Lao Yimen

Author: He Ping
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-01-01
Features: There are two types of novels. The first type has a real story but fabricated materials, like the "touristified celebrity former residences" today—where the houses are real, but everything inside is fake. The second type has a fictional story but entirely authentic materials. This allows for the "resurrection of the dead," making the figures in the paintings come to life. However, achieving genuine materials is not easy. Half of a writer's skill lies in the materials at hand. A writer's materials are different from a mason's "sand and lime," as these materials are all "discovered" by the writer's extraordinary vision from life. Perhaps this is the value of He Ping's Old Artisans.
When it comes to value, there is also a cultural dimension. Today, Chinese people may not yet realize that only the current way of life truly qualifies as "great change" in thousands of years. Even the Cultural Revolution was no match for today's transformations. The reason is the collapse of agrarian civilization. As a result, everything tangible and intangible within this former civilization framework is rapidly changing. It cannot be preserved, it cannot be halted, and once lost, it leaves no trace, never to return. Thus, one thing a writer must do is record the forms of yesterday. Contemporary writers may be the last generation to experience agrarian civilization. If we fail to do so, later generations will not be able to. Take the old cities, old houses, old figures, and old crafts in this book; without He Ping's writing, who would know? Therefore, He Ping's literary creation carries a cultural recording significance. In this sense, Old Artisans is far more conscious than his long Great Kiln Gate. This can also be called "cultural consciousness." As a result, He Ping's book naturally transcends the "folk legends" found in the market. Folk things and figures are filled with magical charm. But this charm is not found in ghosts, fox spirits, sorcery, wild unions, or secret recipes, but in the real and vibrant folk life—such as the old artisans. It depends on whether the writer has truly set both feet in the folk world and whether they possess genuine folk emotions. I believe He Ping has both feet planted in the folk world. The "old things" in his books, both inside and outside, are genuine and reliable. He Ping's literary creation does not belong solely to Shaanxi; it should be said that he is a free-roaming wanderer.