A widower's entertainment

Chapter 452 [The Tide of Time] (Please Subscribe)
Lin Youcheng's winning of the Mao Dun Literature Prize again with "Atonement" is undoubtedly a surprising piece of news for the entire Chinese literary world.

Many literary critics have also expressed their opinions on the results of this year's Mao Dun Literature Prize. While some agree with the selection, others disagree. For example, some critics believe that "White Deer Plain" is merely an imitation of "One Hundred Years of Solitude," while others believe that although Lin Youcheng's "Atonement" is brilliant, it is not enough to win the Mao Dun Literature Prize again. Not to mention that different readers will have different interpretations of Hamlet, there will naturally be different opinions on the awarding of literary works. Not to mention the tendency for writers to belittle each other.

Regardless, Lin Youcheng did win his second Mao Dun Literature Prize, making him the first Chinese writer to win the prize twice.

This matter is certainly worth discussing and reporting. The publisher will naturally take advantage of the fact that the novel "Atonement" won the Mao Dun Literature Prize to promote its reprint. After all, the Mao Dun Literature Prize will naturally enhance the novel's influence, which will naturally mean that Lin Youcheng's royalties will also increase.

In reality, the literary world is discussing more than just the Mao Dun Literature Prize; it's about the "great debate on humanistic spirit" that began in 1993 and has continued to ferment throughout the year. This debate on humanistic spirit, to some extent, stems from the impact and upheaval that the market economy has brought to the realm of humanistic spirit. Intellectuals are reacting with ongoing discussions about whether there is a loss or crisis of humanistic spirit in contemporary society, whether the market economy leads to its erosion or fosters its growth, and what kind of "humanistic spirit" literary works should promote.

Some people believe that we should use the spirit of humanism to resist the tendency of rampant materialism, while others affirm the things that arise from the market economy as a new spirit of humanism, emphasizing that ideals, beliefs, and spirit should be in harmony with real life.

Previously, some scholars criticized Wang Shuo's "hooligan literature" and Zhang Yimou's commercial films, believing that literature was facing a moral and spiritual crisis. Before that, a few scholars also criticized Lin Youcheng's film scripts for being too commercial and being impacted by Hollywood's capitalism and materialism. However, it is clear that Lin Youcheng's literary works have now won the Mao Dun Literature Prize again, which truly shows that his works are not only commercial but also have extremely high literary value.

This is similar to the popular TV series "Crossing the Guandong," which not only had high viewership ratings but also received very high praise.

At least to some extent, even literary workers who envy and are jealous of Lin Youcheng earning sky-high script royalties in Hollywood, the United States, cannot criticize Lin Youcheng's works for being too commercial. After all, his novels "Atonement," "Lurking," and "The Reader" are all extremely profound literary works, and his previously published novels "Father and Son" and "Hunting" are also short literary works with quite profound human nature.

Lin Youcheng's recent receipt of the Mao Dun Literature Prize further underscores the literary merit of his works.

While the domestic literary world is currently discussing the Mao Dun Literature Prize, the global literary scene is abuzz with the latest Nobel Prize in Literature laureate. Japanese writer Kenzaburo Oe won the Nobel Prize in Literature at the end of 1994, becoming the second Japanese to receive this honor after Yasunari Kawabata. The award was given for his poetic imagination in creating a world where reality and myth intertwine. Undoubtedly, this was quite astonishing news in world literature. However, Oe also mentioned the Chinese writer Lin Youcheng in his speech.

While this is, to some extent, merely Kenzaburo Oe's personal appreciation of author Yu-cheng Hayashi, it also demonstrates Hayashi's influence abroad.

Lin Youcheng didn't really care about the literary critics' discussion about him winning the Mao Dun Literature Prize again, nor did he care about Kenzaburo Oe's personal appreciation, because he knew very well that now that he had won the Mao Dun Literature Prize again, he should naturally be able to withstand those discussions.

After all, Lin Youcheng has won quite a few domestic literary awards, so he doesn't really care about them.

The Mao Dun Literature Prize is now being awarded at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, which is quite formal, considering that it is awarded every four years.

