Scream (Picture Book Edition)

Author: Lu Xun, illustrated by Zhong Shoucheng, Qiu Shixiong
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-01-01
Features: Fang Xuance has recently grown fond of saying the word "almost," which has almost become his "catchphrase." Moreover, he has indeed allowed it to take root in his mind. Initially, he said "all the same," but later found it unstable and changed it to "almost," which he has continued to use until now. Since discovering this ordinary maxim, although it has given rise to many new reflections, it has also brought him much new comfort. For example, when he used to see the elderly suppressing the young, he would feel indignant, but now he simply thinks, "When this young person has children in the future, they will probably adopt the same attitude," and thus no longer feels upset. Similarly, when he used to see soldiers beating a rickshaw puller, he would also feel indignant, but now he thinks, "If this rickshaw puller becomes a soldier and the soldier drives a rickshaw, they will probably do the same," and no longer takes it to heart. When he thinks this way, he sometimes suspects that it is because he lacks the courage to fight against a bad society, so he deliberately constructs an escape route, which is close to having "no sense of right and wrong"... and is far better to correct. However, this idea always grows stronger in his mind. When he first publicly presented the "almost theory," it was in a lecture hall at Beijing Shoushan School. At that time, he was probably discussing historical matters and mentioned that "the ancient and modern are not far apart," the "nearness of nature among all people" [2], and eventually brought it up in relation to students and officials, delivering a long speech: "Nowadays, it is fashionable to curse officials, and students curse them even more fiercely. However, officials are not a special race born into the world; they are transformed from commoners. There are many officials who have backgrounds in student organizations, and what is the difference between them and old officials? 'If they were in each other's places, they would be the same'... their thoughts, words, actions, and demeanor are not much different.