shouldn’t Say, Don’t Ask What You Shouldn’t Ask, Don’t Do What You Shouldn’t Do”. Wu Duwang, the protagonist of Serve the People!, however, is no Svejk – he might be a Model Soldier, but he is not content with what he has and wants more, is, as we are told right at the beginning of the novel, ”greedy for laurels.”

Serve the People! is set during the time of the Cultural Revolution, and Yan Lianke shows ingeniously just how deeply everyone has internalized the regime’s propaganda by way of the similes which the novel is brimming over with - when a particular shade of red is described that can happen by comparison with the colour of a sunset or the colour of a specific propaganda poster, and both will be on exactly the same level. While this results in a very funny effect, there is also something quite serious at work there, for it indicates that propaganda has the same ontological status as nature, has indeed become second nature and is indiscernible from truth. The same holds true for one of the uses the title-giving slogan is put to – Wu Duwan gets assigned to assist the Division Commander, and as the Division Commander represents the People, serving the Division Commander becomes Serving the People. Wu Duwan effectively becomes the Division Commander’s servant, cook and gardener, and the novel never openly questions that he is serving the people this way even as the reader laughs at the absurdity of it.

Things begin to get complicated for Wu Duwan when the Division Commander is absent for an extended period of time and he finds himself tasked to Serve the People by serving the Division Commander’s wife Liu Lian – in quite intimate ways. As the two start an affair (initially on Liu Lian’s initiative towards a very reluctant Wu Duwan), some very interesting changes happen to the novel and to the reader’s attitude towards its protagonists. While neither Wu Duwan nor Liu Lian appeared very likable at the start of the novel, with the development of their affair we suddenly find ourselves (somewhat to the surprise of at least this reader) actually caring about them, and the satirical element, while never completely absent, recedes increasingly into the background, making room for an intense, and ultimately very sad love story.

As their affair progresses and becomes ever more absorbing and passionate, the lovers become like animals, and finally sink even lower down the creational ladder to become one with the earth, to be remade from clay; and synchronous with that the imagery shifts away from political propaganda, or more precisely – propaganda becomes appropriated by the lovers, turned away from its political significance and infused with a new personal, meaning. All of which is exemplified by the vagaries the title-giving Serve the People! poster undergoes; and the way Yan Lianke uses that image and that slogan in the course of the novel to symbolically indicate the current state of the relationship of the lovers while at the same time utilizing it as a plausible realistic prop is nothing short of brilliant.

It is pretty much clear from the start that things are not going to end well for the lovers; what does come as a surprise is that the melancholy that the ending is steeped is a result not of thwarted hopes but to the contrary, of everyone getting exactly what they wanted - or thought they did. While Serve the People! is set at a quite specific time and a very specific place and certainly could not have happened in the same way outside of that time and place, it transcends this setting, and is a novel first and foremost about human beings rather than about China during the Cultural Revolution.

Serve the People! is (I think) the first Chinese novel I have ever read, but likely will not remain the last one, and Yan Lianke’s Dream of Ding Village is high on my to-read list for 2013.

[William · Rating 5 out of 5]

One trait of dystopian novels - We, Anthem, Brave New World, The Handmaid’s Tale - is the idea that certain behavior is out of bounds in a dictatorship. Certain images, words, books become sacred, and there is a corresponding need to outlaw other images, words and books. In the era of politics as a surrogate for religion, such a thing becomes even more vital. To control the behavior of its citizens, the state has to control thought - and since the mass production of information began, images stand in for thoughts.

Serve the People! was one of many slogans of Mao’s Chinese government, and is the ironic title of this underground novel from Communist China. It follows Wu Dawang, a Red Army soldier who soon finds himself involved with Liu Lian, the wife of a division commander. Wu Dawang is only an orderly in a sleepy little post in Mao’s China, but in the arms of his mistress, he becomes for just a few sweet moments a man of power.

