Silver Age

Author: Wang Xiaobo
Publisher:
Publish Date: 1999-03-01
Features: The Silver Age is the second part of The Trilogy of Time. It is a long narrative composed of a series of works set in a fictional timeline. These works depict intellectuals who grew up in this century and lived into the next, recalling their ancestors and describing their own lives during the process of surviving across the century. Rather than being a prediction of the future world, it is more of an allegory of modern life, an anti-utopian story. The future world in which the protagonist lives is not better than the present; instead, it exacerbates the absurdity of modern life. As individuals, intellectuals are thrown into increasingly absurd situations. The author uses two narrative frameworks: in one, he describes a painter and novelist who are detained at a police station and whipped, as well as their unconventional love; in the other, he portrays himself as a future historian who, adhering to the principles of historical writing, commits various "mistakes" and, in the end, returns to his original life and identity, becoming a "normal" person with no desires. These two narratives often intersect and overlap. In the conflict between what is deemed realistic and fictional, the author creates a context where he freely weaves in irony, satire, and playful analysis.