Comment on Mo Yan's Speech "Storyteller"

Yesterday, I watched the video and text of Mo Yan's speech, watched it several times, and wrote down my own experience as follows! (the contents in brackets).

The theme of Mo Yan's speech is "the storyteller". In the 40-minute speech, Mo Yan recalled his mother, reviewed the road of literary creation and shared three meaningful "stories" with the audience. (Mo Yan's speech is very attentive, giving a lesson to many people in China, which is more suitable for schools to give to students. )

Dear members of Swedish Academy, ladies and gentlemen,

Through TV or the Internet, I think everyone here knows more or less about Gaomi, a distant northeast town. You may have met my 90-year-old father, my brother and sister, my wife and daughter, and my one-year-old and four-month-old grandson, but there is one person I miss most at the moment, my mother, and you will never see her. After I won the prize, many people shared my glory, but my mother couldn't. I miss my mother and can't share my success and happiness at the moment. My mother has given me a lot of help and education on her growth path. Even if she has never read a book, her illiteracy will not be affected. In fact, every parent has a child he loves, unless the child does not find the advantages of his parents.

My mother was born in 1922 and died in 1994. Her ashes are buried in the Taoyuan in the east of the village. Last year, a railway crossed there, so we had to move her grave farther from the village. After digging the grave, we saw that the coffin had rotted and the mother's bone had been mixed with the soil. We had to symbolically dig out some dirt and move it to a new grave. That is, from that moment on, I felt that my mother was part of the earth, and what I said when I stood on the earth was what I said to my mother.

I am my mother's youngest child.

The earliest thing I remember is carrying the only hot water kettle at home to the public canteen to turn on the water. I accidentally broke the thermos bottle because of hunger. I was so scared that I got into the haystack and dared not come out for a day. At night, I heard my mother calling my birth name. I came out of the haystack and thought I would be beaten and scolded, but my mother didn't beat me or scold me. She just stroked my head and let out a long sigh. The earliest thing in memory: the mother understands the child's mood at the moment, without blame or criticism, only love and tolerance. )

The most painful thing in my memory is to follow my mother to pick wheat ears in collective geography. The guards in the wheat field came and the gleaners fled. My mother was caught because her feet were small and she couldn't run fast. The tall guard slapped her in the face, and she shook and fell to the ground. The caretaker confiscated the ears of wheat we picked up and whistled away. My mother was sitting on the ground with bleeding corners of her mouth. I will never forget the expression of despair on her face. Many years later, when the man guarding the wheat field turned into a white-haired old man and met me at the market, I rushed to get back at him. My mother grabbed me and said to me calmly, "Son, the man who hit me was not alone with this old man." The most painful thing in memory: I saw my mother's despair when she was beaten. As a child, I can't protect her. Many years later, when I met the old man who beat my mother to get revenge, my mother taught me to forgive others, even those who had hurt myself. )

What I remember most is that at noon on a Mid-Autumn Festival, our family rarely had a jiaozi, and everyone only had one bowl. While we were eating jiaozi, an old beggar came to our door. I picked up half a bowl of dried sweet potatoes and sent him away, but he said angrily, "I am an old man." You eat jiaozi, but you let me eat dried sweet potatoes. How long are your hearts? " I said angrily, "We can't eat jiaozi several times a year. We can't even give everyone a half-full bowl! Just give you dried sweet potatoes. If you want it, you have to, or you have to leave! " Mother scolded me, then took her half bowl of jiaozi and poured it into the old man's bowl. The most profound thing in my memory: My mother taught me to be caring when I meet people who are more difficult or need help than myself. People will not put down their dignity and beg from others unless they have to. )

One thing I regret most is that I sold cabbage with my mother and intentionally or unintentionally overcharged an old man who bought cabbage by a dime. I finished calculating the money and went to school. When I came home from school, I saw my mother, who seldom cried at ordinary times, burst into tears. My mother didn't scold me, but whispered, "Son, you embarrassed my mother." The most regretful thing in my memory: My mother taught me to be honest, and sometimes it is shameful to feel smart. )