This shouldn’t be too unfamiliar to anyone who has read “1984.” In a repressive culture, illicit sex becomes a way to express subversive behavior. Usually in books of this type, it’s the main vehicle for the hero - or heroine - to realize just how stultifying their life has become. Sex is a threat to order, and in a repressive society, even the most private behavior can break faith with the state. In this novel, the twist is Liu Lian uses the communist apparatus to her advantage. In a house strewn with revolutionary slogans, the most prominent is the Chairman’s directive to “Serve the people!” Wu Dawang learns that when Liu Lian wants a rendezvous, she uses the sign. He must serve her, “the people.”

What’s interesting is how the state co-opts even the highest ideals of human civilization, twisting them:

“’What,’ he asked, ‘is the first, and only principle of Serving the People?’
‘To serve others as you would wish to be served yourself,’ Wu Dawang replied.
‘How do we give our lives meaning?’
‘By bringing glory to the enterprise of Serving the People every day of our lives and by devoting ourselves as absolutely to serving the needy as a son should devote himself to serving his parents.’”

Pretty words, the political instructor tells Wu Dawang, though he dislikes the parent analogy. Of course. There is no parent other than the state. In the end, Wu is only saying what he thinks the state wants to hear. It doesn’t matter that it’s the golden rule. Serving the people is saving your skin. As is said later, “the meek shall inherit the Revolution.” Everything is collective, all suffering together.

The affair continues, as it must. And yet, this is the sum of Communism - or any totalitarian movement that subverts life - every institution inevitably becomes corrupted. When Wu realizes what fate awaits him when the affair is inevitably discovered, he momentarily thinks of killing her. Both of them realize that deep within them is anger - rage looking for a direction, though neither knows where it comes from nor why it touches every aspect of their lives. “Wu Dawang, we’ve become animals,” Liu says.

Wu and Liu discover the depth and source of their anger when she maneuvers him into accidentally destroying the bust of the Chairman - “an accident of incalculable counter-revolutionary enormity.” And yet, the two of them begin rampaging through the house, destroying anything having to do with the state - pictures of Mao, slogans, yet they stop short, just before Liu is set to smash the Serve the People! sign.

Wu’s marriage - as well as Liu’s - is a lie, but then, everything is in the world of this novel. How far is it from our world? Not politically, but morally. For the Christian, sin is slavery, not freedom. Yet in a sinful state apparatus, virtually everything is colored with sin - either morally or politically. Every lie becomes deeper, until even the truth we must have to survive seems like a lie. In a world where the only meaning comes from an illicit love affair, what ultimate meaning is there? But how different is that from life in any government, even one with absolute freedom?
The truths we cling to - apart from the Eternal - are so many icons, waiting to be smashed.

[Suni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Una feroce presa in giro della Cina di Mao sotto le mentite spoglie di un romanzo erotico in cui un militare ligio al dovere e ai precetti del partito finisce per diventare lo schiavo sessuale della moglie del suo comandante, che con lo slogan «servire i propri superiori equivale a servire il popolo» lo costringe (almeno all'inizio, perché dopo poco lui viene travolto dalla passione per lei) a soddisfare i suoi desideri (evidentemente trascurati dal marito).
Fa parecchio ridere perché molte parti sono scritte in modo serio, per non dire serioso, con linguaggio ufficiale, tecnico, pomposo, infarcito delle citazioni del Grande Timoniere, ma il contesto e i fatti che si svolgono le svuotano della loro solennità e le ridicolizzano. Si arriva perfino a un climax quasi surreale in cui i due amanti fanno a gara a chi è più innamorato distruggendo statue, fotografie e libri di Mao, e poi sulla distesa di detriti e cartacce che ne risulta ritrovano l'impeto passionale momentaneamente spentosi per sfinimento.
È stata una lettura interessante oltre che spassosa, magari non sempre scorrevole (per via delle tirate pompose di cui sopra), ma decisamente un modo curioso di approcciarsi alla letteratura cinese, e sono contenta di avere iniziato da qui.

