Rebirth 2004: A lone figure in the literary world

Chapter 286 International Cultural Disputes
"Kiran Desai, a great female writer born in our great country, and her book The Inheritance of Loss were shamefully left out of the 2006 National Book Critics Circle Best Novel category."

"You know, Inheritance of Lost Love just won the Booker Prize, the highest award for English novels, in 2006, and Kiran Desai became the youngest winner of the Booker Prize. But she and her novel were ignored by the American Book Critics Circle!"

"The one who stole the honor was "Zhang'Chao," a pop idol writer from China with a kitschy historical novel, perhaps because his "exoticism" won over the judges."

“The Great Doctor isn’t even an original English novel, it’s just a translation.”

"The Great Doctor is just the boring travels and adventures of a few young doctors, mixed with some clichéd complaints against colonizers and warlords."

"Inheritance of the Lost is an unbiased look at how those who leave their homes in search of a new life find themselves displaced between the old and the new, a poignant portrait of humanity and wisdom."

"Compared to Inheritance, The Great Doctor feels like a middle school student's exercise."

"We don't know what kind of magic Zhang'Chao performed to make the National Book Critics Circle give him the "Best Novel" award, perhaps some kind of shamanic magic from East Asia."

"We noticed that The Great Physician was published by Simon & Schuster, one of the largest publishers in the United States, while Inheriting the Lost was published by an independent publisher, Grove Press."

"The Great Doctor made a lot of money for its publisher. It's hard to say how much the publisher's 'power' played a role in this award."

"We should stop expecting these arrogant American book reviewers to value the unparalleled insight and creativity of our Indian writers and break free from the cultural trap set by these arrogant white elites."

"They just want to tame us Indians by elevating the status of the Chinese, making us servile and subservient to them and treat us like slaves. This is a continuation of the old European colonizers."

“It is so frustrating that Indians have worked hard in the United States but still cannot be recognized!”

……

Kiran Desai is one of the most prominent Indian writers to emerge in recent years. She moved to the United States at the age of 15. Her first work, A Noise in the Pomegranate Orchard, attracted much attention. Her Inheritance of Lost Love, published in 2006, helped her win the Booker Prize.

The Booker Prize is the highest award in contemporary English fiction and has a huge influence. However, before 2014, only original English writers from Commonwealth countries were eligible to be shortlisted.

After Kiran Desai won the prize in October 2006, the Indian cultural world went into a frenzy, and some Indian literary critics even believed that she could win the Nobel Prize in Literature in the coming years.

Failure to win the American Book Critics Circle Best Novel Award was undoubtedly a heavy blow.

This report was published in the cultural section of the Times of India, the largest newspaper in India, and caused a stir. The Times of India was founded in 1838 and is not only widely influential in India, but is also one of the must-subscribe newspapers for many Indian expatriates.

In the 2007 U.S. Census, although the number of Indians is slightly smaller than that of Chinese, they are the most united and enthusiastic foreign immigrants in the United States to participate in public affairs such as politics and culture.

Therefore, with the influence of Indian people, this report quickly became one of the focal points of public opinion in the American cultural circle.

It's no wonder they were excited - from the subject matter to the narrative style, "Inheritance of Lost Love" is exactly what the British and American immigrant writers envision and what the mainstream cultural circles in the UK and the US like.

An illegal immigrant living in the United States, trying to create a new life for herself; an Anglicized Indian girl living with her grandfather in India; an old Indian judge who hated Indian ways and customs, but was never fully accepted by the British...

Racial discrimination, cultural conflicts, religious disputes...

It can be said that in their eyes, every line of Kiran Desai's writing hits the heart of the British and American cultural circles' inherent perception of new immigrant writers - but he was not selected.

How does the award-winning “The Great Doctor” appear to Indians?

A few young doctors with no background, after learning some medical knowledge, actually ran around China to save their country and people - how ridiculous and unrealistic!
Soon, a critical article titled "Young Chinese Writer Wins American Book Critics Circle Award - The Shift of Cultural Center in the Post-American Era" appeared in the New York Times, written by Fareed Zakaria, a famous Indian-American journalist.

"More than a year ago, after Zhang Chao was chased and praised by the left-wing media in the United States, the American Book Critics Circle could not wait to give the crown of English-language novels written by non-US citizens to this young man who was only 22 years old - this phenomenon was originally only seen in the pop music industry."

"I have no intention of evaluating the literary level of The Great Doctor, even though I am also a writer. I would rather measure its significance and value against the backdrop of the changes in the world's political and economic landscape since the 911/ incident."

"Zhang Chao's award is not only an inspirational story of a foreign youth capturing the heart of an American beauty, but also a symbolic turning point, symbolizing the shift of the cultural center and the reshaping of the global cultural landscape in the post-American era."