When I was a teenager, my mother suffered from severe lung disease. Hunger, illness and fatigue left our family in trouble and could not see the light and hope. I have a strong feeling that my mother will commit suicide at any moment. Whenever I come back from work, I call my mother as soon as I enter the gate. Hearing her response, I felt a stone fall to the ground. If I don't hear from her for a while, I will be frightened and run to the kitchen and the mill to find it. Once I searched all the rooms but didn't see my mother, so I just sat in the yard and cried. Then my mother came in from the outside, carrying a bundle of firewood on her back. She is not satisfied with my crying, but I can't tell her my worry. Mother saw my thoughts and said, "Don't worry, son. Although my life is no fun, I won't go as long as the terrifying doesn't call me. " At the most difficult time at home, I was worried that my mother would lose confidence in life and commit suicide. "Although living is not fun, I won't go as long as the ghost king doesn't call me." My mother is broadening my mind and educating me that "no matter what difficulties you encounter, no matter how hard life is, you must have strong courage to live." )

I was born ugly. Many people in the village laughed at me face to face, and several students at school even beat me for it. I came home in pain, and my mother said to me, "son, you are not ugly." You have no nose and eyes, and your limbs are sound. Where is the ugliness? " And as long as you are kind and do more good deeds, no matter how ugly you are, you can become beautiful. "Later, I went to town, and some well-educated people even ridiculed my appearance behind my back. I remembered my mother's words and calmly apologized to them. (I am ugly and feel inferior, so I am very painful. " Nose and eyes are not lacking, and limbs are sound. Where is the ugliness? "And as long as you are kind and do more good deeds, even ugliness can become beauty." Mom's words made me realize that no one is perfect and there are no perfect people in the world. Even if you really have any shortcomings, don't care too much. In fact, you still have many advantages. If you figure it out this way, you will be very calm when mocking others in the future, and you will not feel unhappy or unhappy about it. )

My mother can't read, but she has great respect for people who can read. Life in our family is very difficult, and we often eat the last meal without the next. But as long as I ask her for books and stationery, she will always satisfy me. She is a hard worker and hates lazy children, but she never criticizes me as long as I miss my work because of studying. My mother can't read, but it doesn't affect my respect for her; She encouraged me to study hard, be a hardworking person and not be a lazy boy.

Once, a storyteller came to the market. I secretly went to listen to the book and forgot the homework she assigned me. My mother criticized me for this. In the evening, when she was making cotton-padded clothes for her family with a small oil lamp, I couldn't help repeating the story I heard from the scholar during the day. At first, she was a little impatient, because in her mind, storytellers are glib, do nothing and can't think of good words. But my repeated stories gradually attracted her, and she stopped giving me homework every party day and acquiesced in my listening to books. In order to repay my mother's kindness and show off my memory, I will tell her vividly the stories I heard during the day. Mother objected to being glib and doing nothing, but when she knew that what I got from telling stories was not what she thought, she acquiesced in my listening to books. )

Soon, I was not satisfied with retelling the story told by the storyteller. I kept polishing it in the process of retelling. I will vote for my mother's favorite, make up some plots, and sometimes even change the ending of the story. My audience is not only my mother, but also my sister, my aunt and my grandmother. After listening to my story, my mother is sometimes very worried, as if telling me or talking to herself: "Son, what kind of person will you be when you grow up?" Do you have to make a living by being garrulous?

I understand my mother's worry, because in the village, a talkative child is bored and sometimes brings trouble to himself and his family. The child I wrote in the novel "Cow" who was hated by the village because of his words has the shadow of my childhood. My mother often reminds me to talk less. She wants me to be a quiet, steady and generous child. But in my body, I show a strong ability to speak and a great desire to speak, which is undoubtedly very dangerous, but my ability to tell stories has brought her pleasure, which has caused him to fall into deep contradictions. My mother was happy and worried when she saw that I had a strong ability to speak and a strong desire to speak. She was happy that I could tell a story, but she was worried that saying the wrong thing at that time in China's special historical period would bring trouble to herself and her family, which was extremely dangerous. )

As the saying goes, "A leopard cannot change his spots." Although I was taught by my parents since I was a child, I haven't changed my nature of liking to talk, which makes my name "Mo Yan" look like a satire on myself.