[Гери · Rating 4 out of 5]

Съвсем случайно попаднах на тази книжка, взех я заради корицата(да, йероглифът за любов), но се оказа много тънка сатира и ключ към човешката душа. За пръв път попадам на история за жена-тигрица китайка(те до преди 50 години даже са гледали да не раждат момичета в годината на Тигъра), колкото тъжно да е китайските истории не изобилстват с такива подобни на Мулан. Тук нямаше сгрешени имена(има си рецензент) единственото преведено име е на жената от село с цел принизяването ѝ, цялата етимология със селянин гражданин(роб и господар). Е, освен Чан Кайши (но като му видях йероглифите на името и аз се чудех кой умник ни го е представил така) имаше си леки неточности предполагам, че войниците който правят "кон с гривни", правят едно упражнение ма-пу (ездачна позиция, за каляване на краката може да се прави и с изпънати ръце с тежести за по-голяма трудност (моят рекорд беше 1,30 мин, за сравнение във филмите Джеки Чан го прави с часове)
Не това не е красива любовна история, това е себеоткриване, егоизъм и цитати на Мао, кои потъпкани, кои обожествени. Фарс на една политическа система, и фарс в живота

[Valentin Derevlean · Rating 3 out of 5]

Roman satiric, de bună calitate. Centrat pe relația dintre soția unui ofițer al armatei chineze și ordonanța sa, relație nu doar interzisă și defăimătoare pentru partid și armată, dar și extrem de epuizantă sexual pentru cei doi, romanul construiește în subtext o imagine parodică a retoricii comuniste chineze și a unei societăți în care discursul oficial e mimat, iar sărăcia e driblată de cei puternici, cei vicleni sau cei cu adevărat naivi și credincioși partidului.

[Jonfaith · Rating 3 out of 5]

A few years back I elected to weigh my vast ignorance of Chinese literature. (funny how that hasn't changed or improved since) and went to University to remedy this. Serve The People! was the first book I read on that expedition and far from the best. I thought Ju Dou was an adaptation of The Postman Always Rings Twice: this was yet another channeled through the little red book.

[Huy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mỉa mai chính trị quá trời nhiều, nhất là khi cái tấm bảng "Vì nhân dân phục vụ" trở thành dấu hiệu cho cuộc mây mưa, đọc mắc cười có điều drama quá =))), khi mà bắt đầu có vụ đập tượng, xé bảng hiểu các kiểu để có hứng làm tình nên đôi lúc đọc có cảm giác bị lố

[Mihail Victus · Rating 4 out of 5]

Citită într-o zi, în câteva ore. 5★ pentru îndrăzneala autorului (care nu doar critică unele aspecte ale comunismului, dar îl și ia în râs chiar pe „marele erou și lider” chinez Mao Zedong), 3.5★ pentru execuție.

[Ngo Tuan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Người tình phu nhân sư trưởng, Diêm Liên Khoa.
(nguyên tác: Vì nhân dân phục vụ)

Mình đọc "Kiên ngạnh như thủy" trước rồi mới đọc cuốn này. Rõ ràng về độ dày và tính giễu nhại cách mạng của cuốn này không bằng "Kiên ngạnh như thủy" nhưng vấn đề tình dục, sự hồi hộp, kích thích thì ngang ngửa. Cái kết của cả hai truyện đều có chút bất ngờ. Kết truyện này cho mình cảm giác anh lính cần vụ chính là một nạn nhân trong âm mưu tìm kiếm người nối dõi của vợ chồng sư trưởng.

Mặc dù những tác phẩm của Diêm Liên Khoa có số phận long đong nhưng việc nó được xuất bản chính thức ở Trung Quốc cho thấy vấn đề kiểm duyệt ở đất nước này không đến nỗi khắt khe. Ở VN thì những tác phẩm như thế này (đương nhiên là của tác giả VN) rõ ràng là không thể nào đến được với độc giả.

[Constantin Vasilescu · Rating 2 out of 5]

În slujba poporului nu e o carte mare. Este, în schimb, o lectură cu folos despre condiţionările absurde dintr-un stat totalitar. O fereastră către tirania din China comunistă, unde individul este topit forţat în focurile revoluţiei continue. O revoluţie care refuză chiar şi libertatea actului sublim al iubirii, motiv pentru care acesta se transformă, inevitabil, într-un gest tot mai conştient de frondă. Totul într-un limbaj accesibil şi într-o manieră subversivă şi critică la adresa regimului.

