Sound and Silence: My Experience with China and Literature

Yan Lianke is a renowned author who explores the reality of everyday life in contemporary China, comparing his literary project to a blind man carrying a flashlight. He reflects on literary censorship in China and the Chinese state's project of national amnesia. Sound and Silence includes an introduction by translator Carlos Rojas and an afterword by Yan.

Format: Hardback
Length: 192 pages
Publication date: 23 April 2024
Publisher: Duke University Press

Yan Lianke is a renowned author who has written novels, short stories, and essays that delve into the realities of contemporary Chinese life. In his book Sound and Silence, Yan draws a comparison between his literary work and a blind man carrying a flashlight, highlighting his role in helping others perceive the darkness that surrounds them. Yan is often referred to as China's most censored author, and he candidly reflects on the issue of literary censorship in contemporary China. He discusses the Chinese state's project of national amnesia, which seeks to suppress memories of past crises and social traumas. Despite the challenges of censorship in China, Yan argues that there is no necessary correlation between censorship and literary quality. In Sound and Silence, Yan also explores the influence of American literature on Chinese literature in the 1980s and 1990s. The book includes an introduction by translator Carlos Rojas and an afterword by Yan himself.

Weight: 408g
Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781478026167