고려대학교

초록/요약

Yan Lianke can be referred to as one of the ‘most controversial novelists’ in China. This is due to the fact that many of his major novels, such as Serve the People, Dream of Ding Village, and Four Books had been forbidden by the Chinese government, but in turn this prohibition only led the focus of foreign media to his works. In the analysis of this ‘controversy,’ this paper examines the novel Serve the People which has been inspired by a speech with the identical title made by Mao Zedong. Included in this novel is the description of sexual relationship between Liu Lian, the wife of the Division Commander and Wu Dawang, a People’s Liberation Army soldier during the Cultural Revolution; this consequently led to the complete banning of this novel by the state even in prior to the actual publication. In this aspect, this paper explores how sexuality is exemplified in the novel. First, this paper will look into how the sexual relationship is established with reliance on political power from the perspective of sexual politics, and then review how their sexual relationship reveals the dignity of human being. In this process, this paper will investigate the reasons for the ‘controversy’ in Yan Lianke’s works, and why it has been considered ‘offending’ to the government of China.