China and the Chinese revolution have been the subjects of countless books. Here we have a distinctive take on the subject by a Chinese scholar. With a bold title, this book collects several thoughtful essays originally written in Chinese over the past decade by Wang Hui, a literature critic by training, a prolific author, and a longtime coeditor of Dushu (1996–2007), probably the most popular monthly periodical read by Chinese intellectuals in the past three decades.
With a broad-brush style common among many Chinese scholars, Wang discusses and advances many provocative conceptualizations and reconceptualizations of the recent past and the current development of China. Other than presenting a reinterpretation of China's epic revolution that, according to the author, lasted until the 1980s and the profound reform since then, Wang analyzes a host of topics such as modernity, ideology, foreign influence, the role of the Chinese state, and the role of...
