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A review by bliphany
The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories by Ken Liu
Did not finish book. Stopped at 26%.
Currently reading this and so far my favorite one is Stage Change!
However… now I’m very conflicted about whether to finish this one…
Although I’m glad there are more and more Asian voice in the English publishing world, however, I’ve been hesitated to read Chinese authors’ works. Because somehow, they still tend to unconsensually include Taiwan as part of their Chinese narrative and and I want to ask:
W H Y?
When they’ve never lived here?
Ask for Asian representation/recognition in the Western world all you like. More power to you tbh. And I fully support people to dream for a better world where China is a great country where its people live in true freedom and happiness. Because like, same?
But why? Why do they have to also include Taiwan in their beautiful picture? Without like, our consent?
Just when I was enjoying this short stories collection, my fear was proved to be true….
There’s a story where the author just put in chunks of seemingly historical facts (overly simplified imo) to fit the narrative. Also, the author chose to include one of our national tragedies but handled it badly, dare I say, highly disrespectfully, which was the deal breaker for me in this short story.
I am Taiwanese and never identified myself as a Chinese and although I can respect that there are older people living in Taiwan who identify as one because of the complicated history context. But Taiwanese people mostly, especially in this day, largely don’t identified ourselves as Chinese people. Especially not when our lives are constantly being threatened by the Chinese government!
I really don’t think it’s a good idea for people who never lived in Taiwan and only learned about this little island through the great Chinese view to write a story about how Taiwanese people are still Chinese people and once the political situation (and made it all about American government’s power play!) gone we can all “come back” to China as a big happy family.
Just. No.
I hope one day Chinese people live freely. But it doesn’t mean I long for being part of that.
I will say it again:
I hope one day Chinese people live freely. But it doesn’t mean I long for being part of that.
Being included as other’s dream picture unconsensually is already bad. It’s even worse when authors did that as if it was just some creative freedom and dreaming for a better world while we're still under unstop threats from the Chinese government.
If the author were some older generation who migrated from China to this island and always have been dreaming of “going back” and to be a Chinese, and wrote about this longing, I fully respect that.
But when the author are not, but used the story magic to make their wish to seem like some “we don’t need any nation boundaries” free spirit idealism while still implies “Taiwan should still be part of MY DREAM because of some constructed culture roots” then there is still nationalism behind the pretty panting.
I talked about this with my friend and couldn’t help but ask: “why did people believe they had the right to write about where Taiwan belonged when they never born or lived here and made it like part of his Chinese identity?”
She replied: “It’s AU! Some people have their own Taiwan AU where we all gladly being kidnapped by Chinese narrative and thank them for never ask our consent. That’s Taiwan AU!”
ETA 2022/05/12
DNF because the way the author chose to include one of our national historical/political tragedies disrespectfully to fit his own Chinese narrative is too triggering for me. Especially after I read so many comments here saying this collection includes some Asian historical events as if they were all truthfully presented. I don’t blame any western people because you only have few translated Asian works to read and learn things from. But it’s triggering for me as an Asian/Taiwanese who was born and have been living in Taiwan to read an author to write some national tragedy of ours when he did not live here and use the word magic to sell this “as long as the political situation gone we should all come back together as a Chinese family” wishful thinking.
I can respect any author who writes from their own experience and longing, for example, if they were some older migrants fled from China to Taiwan and just identified themselves as Chinese, I respect that. That’s their own voice and certainly some Asian rep.
However, when the author wasn’t born here and had never lived here but decided to include Taiwan as part of his seemingly idealism dream, the story he made was neither own voice (he took other people voice, people who are still living under the Chinese government’s threat of war!) nor Asian rep.
However… now I’m very conflicted about whether to finish this one…
Although I’m glad there are more and more Asian voice in the English publishing world, however, I’ve been hesitated to read Chinese authors’ works. Because somehow, they still tend to unconsensually include Taiwan as part of their Chinese narrative and and I want to ask:
W H Y?
When they’ve never lived here?
Ask for Asian representation/recognition in the Western world all you like. More power to you tbh. And I fully support people to dream for a better world where China is a great country where its people live in true freedom and happiness. Because like, same?
But why? Why do they have to also include Taiwan in their beautiful picture? Without like, our consent?
Just when I was enjoying this short stories collection, my fear was proved to be true….
There’s a story where the author just put in chunks of seemingly historical facts (overly simplified imo) to fit the narrative. Also, the author chose to include one of our national tragedies but handled it badly, dare I say, highly disrespectfully, which was the deal breaker for me in this short story.
I am Taiwanese and never identified myself as a Chinese and although I can respect that there are older people living in Taiwan who identify as one because of the complicated history context. But Taiwanese people mostly, especially in this day, largely don’t identified ourselves as Chinese people. Especially not when our lives are constantly being threatened by the Chinese government!
I really don’t think it’s a good idea for people who never lived in Taiwan and only learned about this little island through the great Chinese view to write a story about how Taiwanese people are still Chinese people and once the political situation (and made it all about American government’s power play!) gone we can all “come back” to China as a big happy family.
Just. No.
I hope one day Chinese people live freely. But it doesn’t mean I long for being part of that.
I will say it again:
I hope one day Chinese people live freely. But it doesn’t mean I long for being part of that.
Being included as other’s dream picture unconsensually is already bad. It’s even worse when authors did that as if it was just some creative freedom and dreaming for a better world while we're still under unstop threats from the Chinese government.
If the author were some older generation who migrated from China to this island and always have been dreaming of “going back” and to be a Chinese, and wrote about this longing, I fully respect that.
But when the author are not, but used the story magic to make their wish to seem like some “we don’t need any nation boundaries” free spirit idealism while still implies “Taiwan should still be part of MY DREAM because of some constructed culture roots” then there is still nationalism behind the pretty panting.
I talked about this with my friend and couldn’t help but ask: “why did people believe they had the right to write about where Taiwan belonged when they never born or lived here and made it like part of his Chinese identity?”
She replied: “It’s AU! Some people have their own Taiwan AU where we all gladly being kidnapped by Chinese narrative and thank them for never ask our consent. That’s Taiwan AU!”
ETA 2022/05/12
DNF because the way the author chose to include one of our national historical/political tragedies disrespectfully to fit his own Chinese narrative is too triggering for me. Especially after I read so many comments here saying this collection includes some Asian historical events as if they were all truthfully presented. I don’t blame any western people because you only have few translated Asian works to read and learn things from. But it’s triggering for me as an Asian/Taiwanese who was born and have been living in Taiwan to read an author to write some national tragedy of ours when he did not live here and use the word magic to sell this “as long as the political situation gone we should all come back together as a Chinese family” wishful thinking.
I can respect any author who writes from their own experience and longing, for example, if they were some older migrants fled from China to Taiwan and just identified themselves as Chinese, I respect that. That’s their own voice and certainly some Asian rep.
However, when the author wasn’t born here and had never lived here but decided to include Taiwan as part of his seemingly idealism dream, the story he made was neither own voice (he took other people voice, people who are still living under the Chinese government’s threat of war!) nor Asian rep.