Opinion | On top of censorship, Chinese writers now have to contend with attacks from patriotic trolls, and that’s worrying
- Nationalistic commentator Sima Nan has sparked debate about the role of literature following his attack on Nobel laureate Mo Yan for failing to celebrate China
- Perhaps he is hoping to ride the wave of patriotism surging across China, but this is a worrying development for the Chinese literary scene
Back in 2012, novelist Mo Yan became the first Chinese citizen to win the Nobel Prize in Literature.
To make his case, Sima cited a speech in which Mo said: “I have a prejudice. I think literature should never be a tool for singing praises. Literature and art should expose darkness and reveal social injustice, which includes revealing the dark side of the human soul and what evil is made of.”
This is not the first time the pundit has attacked a big name. This time, Sima’s videos sparked online debate, as people argued about the role of literature and took the side of either Sima or Mo. Some of Sima’s 30 million online followers cheered him on, while Mo was called names.
Mo’s win stirred up controversy from the outset. After the announcement in 2012, dissidents such as Yu Jie and Ai Weiwei questioned the award while others wondered if Mo, as vice-chair of the China Writers Association, was too close to the establishment to merit the honour. It was also noted at the time that Mo had hand-copied a transcript of a 1942 speech by Mao Zedong ordering writers to serve the Communist Party.
Still, Mo probably would not have expected such a vicious attack by a leftist compatriot 10 years on.