I dropped out of primary school before I graduated. Because I am too young and weak to do heavy work, I have to go to the grassland to graze cattle and sheep. When I passed the school gate with my cattle and sheep and saw my former classmates fighting on campus, my heart was full of sadness and I deeply realized the pain of a person, even a child, after leaving the group. I didn't graduate from primary school. I passed by the school and saw my former classmates. I deeply understand the inner pain of a child who is separated from the group. My experience proves that no matter how bad the foundation is, how bad the environment is; As long as you are willing to work hard, endure hardships and pay more than ordinary people, you will certainly gain something. )

On the desert beach, I let the cattle and sheep go and let them eat grass by themselves. The blue sky is like the sea and the grass is endless. There is no figure around, no sound, only birds singing in the sky. I feel lonely, lonely and empty inside. Sometimes, I lie on the grass and look at the lazy white clouds floating in the sky, and many inexplicable fantasies emerge in my mind. There are many stories where foxes become beautiful women. I fantasized that the fox could become a beautiful woman to accompany me to herd cattle, but she never appeared. But once, a lux fox jumped out of the grass in front of me, and I was scared and squatted on the ground. The fox ran away, and I was still shivering there. Sometimes I will squat down beside the cow and look at those blue eyes and my reflection in the cow's eyes. Sometimes I try to talk to birds in the sky by imitating their songs, and sometimes I pour out my heart to a tree. But the birds ignored me and the trees ignored me. Many years later, when I became a novelist, many fantasies of that year were written into novels by me. Many people praise me for my rich imagination, and some literary lovers hope that I can tell them the secret of cultivating imagination. I can only smile bitterly about this. When you are lonely, lonely and empty, learn to find pleasure in suffering; It is impossible for a person to grow up smoothly. There are good times and bad times. They don't like good times and don't worry about bad times. No matter what difficulties you encounter, as long as you have perseverance and strength to overcome them, you will get many unexpected gains, which will be very helpful for your future growth. Therefore, the bumpy experience is also a valuable asset in life. At that time, many people may not know, "I can only respond with a wry smile")

As the sage Lao Zi of China said, "There are good things and bad things, and good things depend on good things." I dropped out of school in my childhood, suffered from hunger, loneliness and no books to read, but like our predecessor Shen Congwen, I started reading this big book of social life early. Going to the market mentioned above and hearing several people telling stories is just one page in this big book. Facing life, you should have a positive and optimistic attitude. "There are blessings and disasters, and the blessings depend on it." Whether we look at the problem positively or negatively sometimes lies not in the problem itself, but in the mentality of the people who look at the problem, because the mentality directly determines people's decisions and methods to deal with the problem, thus affecting the outcome of the development of the problem. Society is also a book of life and a university. As long as you feel it with your heart, I believe you will gain a lot. )

After dropping out of school, I hung out with adults and started a long career of "reading with my ears". More than 200 years ago, there was a storyteller in my hometown-Pu Songling. Many people in our village, including me, are his descendants. In the fields of collective labor, in the cowshed and stable of the production team, on the hot kang of grandparents, and even in the rickety ox cart club, I have heard many ghost stories, historical legends and anecdotes. These stories are closely related to the local natural environment and family history, which gives me a strong sense of reality.