Lin Youcheng will naturally be attending as well, but compared to when he traveled all the way from Dezhou to Beijing to receive the National Excellent Short Story Award, when he was still a newcomer, he is now an absolute big shot.

He truly became the focus of everyone's attention. Many literary workers came up to chat with Lin Youcheng, because Lin Youcheng is indeed influential in both the literary and film industries.

Xu Huazhou, the editor-in-chief of People's Literature magazine, also inquired with Zhang Wei about Lin Youcheng's future novel writing, hoping that Lin Youcheng would continue to write and have novels published in People's Literature magazine.

There's really no other way. After all, people in the literary world are well aware that literature is no longer as popular and passionate as it was in the 1980s. It's no longer an era where people shout "Long live literature!" So, we need genuine literary works for the masses to enjoy.

Clearly, in the eyes of Xu Huazhou and Zhang Wei, Lin Youcheng's novels are deeply loved by readers, and each new novel he publishes attracts a great deal of attention.

Even the readers were more eager for Lin Youcheng's new novel than the editors themselves.

In fact, editors are also readers, and they themselves are very much looking forward to what kind of novels Lin Youcheng will write next, whether they will be as shocking as "Atonement" or as moving as "The Reader".

Lin Youcheng listened to Zhang Wei and Xu Huazhou's words and smiled. He knew, of course, that literature was not as popular as it was in the 1980s, but that did not affect its existence.

Since Lin Youcheng has won the Mao Dun Literature Prize again, he will naturally have to give an acceptance speech.

Previously, it was a group of bigwigs in the audience who listened to him. Now, whether they are bigwigs or newcomers, they all have to listen to this bigwig give some remarks.

Of course, Lin Youcheng didn't particularly want to give orders or make grand pronouncements when he won the Mao Dun Literature Prize again. He simply expressed his gratitude. In fact, Lin Youcheng was still somewhat dazed because he still clearly remembered that when he first came to Beijing to receive the award, it was in the 1980s. At that time, literature was reviving, and the literary world was in a vibrant and flourishing spring.

Holding the award certificate, Lin Youcheng smiled and said, "Many years ago, some people said that I wrote popular literature. At that time, I said that I did not write popular literature, nor did I write scar literature or avant-garde literature. I wrote people's literature, which is written for the masses. My answer has not changed now."

"At that time, I also said that literature should never be separated from the masses, and no matter what literary school it is, it should not be too far removed from the masses. After all, it's not that literature is distancing itself from the masses, but that the masses will be distancing themselves from literature..."

Clearly, someone had heard Lin Youcheng's words back then, but that was a long time ago.

Lin Youcheng only expressed his own views, because he knew very well that if mainstream serious literature became a self-contained circle within the literary community, it would naturally not receive as much attention, and the spring of literature would not appear.

Obviously, Lin Youcheng's acceptance speech after receiving the Mao Dun Literature Prize will also be discussed, especially since Lin Youcheng said similar things many years ago, so there will naturally be more discussion.

Although Lin Youcheng didn't seem to care about the discussions, it was clear that the outside news media were very interested in this renowned writer. His TV series "Crossing the Guandong" was currently airing and was very popular, and now his novel "Atonement" had won the Mao Dun Literature Prize again after many years. Naturally, many newspapers and media outlets wanted to interview Lin Youcheng.

A reporter from the Beijing Youth Daily came to Lin Youcheng's home specifically to interview him.

Lin Youcheng did accept an interview from a reporter from the Beijing Youth Daily. After all, it was the middle of winter and snow was falling outside, so the reporter and photographer's willingness to come to Xinghua Hutong for an interview in this weather showed their sincerity.

Because the reporter conducting the interview was very young, it was not appropriate to address Lin Youcheng as "comrade," so we addressed him as "teacher." After all, Lin Youcheng had served as a lecturer in the creative research class at the Lu Xun Academy of Literature, a fact well-known within the literary circle.

"Ms. Lin, thank you for accepting our interview."

Reporter Xiao Zhou accepted a cup of hot tea from Lin Youcheng. He genuinely admired Lin Youcheng's works and had read every single one of his novels. Holding this steaming cup of tea that Lin Youcheng had poured for him, he felt a warm glow in his heart.