[Makayla MacGregor · Rating 3 out of 5]

While an interesting political discourse via the importance of propaganda objects and lust, there wasn't really much plot to it. Most of the novel had low stakes and no tension. I appreciated the recurring double-meaning of "Serve the People!", but aside from that the story was a bit too underwhelming to truly enjoy.

[Moniquilla Guajara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bueno, no ha sido mi libro del año, pero se ha dejado leer.
Es muy del estilo de esta editorial.

[Daisy · Rating 4 out of 5]

“ 当代文坛当然不能个个都像鲁迅，但整个文坛没有鲁迅那样的精神就会出现软骨症。”

“我写小说从来不想出版问题，写完再说。“

-阎连科

[Carolina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some people pray to their favourite saints, communist China prays to Mao Zedong. There’s something uncannily humorous about the worshipping of figurines when seen from the outside. Be it a dignified statue, be it a mere banner: it’s just stone, it’s just cloth. And yet, witnessing the wreckage of the material representation imprints a strong impression, for we’re forced to realize that that we see from the outside, can also be noticed from the inside. Thus, the illusion is shattered. Revolution has taken place.

This novel is certainly not the most insightful account I’ve read concerning the period of the Cultural Revolution, but it’s quite hilarious, thought-provoking and a little sexy. Whoever said irony is not really a Chinese thing should come take a visit to Yan Lianke’s work. The people as in “serve the people” are embodied by a luscious official’s wife. Thus, serving the people does not come as a great sacrifice for our protagonist Wu Dawang. This setup results in a fierce criticism of how success is only within reach when you let go of your true communist ideals and instead yield to the selfish desires of someone in power. This deconstruction of a communist regime does not lag far behind Animal Farm in terms of effectiveness and, for that alone, this novel is entirely worthy of attention.

If I could change something in this novel: first, I’d have gone heavier on the tragic. No sarcastic tale is ever ready without some serious heart-wrenching events. Yes, because I don’t consider the protagonist’s deprival of great sex all that depressing, considering the circumstances of the rest of his regiment (a tragic fate that I feel should have been brought to the forefront). Secondly, ethereal objects-of-desire-and-worship women are a pet peeve of mine. Just humanize Liu Lian already, jeez! Did she really have to be entirely perfect and mysterious? She had the upper hand all along, so why did she have to remain unreal?

I don’t particularly recommend the edition I read, since it’s in Portuguese translated from the French translation. I’m sure a lot was lost in translation (2x) and there were a few odd choices, such as translating the name of the protagonist’s wife (it’s translated as “Beauty”, so I guess her original name could be Měi, who knows?). It really bugged me how he kept calling her “big sister” (it sounds even more bizarre in Portuguese [mana grande]). A brief footnote could definitely have explained the usage of jiějie in a smoother way.

[Floris Meertens · Rating 3 out of 5]

Op de kaft van mijn editie staat trots in hoofdletters: VERBODEN IN CHINA. Voor de rest zie je een naakt vrouwenlichaam en een propagandaposter van Mao. Het laat enorm duidelijk zien wat het Westen wil van Chinese literatuur. Ik moest meteen denken aan het citaat van Yang Lian:

"For Westerners, if a Chinese writer writes in China, he must be “underground”; if he lives abroad, he must be an “exile.” If a Chinese poet is introduced to a Western audience, as soon as the word dissident is mentioned, the audience immediately relaxes—the poet’s opponents have guaranteed that the poems must be good."

De vraag rest dan: Is het werk van Yan Lianke alleen maar bekend omdat het maatschappijkritisch is, omdat het ingaat tegen het Chinese onderdrukkende regime, of heeft het ook daadwerkelijk iets spannends te zeggen?

