Literary Master 1983

Chapter 119: Yu Xuanfeng is coming (Part )
He made his position clear: "I personally oppose the use of nuclear weapons. Once nuclear weapons are used, there is only a difference between zero or full."

"So, if we write about nuclear literature, we might also want to write about the infinite power and unpredictable horror of nuclear weapons."

This is a bit like the nuclear version of "Cthulhu", which cannot be looked at directly, cannot be guessed, and can only be escaped from. It is appropriate to use it to describe nuclear literature.

Yasushi Inoue is an old man who is very aware of the power of nuclear weapons, but he has never written any literature related to it.

He asked Yu Qie: "Why do you make such an assumption?"

Yu Qie said: "Nuclear particles have two properties: destruction and creation, but destruction is much easier than creation. In the end, it is easier for them to show their destructive side in literary creation."

"So, what's left after destruction?"

"If there is still human society after the destruction, it will probably be a combination of disorder, chaos, high technology and low living standards... This is the situation."

What exactly was going on? No one present knew exactly what was going on. They could only listen to Yu Qie's account.

Although this type of literature emerged in the 1980s, it was extremely niche. It was not until the Chernobyl explosion that nuclear literature really began to explode and attracted widespread attention from the public.

This catastrophe also caused nuclear literature to abandon its good aspects, and everyone followed the worst and most terrible settings. It also produced a wonderful wasteland aesthetic, which was gradually revived in the new century when humans were far away from nuclear war.

All kinds of movies, TV shows, games, etc. have come out.

This topic is almost a one-man show for Yu Qie. The world he describes is vivid and the setting is perfect. No one wants to discuss it anymore. They just want to listen to his story:
"After the nuclear explosion, humans could no longer survive on the ground. All life moved underground, including the subway lines. The survivors split into several factions..."

"The underground and the ground are two completely different worlds. Underground, except for the lack of sunlight, the bustling scene is almost the same as a normal city, with shops, bars, theaters, and all kinds of living facilities. On the ground, there are ruins and debris everywhere, green foamy water, and empty streets and urban areas..."

This setting comes from the later Russian novel "Metro" series, written in 2003. The Russians were interested because of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant explosion.

The Japanese are interested in stories about the post-nuclear era because they have experienced nuclear bombs and have a huge underground transportation network.

It can be said that the people in the world who have the strongest feelings for wastelands are the Russians and the Japanese; this is their national "scar".

But Yu Qie didn't say much and turned to criticism of nuclear weapons - this was the theme of the program and what this International PEN wanted to promote.

The reason is simple. Japan, as the host of the PEN conference, is the only country in the world that has been hit by two atomic bombs.

At present, as a writer from a neighboring country expressing criticism of nuclear weapons, it is necessary to sympathize with civilians. Yu Qie borrowed the viewpoint from Ba Lao’s speech “Literature in the Nuclear Age”:

"Resisting nuclear weapons is the common voice of the people of the world. The nuclear arms race is like the sword of Damocles hanging over the heads of the people of the world. Once it falls, the victims will definitely not only be the two cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki..."

Every time he spoke a word, during the pauses, the Japanese in the audience applauded excitedly, as if this matter had been recognized by the whole world.

Even Kunitani Yuko, who had originally argued with Yu Qie, had her eyes flashing and tears welling up in her eyes, as if Yu Qie was seeking justice for them!
Yu Qie talked about the conflict in the south of China: "The international situation is very tense, but the intensity of the war must be restrained. Only peaceful construction can promote the prosperity of mankind. Defending world peace is the unshirkable responsibility of writers."

“The voices of writers should be more widely valued and become a more powerful force, the voice of hundreds of millions of people, so that we can create a better world and a more beautiful future for future generations!”

What can be seen is that no matter those who originally shouted "Down with imperialism" or those who were originally reluctant to bow, all applauded excitedly to express their support for Yu Qie.

Why are they so supportive?
I'm afraid if an Egyptian or Korean said these words, it would not make the Japanese in the audience so excited.

It is precisely because he is Chinese, and although China is poor, it is the key country with a big stick. He first had this thing, and then expressed sympathy and "boycott", which won the sincere support of the Japanese.

You could have hit me, but you didn't, so you are a person of noble character.

Yu Qie concluded by saying, "Humanity has created a rich civilization that can never be destroyed by nuclear weapons, and peace cannot be destroyed by a single weapon." "Writers can create literature for the nuclear age and unite the forces of justice to strive to avoid world wars and nuclear wars in the future."

His speech ended here, and it was the turn of Yasushi Inoue. This old man was responsible for introducing some of the situations after being hit by the atomic bomb, which is a tragic memory unique to the Japanese.

Relevant information was played in the studio: various atomic bomb patients, severed hands wrapped in molten glass, stories about mushroom clouds, seas of fire, black rain... and a little girl who became ill at the age of twelve and lost all her hair. She believed that she would be able to recover her health if she folded a thousand paper cranes. In the end, the little girl folded more than a thousand paper cranes, but still died.

Inoue Yasushi cried as he introduced the event. Many people in the audience started crying as well. Finally, they gave one of the paper cranes to Yu Qie as a gift. Yu Qie was very serious and said:

"I will put this paper crane on my desk so that I can see it at any time."

Inoue Yasushi connected with Ba Lao in the ward through the TV station's phone.

Ba Lao explained Yu Qie's "recklessness": "The reason why we need to sort out the relationship is to better look forward."

"But failing to sort out the relationship is disrespectful to the past, so an apology is necessary... Fortunately, we got through this stage."

Then he said some blessings: "People of the world unite, writers of the world unite, Eastern countries unite... The world will no longer be haunted by the shadow of nuclear war."

Yuko Kuniya graduated in international relations and is a Japanese ethnic Chinese. She has interviewed many bigwigs in the political and business circles before. The topics they usually cover are very grand. At this moment, she feels that she still has a lot to say.

For example, the story after the nuclear explosion era, and how to write this kind of literature - there must be a method.

But the director of the talk show reminded her that there was not enough time for this segment.

idiot!

You are such uneducated traitors who only know how to make shows. You deserve to be killed!

Kuniya Yuko could only summarize here. Facing the camera, she said excitedly:

"We heard the debate between two generations of writers, which once again brought us back to the original ability of writers: they want to express their own opinions and guide people to do the right thing - debate is the most fundamental ability of writers."

"We also heard about the thinking between different countries, which gave rise to different perspectives. At the beginning of the program, we said that Japanese and Chinese writers once talked about poetry and the Zen of the Sixth Patriarch Huineng... Today we imagine literature in the nuclear age, which has not changed for thousands of years."

"Writers are still a profession that guides the thoughts of human society."

The audience question session begins.

There is not much time for this session, and only a few lucky people will be selected to ask questions and have conversations.

Most people said simple things: they hope there will be no more wars in the world and that there will be long-term friendship between the two countries.

Others told Yu Qie that they were striving to get China to participate in the National Day and must bring their blessings to the square.

"Yu Qie? Are you also in the square?"

"I shouldn't be here, but I'll watch you guys on TV."

"Please make sure you watch over us. Now you have become one of our motivations to go to China! We are going to meet our Chinese friends!"

(End of this chapter)