Youth Literature
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Recently, U.S embassy in China invited a young guy to meet Obama while Obama visiting China. U.S embassy inviting him because he is a well-know guy in complaining the Chinese government. But he rejected the inviting because he thinks that no mater Chinese chairman or the U.S president, they were all performers. This guy was a main characters of Chinese youth literature – “Han Han”
Today “After 80” is a symbol of all the pop-culture in China. It means the group of people who were born after 1980; they are dominating the Chinese pop-culture in many ways.
And youth literature was the beginning of the “after 80” age.
At the beginning, they became popular because they were conspirator. They were complaining the education system.
But things changed, today they are to focus on school love story.
Today the Youth Writers were dominating Bestseller in Chinese book store, and they became delicately packed, well advertising and the writers were handsome or beautiful.
They are like a pop-star, they are like a Hollywood, and they are business.
At Chinese high school we have a schedule like this. Get up at 6:00 morning exercise at 6:30 class begin at 7:00. Until 12:30, lunch and nap, after noon class begin at 2:00. Dinner time at 6:00, Night class begins at 7:00 until 10:15, 6 and half day a week, 11 month a year.
So they don’t have any free time to watch TV, watch movie nor does something fun during the high school. It is a real hard time for every student. Because they mostly stay in their class room and they crave entertainment, but all they can do is reading. So they found the novel that can give them entertainment. Every student knows how to use a text book to cover a little novel. That is why youth literature became popular.
Today I am going to introduce some main term of youth literature in China.
The magazine “MengYa” is the first one. In Chinese “MengYa” mean “sprout”, it was the first magazine that targets the teenager in china. It set up the “NEW CONCEPT literature prize” it is the most famous prize in youth literature. Most of the youth writers were became famous by this prize. It is like the Independent Spirit Award. And the student, who won it, Will be able to enroll a great university.
Second one is “Han Han”.
People say “Han” is the beginner and main leader of the “after 80” group. When he was in the high school he won a NEW CONCEPT literature prize, but he is a bad student. He got an F in every class twice. So he has to quit the high school. It maybe usual in U.S but was not usual in china. News papers wrote a lot about him. Then he publishes a novel name “treble door”. That book is the best seller of 20 year, Sold 2 millions. And that time he was just 17 years old. The book was talk about a student get lost under the education system, it is new in china. No one did it before, A 17 years guy complains the education system. And this book this the beginning of “after 80” age.
In fact the main problem of the new generation in china, they can’t identity them self, because all the school that they take were just teaching them how to do the university enrollment exam. The teacher were telling them don’t think too much before the enrollment exam, and every things will be fine after you pass the enrollment exam. But after the enrollment exam they found that it wasn’t like the teacher said every things fine. So they get lost. They don’t know what they should do.
And “Han” was the guy who begins this issue.
Today “Han” became a professional racing driver. His writing was more like his part time job, and his writing was mostly in his blog, and he became one of the most famous blogger and commenter in china.
But he is the one and only one. No one was continuing his style. Today people saw his name was on news paper rather than the book store. Young guy didn’t read his book or blog anymore, because his issue became more and more serious, even his language are still humor, but Comparing other writer Han’s style were more like a legend. And it’s not so popular in the new generation.
But in other hand another symbol of youth writer “Jingming Guo” were symbolizing another style of youth literature. Witch is not only still but also becoming more and more popular in young generation.
Jingming Gou is the second best seller in china book market, jest behind “Han”. And his style of novel much more popular than Han style.
Han’s sentences were kind of black humor, but Gou’s sentences were beautiful, kind of aestheticism and blues.
His novels were mostly about the school love. And he set up his own company to publish his book. He got a lot of money by this. But in fact His major of his university were photograph, not writing.
He became a style that many people following.
Beautiful sentences, handsome writer, Good photograph in the first page, love story. Handsome guy didn’t need to study but get A for all of his class, and he fall in love with a commonplace girl. It just likes Twilight, thoughtless and made money.
There were 100 of this kind’s book publish a month. They dominating the book store Like Hollywood dominating the movie theatre, and they were dominating the new generation’s reading and mind. Leading them to become more and more lost in their own identity.
However New York Time said Guo is the most successful writer in China.
But in my view if Guo is the most successful writer in china, I think it should be a bad new of Chinese youth literature.
How do you think about it?