Het verhaal van Serve The People is simpel: Wu Dawang, een soldaat die graag gepromoveerd wil worden, wordt verleid door Liu Lian, de vrouw van zijn officier. De focus van het boek is met name erotisch, en dit is deels gedaan als reactie op de preutse partijmoraal. Maar ook is het een precieze beschrijving van een relatie tussen twee minnaars. Zowel de satirische als oprechte stijl zijn goed gelukt, al heb ik het gevoel dat Yan op bepaalde punten iets te expliciet is.

Het grootste probleem wat ik had met het boek was de nogal eenzijdige rol van de vrouw. Dit is deels omdat het wordt verteld vanuit het oogpunt van Wu Dawang, maar nog steeds vind ik het jammer. De eerste helft van het boek is Liu Lian niets anders dan een lustobject, en heeft ze alleen als doel om de ondergang van Wu Dawang in gang te zetten. Gaandeweg krijgt zij meer diepgang, gelukkig. Daarnaast is de vrouw van Wu Dawang zeer eendimensionaal. Ze geeft enkel om de carrière van haar man, en schenkt hem in ruil daarvoor seks. Ik snap de satire, maar het voelt nogal leeg.

Hoogtepunt voor mij was het meest controversiële deel van het boek, het stukgooien van alle maoïstische propaganda. Het was lekker overdreven en humoristisch maar ook erg sentimenteel, en de climax van hun affaire (die, o zo voorspelbaar, weer moet eindigen). Dit is het enige punt waar de maatschappijkritiek en romantiek helemaal succesvol samenkomen.

Al met al een komisch boek met toch zekere diepgang, dat goed weet wat het wil zeggen. De vraag voor mij is of de satire in de weg staat van de emotionele kracht, of andersom.

[Parker · Rating 4 out of 5]

I admit it--I have not read much international fiction. I tend towards parochial interests and have a streak of nativism within me, leaving me woefully unprepared to face the realities of a globalized modern era. Yet, I found Lianke's style and narration to be riveting (granted, based on the English translation published by Julia Lovell in 2007 versus the novel's debut in 2005). The author deftly moves between the passions and turmoil of his inner characters as well as the overarching, bureaucratic nature of the communist army. His approach is a satirical one, and I think I appreciated the way that his satire worked to disentangle the promises of bureaucratic simplicity.
Due to its satirical tone, my first thought reading this work was Catch-22, as well as Thomas Pynchon and even, to some extent, George Orwell's 1984. Lianke provides a refreshing balance of humor and insight into the government that he skewers, much like the authors above. While that style felt fresh and well-worth savoring, I do wish that the author had explored more in-depth the themes that are brought up in this work. The whole work is only 217 pages, and the typeface and margins of my particular book were quite large--I could easily see how this novel may only fit 120 pages or so if the publishers wanted to be more conservative with paper. Because of its brevity, themes of passion, army bureaucracy, domination/power are only played with by the author. And, again, the play is a joy to read. However, one wishes that such a powerful style could be given the freedom to really dive deeply into these themes.
Overall, a refreshing read. I just wish some of these themes were explored further. It may also have been good to explore what love really meant for these characters--a vague sense of passion seemed at the core, but again I attribute that to the novel's length than I think a serious oversight by the author.

[Po · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un style de dessin agréable et poignant qui me rappelle les affiches de propagande sino-soviétique, une histoire qui vous plonge dans la Chine communiste et rurale des années de la révolution culturelle. Un personnage principale doté de nombreux défauts qui ne le rende que plus humain, Petit Wu est un jeune paysan conscrit qui devient bientôt l’ordonnance d’un colonel de l’Armée populaire. Petit Wu est un soldat exemplaire jusqu’au jour où le colonel doit s’absenter et que Petit Wu se retrouve seul avec l’épouse du colonel....

Beautiful art style that reminds me of old sino-sovietic propaganda posters, a story that will take you back in the countryside of communist China during the cultural revolution. A main character full of flaws which only makes him more human, Little Wu is a young peasants drafted by the army that soon became a colonel’s ordinance. Little Wu is an astonishing soldier until the day when the colonel leaves his home for some time comes and Little Wu is now alone with the colonel’s wife....