"Zhang Chao's work has been favored by the American Book Critics Circle, partly because of the Chinese perspective and experience reflected in his works, which is consistent with the trend of the global economic center of gravity shifting to Asia."

"The reason why the American Book Critics Circle has shown unusual enthusiasm for Zhang Chao is probably more of a hidden resistance to the increasing interference of the US government in domestic cultural activities."

"This seems to be a reflection of the American cultural community's anxiety about traditional values ​​and global influence."

"If awarding the prize to a minority immigrant writer is not enough to demonstrate diversity and inclusiveness, then why not award it to a writer from a country that was once hostile and is still full of confrontation in cooperation?"

“We noticed that the US government had actively supported young Chinese writers who symbolized rebellion and freedom through cultural foundations and NGOs, providing them with convenient publishing channels and high international attention. However, Zhang Chao came from behind and gained wider recognition with an almost docile attitude.”

"Zhang Chao's award can also be seen as a reflection of the American cultural community on domestic and foreign policies. After experiencing a series of domestic and foreign policy challenges, the United States may be seeking to reshape its global image through the power of culture."

Fareed Zakaria is an extremely influential columnist who has published columns in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and The New Yorker. He is also a new immigrant from India, but he has long since joined the elite class.

Although he is known as a "political-free" liberal journalist and commentator, politics may not require a stance, but ethnicity, family, faith... these ties are not easy to get rid of.

Fareed Zakaria cleverly avoided comparing the literary levels of "The Great Physician" and "Inheritance of Lost", and instead explained from a political and economic perspective the changes in the American cultural landscape reflected by Zhang Chao's award.

There is not even a single mention of "Inheriting the Lost", but it is far more damaging than any other Indian article published in the media. This article contains a kind of "induction", trying to make readers think that Zhang Chao and "The Great Doctor" winning the award is a symbolic event of the decline of the strong expansion of American culture, a sign of the failure of the American cultural intervention policy, and a successful counterattack of the American left-wing forces against the government.

If Zhang Chao accepts this kind of "inducement", his personal image in the United States will probably soon change from "young, agile and smart Asian youth" to "a sinister, cunning Chinese boy who is deliberately packaged to break through the American cultural defenses."

Therefore, after this article was published, the debate about whether Zhang Chao and "The Great Doctor" should win the award reached a climax.

Of course, the American Book Critics Circle would certainly not think that they awarded the award because of ethnic strife or political bias. Moreover, the award had already been given, and Zhang Chao's Best Novel Award had already been received by a representative of Simon & Schuster. Could it be taken back?
What's more, this award is decided after rounds of discussions and voting by more than 700 members of the association. There are five works on the shortlist in January. Even if "The Great Doctor" does not win the award, will it definitely be Kiran Desai's "Inheritance"?

Who says that if you win the Booker Prize in the previous year, you will definitely win the American Book Critics Circle Award in the next year?
You should know that this year's list also includes "Half Sun" by Nigerian female writer Adichie, which is an elegy for the Nigerian Civil War in the 20s. With its epic structure, it questions how solid concepts such as identity, national boundaries, love, and friendship survive in the face of absurd and brutal war.

People have tempers. The cultural circles of the United States and the United Kingdom have always looked down on each other. The former thinks the latter is too pretentious, and the latter thinks the former is too vulgar. Besides, Zhang Chao's novel "The Great Doctor" did give these professional book reviewers in the United States a sense of freshness.

Therefore, there are many forces supporting Zhang Chao.

For example, Harold, a columnist for the New York Review of Books, who had a good interaction with Zhang Chao at the IWP sharing session and promoted Zhang Chao to the mainstream media in the United States, wrote an article specifically to counter these views:

"One of the reasons why The Great Doctor was attacked seems to be that its sales were too good. It is said that it sold 30 copies in half a year. A novel with extremely good sales is often classified as a popular novel, and popular novels are considered ineligible for the National Book Critics Circle Award."

“Such a chain of logic is of course absurd! Wasn’t one of the reasons why Inheritance was praised for “balancing story and narrative ambitions well”?

"In my opinion, Zhang Chao's writing skills in The Great Doctor are no less than any other writer. He skillfully maintains flexibility and stability, and can brilliantly describe China in 1910 under the flames of war, plague and rampant ignorance, and can also calmly narrate an operation completed in the cracks of chasing and hiding."

"Zhang Chao's brushstrokes move with ease through the spiritual landscape of old China's civilization and barbarism, hope and despair, depicting the pain of exile, the trauma of national division, and the blind pursuit of the "civilized world" within the European framework."

“‘Doctor’ is not only the title of the novel and the identity of the protagonist, but also contains a metaphor that the country needs to be healed.”

