Awkward charm

Author: Wang Meng
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-11-01
Features: Awkward Charm is a remarkable masterpiece crafted from five years of Wang Meng's dedication, exploring the "heart" of the Chinese people. The "Old Wang" depicted by the author contemplates numerous metaphysical questions, all of which are "Heavenly Inquiries." The questions remain unanswered, hence the "awkwardness"; since there are no solutions, he simply lets go, thus achieving "charm." Wang Meng's courage and depth in his views on "Heavenly Inquiries," the ultimate, and meaning and value will once again the literary world. Awkward Charm is a remarkable masterpiece crafted from five years of Wang Meng's dedication, exploring the "heart" of the Chinese people. The "Old Wang" depicted by the author contemplates numerous metaphysical questions, all of which are "Heavenly Inquiries." The questions remain unanswered, hence the awkwardness; since there are no solutions, he simply lets go, thus achieving "charm." The author's imagination is boundless and unrestrained, breaking away from the traditional structure of a novel with a clear beginning and end. The linear shell shatters into countless fragments, like large and small pearls falling onto jade. This unique approach is not an imitation of the chaotic flow of life; its true purpose is to express the "heart" of "Old Wang." His heart is nonlinear, a vast void, extending, curling, cyclical, and twisted—definitely not moving toward a single goal or ultimate. The author's deeper intention is to revive the traditional spirit of Chinese novels, as well as the traditional Chinese imagination of self and world, which has been fragmented over the past century with the introduction of Western learning. The focus is on revealing the "heart" of the Chinese people and its decline. Wang Meng's courage and depth in his views on "Heavenly Inquiries," the ultimate, and meaning and value will once again the literary world.