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Opinion | To tell China’s story well, its writers must be free enough to do so
- The most compelling stories are the human ones. China must allow books and films that don’t always portray it in glowing terms
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Last October, I had the honour and pleasure of participating in the Frankfurt Book Fair, since my memoir, “Socialism Is Great!”: A Worker’s Memoir of the New China, had just come out in Germany. As I wandered from one Chinese publisher’s exhibition stand to another, images of President Xi Jinping’s smiling face followed me.
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Quite a few publishers were promoting his political thoughts, with books such as Xi Jinping: The Governance of China.
Almost exactly 11 years ago, during his first year of administration, Xi spoke of the need to “tell China’s story well”, his strategy for better external communications and to project a more favourable image of the nation. It has since been at the heart of Beijing’s push for soft power and a bigger voice in international discourse.
Xi called for the portrayal of a “true, three-dimensional and complete China”. The aim was to make sure the world heard China’s voice over Western narratives, which tend to be negative. I fully support this notion; of course Chinese people deserve to have their voices heard.
Traditionally, Western readers preferred to read about foreign countries through their own authors, whom they felt they could relate to. Books such as A Merry Dance Around the World by British author Eric Newby and Seven Years in Tibet by Austrian explorer Heinrich Harrer were popular.
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These days, however, people have become more interested in books by local authors, who possess insight into their societies that outsiders lack. The immense success of books such as Wild Swans by Jung Chang and Life and Death in Shanghai by Nien Cheng reflects that desire.
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