“Perhaps we are all tired of grand narratives with the nation as the theme, and tend to indulge in personal subtle experiences. However, we cannot ignore that although Zhang Chao does not have the “huge anxiety of being a foreigner” as Kiran Desai said in an interview, it does not mean that his thinking about nationality and the times is not deep enough.”

"We cannot conclude that Zhang Chao lacks depth just because he does not show the sensitivity and loss that are unique to new immigrant writers. He is not a new immigrant writer. He writes about the sufferings that his own nation has faced with a majestic and compassionate confidence."

"The Booker Prize seems to pay too much attention to the group of "new immigrant writers", so much so that a writing inertia has been formed. Among the six shortlisted works, in addition to "Inheritance of Lost People", novels about immigrants and leaving their homes include Hisham Matar's "In the Country of Men" and Kate Grenville's "The Secret River"."

“The American Book Critics Circle Awards will not pay special attention to authors just because they are from a certain group or write about a certain topic. Zhang Chao’s The Great Doctor won the award, proving that “national narrative” and “savior sentiment” can still move readers today.”

……

As a columnist for The New York Review of Books, Harold Silvers enjoys a high reputation in the American cultural circle and is even called "the other Harold" (Harold Bloom).

As soon as his article came out, it immediately pointed out a new direction for the book reviewers who voted for Zhang Chao...

……

"This is not a question of whether I should win the award or not. It's clearly the American cultural elites who want to battle with the British cultural elites!" Zhang Chao, who had already returned to Yenching University, saw the information compiled by Ma Boyong, Xu Ruiya and others, and complained to Wang Meng in front of him.

Just two days after receiving the award, Zhang Chao ended his two-week exchange visit to Xiamen University. He originally wanted to go home, but Wang Meng called him and told him to stop hanging around outside and return to Yenching to talk about the recent "international public opinion".

Without Wang Meng's reminder, Zhang Chao would not have known that there was a big uproar in the United States over his award. Now it seems like a real mess!
Wang Meng had no idea what "Battle" was, but he had a general idea of ​​what it meant, so he asked, "Can you explain it in detail?"

Zhang Chao said: "I asked someone to check the media coverage after the National Book Critics Circle Awards ceremony. It was very perfunctory. Several major American newspapers did not report on it. For example, The Washington Post did not mention this year's awards ceremony at all, while The New York Times only published a short news item listing the names of people and books without any paragraphs."

Wang Meng was a little confused. You know, in the eyes of writers of their generation, even if these American literary awards were not "sacred", they were still a grand national cultural event. Even if there were no live broadcasts on TV, there should be detailed reports, right?

Although the influence of the Mao Dun Literature Prize is declining, CCTV and major newspapers always report on the award ceremony every year. How come the United States is not as good as China?
Zhang Chao further explained: "Look at this award ceremony, as a nominee, I should have been there to wait for the award to be announced, right? But Simon & Schuster sent me an email, and when I didn't reply for a few days, they sent someone to receive it on my behalf.

If it was a really big deal, it would have required repeated emails and phone calls.”

Wang Meng then asked: “Then how does this relate to the struggle between cultural elites in the United States and Britain?”

Zhang Chao said: "If the east is dark, the west will be bright. Judging from the amount of news coverage, the influence of American literary awards, except for the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Award and the Book Critics Award are all weakening, and the enthusiasm of the media and the public to participate is declining year by year.

But the situation is the opposite in the UK. Not only has the Booker Prize received more and more attention in recent years, but the Orange Prize and Costa Prize have also become important awards in the world literary world. The Booker Prize has also expanded. In addition to the "International Booker Prize", there is also the Caine Prize for Africa and the Man Asian Booker Prize for Asia.

Although Americans are wealthy and powerful, they are very stingy in this regard. Two of the three major awards are only given to citizens of the country, and the remaining one is also only given to citizens of the country in most cases. It is natural that their influence is shrinking.

This time, Indian Americans attacked the American Book Critics Circle by saying that Kiran Desai's "Inheritance of Lost" won the Booker Prize but not the National Book Critics Circle Award. Isn't this just a poke in their lungs?
And with all the abuse surrounding me, hey, the Book Critics Awards are in the mainstream media again! Do you think they will be even more enthusiastic? "

Wang Meng said "Oh" to show that he understood, and then looked at Zhang Chao with a strange look: "Why is it that wherever you go, there is unrest?"

But he didn't say this in the end. Instead, he asked, "Why did your publishing house ask you to go to the United States this time?"

Zhang Chao said calmly, "After all, he won the award. They accepted the trophy on his behalf and planned to have a handover ceremony for me to hype it up and sell more books. The second volume of The Great Doctor will be published soon."

Wang Meng thought for a long time, and finally said: "If we ask you not to go to the United States this time, do you think it's okay?"

(End of this chapter)