I never dreamed that these things would become my writing materials one day. I was just a child obsessed with stories, fascinated by people's stories. At that time, I was an absolute theist. I believe that everything is spiritual. When I see a big tree, I will feel awe. When I see a bird, I think it will become an adult bird at any time. When you meet a stranger, you will also suspect that it is an animal. Whenever I come home from the workshop of the production team at night, endless fear surrounds me. For courage, I sang loudly while running. At that time, I was in a voice change period, my voice was hoarse and my tone was ugly. My singing is a kind of torture to my villagers. Many students are afraid of writing, but it is not difficult to write a good composition. Good works should not be influenced by politics, cater to the preferences of leaders and teachers, write people and stories around the writer, and write what is in your heart. As long as it is completely true, from the heart, discard the false and keep the true, and don't kill your imagination easily, then it will definitely arouse your desire to write, and writing a good composition will no longer be a very painful thing. )

I have lived in my hometown for twenty-one years, during which I went to Qingdao, the farthest from home, by train, and almost got lost in the huge timber in the timber factory, so that when my mother asked me what scenery I saw when I went to Qingdao, I told her in dismay: I saw nothing but piles of timber. But it was this trip to Qingdao that gave me a strong desire to leave my hometown and see the outside world. Have the opportunity to go out and see the colorful world outside, don't be a frog in the well. )

1February, 976, I enlisted in the army, and sold wedding jewelry behind my mother's back to help me buy four compendiums of China's general history. I walked out of Gaomi Northeast Township, a place I love and hate, and started an important period of my life. I must admit that without the great development and progress of China society in the past 30 years and the reform and opening up, there would be no writer like me. In our body, there are many things that we can't change, including pain and happiness, but we also have to love it deeply. We must love it because it is a part of our growth process, so it "makes me love and hate". )

In the boring military camp life, I ushered in the ideological emancipation and literary upsurge in the 1980s. I started telling stories with a pen from a child who listened to stories with his ears and told stories with his mouth. At first, the road was not smooth. I didn't realize that my rural life experience of more than 20 years was a rich literary treasure house. At that time, I thought that literature was about writing good deeds and heroic models. Therefore, although several works have been published, their literary value is very low.

1in the autumn of 984, I was admitted to the literature department of PLA Art College. Under the guidance of my famous writer Xu Huaizhong, I wrote a number of short stories such as Autumn Water, Dry River, Transparent Carrots and Red Sorghum. The word "Gaomi Northeast Township" appeared for the first time in the novel Autumn Water. Since then, just like a wandering farmer has a piece of land, a literary tramp like me finally has a place to settle down. I must admit that william faulkner of the United States and Garcí a Má rquez of Colombia gave me important inspiration in the process of writing my literary territory "Northeast Township of Gaomi". I didn't take their reading seriously, but their pioneering spirit inspired me and made me understand that a writer must have his own place. One should be modest and give in in daily life, but in literary creation, one must be arbitrary and arbitrary. I followed these two masters for two years, and I realized that I had to escape from them as soon as possible. I wrote in an article: They are two burning stoves, and I am an ice cube. If I get too close to them, I will be evaporated by them. According to my experience, the reason why a writer is influenced by a writer lies in the similarity between the influencer and the affected. The so-called "however, I feel the harmonious heartbeat of the sacred unicorn." So, although I didn't read their books well, I only read a few pages and understood what they did and how, and then I understood what I should do and how to do it. Be grateful to those who have helped you or have a positive influence on you; People should have their own unique personality. If they imitate others blindly, they will be no different from others, and learn all the advantages of different people, even if they don't like this person. So as to find a way that suits you, do what you should do with your heart and use your own methods. )

