Chinese Journal of Literary Criticism

No.4, 2018 

On Yu Hua’s Passive Avant-Garde Narration: A Brief Analysis on To Live and Chronicle of a Blood Merchant

(Abstract)

Shi Jia and Tian Ni

From the 1980s to the 1990s and even to the 21st century, Yu Hua gradually deviated from the subjectivity of personal narrative and adopted the passive resistance of individuals and groups in the face of harsh circumstances, and retreat from reality.Behind Yu Hua’s passive avant-garde narration is the intellectual’s helplessness to suffering of mankind and transcendence. Although Yu Hua’s passive representations of ethics and life experience carry enough spiritual connotations and ethical judgments, they have also hindered his realistic expression.