20 12 after Mr. Mo Yan won the Nobel Prize in Literature, it should be a gratifying thing to let China literature go to the world. However, in the past nine years, the criticism about him has never stopped.
People's controversy about him mainly comes from two points.
First, many readers think that Mo Yan has a tendency of "judging ugliness", deliberately turning a blind eye to beautiful things, and always likes to expose the ugliness and darkness of human nature in novels.
Second, many calligraphy lovers think that Mo Yan has written a "Jianghu style" calligraphy and doesn't know how to be modest. He always likes to inscribe everywhere, which virtually robbed the calligrapher of his job.
If we say it realistically, both of these criticisms have some truth, but they are not completely correct.
As far as the social function of literature is concerned, "promoting good and restraining evil" is the core mission of literature. Literature can be used to praise what is true, good, beautiful and noble, and of course it can also criticize what is "false, evil and ugly". Criticism is not the goal, but the ultimate goal is to let people see the essence and harm of "falsehood, evil and ugliness", and then improve it and develop for a better side.
Although Mo Yan lives by pen, he is a writer rather than a calligrapher, and writing is his strong point. He has not studied calligraphy systematically, nor is he from ancient times. Different from the ancient literati, he wrote with a brush since he was a child, and practicing calligraphy can be regarded as an essential skill for a literati.
Therefore, we can't ask Mo Yan's calligraphy to be on a par with professional calligraphers. His calligraphy belongs to "celebrity calligraphy", not because of his own calligraphy level, but because his name Mo Yan has high gold content. No matter whether he writes well or not, as long as his name is on the signature, it will be recognized by the society and the market.
From ancient times to the present, celebrity calligraphy valued the author's fame and status, but the level became secondary, which is exactly the same as the truth that "the word is expensive because of people".
If we can understand this, we will no longer be prejudiced against Mo Yan's calligraphy.
Mo Yan wrote inscriptions for many venues and scenic spots, and the "Zhao Shangzhi Zhao Yiman Anti-Japanese Martyrs Memorial Hall" in shangzhi city is undoubtedly a very representative one. This memorial hall is a place to commemorate revolutionary martyrs and a red education base to carry forward revolutionary heroism and patriotism.
In the memorial hall, there are not only statues of two heroes, Zhao Shangzhi and Zhao Yiman, but also many tall stone tablets inscribed by the famous writer Mo Yan.
Although Mo Yan has won many literary awards at home and abroad, including Mao Dun Literature Award and Nobel Prize in Literature, and is one of the best writers in China, many people don't buy his account, and people will make irresponsible remarks about his actions.
Take his inscription for "Zhao Shangzhi Zhao Yiman Anti-Japanese Martyrs Memorial Hall" this time. As soon as he finished writing the inscription, he was immediately criticized, and some even dug up his old accounts.
The inscription of "Zhao Shangzhi Zhao Yiman Anti-Japanese Martyrs Memorial Hall" was written in April, 2020. After many media reported the incident, Mo Yan immediately became a controversial figure. The core of the controversy is still Mo Yan's literature and calligraphy. They generally believe that Mo Yan should not be asked to write an inscription.
There are two reasons for the countdown.
First, Mo Yan's literary concept has a tendency of "appreciating ugliness". There are too many negative things in literary works, which gives people a sense of vulgarity. Revolutionary martyrs are heroes, and their images are brilliant and great. Let Mo Yan write an inscription, which will damage the heroic image.
In Mo Yan's novels, the words that often appear are: shit, flies, maggots, fleas, beating people, hunger, alcoholism, breasts, condoms, unkempt appearance, and so on. He even described the story of some people eating babies in a serious way in the novel "Wine Country" with the combination of reality and reality.
When Mo Yan declared to the outside world, he said: The evidence from bitter experience is the cannibalism in China's history. Some readers saw Mo Yan's defense and thought that he was discrediting the country.
In addition to telling shocking stories, Mo Yan is also a super "regional rogue". Of course, it was his hometown that he blacked out, not other places.
Mo Yan wrote in "Red Sorghum" published by 1986: Gaomi Northeast Township is undoubtedly the most beautiful, ugly, detached, secular, holy and filthy place on earth, the most heroic man, and the most capable of drinking and falling in love.
A person can even describe his hometown where he was born and raised. I can't imagine what words and sentences he would use to discredit other places.
Westerners like to denigrate us. They must be laughing when they see Mo Yan writing like this.
As the saying goes, children don't think their mothers are ugly. For a person, the country is the mother. Mo Yan's description of his mother makes people doubt his intentions.
Secondly, Mo Yan has no knowledge of calligraphy and doesn't know how to use a pen and compose a composition. His handwriting looks bare, but he likes to show off everywhere, which is obviously an insult to the sanctity of calligraphy.
Calligraphy is the quintessence of the country and art, and aesthetics is its essence. What's the use of calligraphy if it is written as graffiti and spreads vulgarity to people?
Besides, the calligraphy written in an important place represents the image and culture of this place, and the inscription itself is a very serious matter, which should be written by a respected calligrapher to match it.
Mo Yan's calligraphy has neither personal style nor artistic beauty, which not only insults calligraphy, but also reduces the sacredness of these places.
These two statements have some truth, but they are not enough to be a reason to criticize Mo Yan.
First of all, Mo Yan wrote novels, not news. In order to achieve artistic effect when writing novels, writers often use many rhetorical devices and even add their own feelings. It is obviously wrong to regard novels as historical events and true news.
Moreover, literature has the right to describe suffering and ugliness. If this kind of literature is considered as dross, then the understanding of literature is too superficial.
Most of Mr. Lu Xun's novels describe suffering and ugliness, but it does not affect Lu Xun's greatness.
Furthermore, people ask Mo Yan for an inscription, and what they value is Mo Yan's great influence in the cultural circle. With the help of Mo Yan's popularity, the popularity of the venue can be completely enhanced. This is a win-win situation, there is nothing wrong.
As for Mo Yan's robbing calligraphers of their jobs, it is a kind of "sour grape psychology". In history, there are too many things that a famous scholar did not write, and the words of celebrities are regarded as Mo Bao in history.
So, please leave Mo Yan alone. He is one of the few contemporary writers with conscience and responsibility.