Lin Youcheng poured another cup of hot tea for the photographer and said with a smile, "It must have been hard for you to come in this weather."

Upon hearing Lin Youcheng's words, reporter Xiao Zhou was also quite excited. Looking at Lin Youcheng, she said, "It is our honor to be able to interview you, Professor Lin."

"Professor Lin, congratulations on winning the Mao Dun Literature Prize again."

Lin Youcheng naturally thanked the reporter for the congratulations.

To be honest, Lin Youcheng has been interviewed by newspapers quite a few times. For example, when "Crossing the Guandong" was a hit, it was the newspapers that came to interview him. Now that he has won the Mao Dun Literature Prize again, it is not surprising that reporters are interviewing him. Lin Youcheng accepted the interview with the young reporter very casually and had a very frank exchange.

"Teacher Lin, when you were writing the novel 'Atonement,' what did you think of Lin Xue's accusations against Luo Yang? Was it out of jealousy or a misunderstanding?"

Lin Youcheng smiled and shook his head, saying, "I think this question can be interpreted in different ways. Lin Xue believes she is righteous, but in Luo Yang's memories, Lin Xue might be jealous. Everyone will have different opinions on this issue."

……

"Professor Lin, film and television literature are very popular now, and many writers can also engage in the creation of film and television works. You also served as the screenwriter for the film adapted from the novel 'Atonement'. What do you think about the relationship between literary novels and film and television works?"

Lin Youcheng smiled and said, "Literature constructs a rich and colorful spiritual world through words, while film and television make abstract concepts and emotional thoughts audible and tangible through audiovisual language. Literature and film and television art have a natural affinity. The first TV series in China in 1958, 'A Bite of Vegetable Pancake,' originated from a short story."

"In fact, whether it is text or images, they all bring depth to people's lives, thickness to history and warmth to humanity. In fact, whether it is film and television literature or traditional literature, they are ultimately creating and transmitting art for the people."

……

Besides discussing the novel "Atonement," there were also other topics of conversation within the literary world.

Reporters also asked Lin Youcheng about the goal of the literary magazine "Dajia" launched this year, which is aimed at the Nobel Prize in Literature, and about the humanistic spirit that is currently being discussed.

Lin Youcheng would naturally offer his own perspective, but he was well aware that the magazine "Dajia" was currently focused on having a domestic writer win the Mao Dun Literature Prize, ultimately because it placed too much emphasis on the Nobel Prize in Literature and had a biased view of foreign things. He believed that once the country became strong and truly confident, it would naturally demystify many things from abroad. As for humanistic spirit, it was merely a consequence of the market economy sweeping across the country, increasing commodification, and new trends in the cultural field, which would naturally lead to corresponding impacts and discussions.

When the tides of time pass, the answers will naturally emerge.

The tide of time is now moving forward, and before we know it, it's the end of 1994. Literature seems to have fallen into a slump, but film and television works are very popular. For example, the films "To Live" and "In the Heat of the Sun" were released that year, as well as "Vive L'Amour" and "Eat Drink Man Woman" from Taiwan. In addition to domestic films, there were also foreign films such as "Forrest Gump", "The Shawshank Redemption" and "Pulp Fiction". These are all works that emerged under the tide of time.

Lin Youcheng was well aware that literary works would always have vitality, no matter when, and would not fade away with the impact of the market economy.

After the interview, Lin Youcheng saw the colleagues from the Beijing Youth Daily out. Seeing that the snow outside seemed to be getting heavier, he quickly went inside the heated room.

"The snow outside is falling heavily!"

Lin Youcheng walked over to Xie Shuhua's side, glanced at his daughter Lin Zhaoyuan who was sleeping soundly, her rosy little face smiling as lovely as spring.

No matter how the tides of time howl with wind and snow, the houses in the courtyard remain warm and cozy, like a warm spring day.

Or perhaps, amidst the tides of time, Lin Youcheng knows where the future tides will lead, and he remains a person ahead of the tides, just as he won the Mao Dun Literature Prize again; the spring of this literary giant, Lin Youcheng, continues.

(End of this chapter)