What I should do is actually very simple, that is, tell my story in my own way. My way is the way I am familiar with the market storyteller, the way my grandparents tell stories with the old people in the village. Frankly speaking, I didn't think about who my audience would be when I spoke. Maybe my audience is people like my mother, maybe my audience is myself. My own story is my personal experience from the beginning, such as the child who was beaten up in a dry river, such as the child who didn't say a word from beginning to end in a transparent carrot. I was really beaten by my father for doing something wrong, and I did play the bellows for the blacksmith on the bridge site. Of course, personal experiences, no matter how strange, can't be written into the novel intact. A novel must be fictional and imaginative. Many friends say that Transparent Carrot is my best novel. I don't refute or agree with it, but I think Transparent Carrot is the most symbolic one of my works. The child who is dark and has superhuman endurance and sensibility is the soul of all my novels. Although I wrote many characters in my later novels, no one is closer to my soul than him. In other words, there is always a leader among the characters created by a writer. The silent child is a leader. Without saying a word, he effectively led all kinds of characters and performed heartily on the stage in Gaomi Northeast Township. Discover many ordinary and ordinary stories about life, from which people can learn many useful things for themselves. People should learn to accept different voices from society, and they can't refute or agree with ideas different from themselves. This is the real society. Allowing them to exist helps to broaden your horizons, not just in a small space. )

Your own story is always limited. When you finish your own story, you must tell others' stories. So, the stories of relatives, villagers and ancestors I heard from the old people poured out of my memory like soldiers who heard the assembly number. They looked at me expectantly, waiting for me to write about them. My grandfather, grandmother, father, mother, brother, sister, aunt, uncle, wife and daughter have all appeared in my works, and many villagers in Gaomi Northeast Township have also appeared in my novels. Of course, I treat them in a literary way, so that they can surpass themselves and become characters in literature.

My aunt appeared in my latest novel Frog. Because I won the Nobel Prize, many reporters visited her home. At first, she answered questions patiently, but soon she got bored and ran to the son's house in the county to hide. Menstruation was really my model when I wrote Frog, but menstruation in the novel is very different from menstruation in real life. The aunt in the novel is overbearing, sometimes just like a female bandit. In reality, the aunt is kind and cheerful, and is a standard wife and mother. In reality, my aunt lived a happy life in her later years, but in the novel, her aunt was insomnia because of great inner pain, wearing a black robe and wandering in the dark like a ghost. I thank menstruation for her tolerance. She is not angry because I wrote about her like that in my novel. I also admire my aunt's wisdom. She correctly understands the complex relationship between the characters in the novel and the characters in reality.

I was very sad after my mother died, so I decided to write a book for her. This is the book "Big Breasts and Fat Buttocks". It took me only 83 days to write the first draft of this 500,000-word novel, because I had a well-thought-out plan and was full of emotion.

In the book "Big Breasts and Fat Buttocks", I used materials related to my mother's personal experience unscrupulously, but the emotional experience of my mother in the book is fictional or based on the experiences of many mothers in Gaomi Northeast Township. In the preface of this book, I wrote the words "to my mother's soul in heaven", but this book is actually dedicated to all mothers in the world. This is my arrogant ambition, just as I hope to write the small "Gaomi Northeast Township" as a microcosm of China and even the world. In others' eyes, "arrogant ambition" is actually a manifestation of my extreme self-confidence, "dedicated to the mother of the world" and "the epitome of China and the world"; Imagine that without the "whimsy" of scientists, there would be no "creation" today. Without self-confidence, people can't do many things well, let alone succeed. )

The writer's creative process has its own characteristics, and the conception and inspiration trigger of each of my books are also different. Some novels come from dreams, such as Transparent Carrots, while others come from real-life events, such as Song of Garlic Bolts in Heaven. However, whether it comes from dreams or reality, it must be combined with personal experience in the end to become a literary work with distinctive personality, colorful language and unique structure, which has created countless typical figures with vivid details. In particular, I let a real storyteller appear in "Song of Young Garlic in Heaven" and played a very important role in the book. I'm very sorry to use this storyteller's real name. Of course, all his actions in the book are fictitious. In my writing, there have been many such phenomena. At the beginning of writing, I used their real names, hoping to get a sense of closeness. But after the work is finished, I think it is impossible to change their names. Therefore,

It also happened that the person with the same name in my novel found my father to vent his dissatisfaction. My father apologized to them for me, but at the same time advised them not to take it seriously. My father said, "In Red Sorghum, the first sentence he said was' My father is a bandit'." I don't care what you care about. "