On the writing of violence in Su Tong's novels = 蘇童小說的暴力書寫

Abstract

The writing of violence is a spectacular phenomenon in contemporary Chinese literature in the 1980s: many contemporary writers are enthusiastic in the writing of violence and Su Tong is one among them. This thesis studies eight novels out of his representative works: Raise the Red Lantern ( 〈妻妾成群 〉), Another Life for Women (〈另一 種婦女生活〉), The Age of Tattoo (〈刺青時代〉), The Brothers Shu 〈舒家兄弟〉, The Q of Hearts (〈紅桃Q〉), Rice(《米》), Yellowbird Story (《黃雀記》), and Still as Water (〈平靜如水〉). In these eight pieces of work, Su Tong explores the dynamics between violence and ideology through his writing of violence. This thesis is comprised of three parts: The first part, "Feudal culture and the writing of violence", concerns the feudal values and customs in China, which have, over a long course of history, granted the male high status and power while subjecting the female to a form of double violence where both their mind and body suffer from the stringent restrictions imposed on them. The second part of this thesis, "Wenge shaonian (adolescents growing up in the Chinese Cultural Revolution) and the writing of violence", sheds light on how an adolescent, in the violent turmoil of Cultural Revolution, changes from a victim into an "oppressor"; and the physical and mental harm on an adolescent done by violence. "Social transformation and the writing of violence", the third part of this thesis, sets out to (i) examine how social transformation flares up violence and (ii) to explicate the perils and predicaments encountered by people undergoing turbulent transformations in society. These three themes explored in this thesis contribute to unravelling the dynamics between violence and ideology, shedding light on how a "violent" ideology leaves indelible imprints on people.