Abstract
Can Xue (born 1953) is one of the first and also one of the most important authors of Chinese avant-garde fiction in 1980s. Her works are fascinating and disturbing at the same time, bringing along a lot of meaning concerning questions.
The stories are written in an obscure style that allows the reader to interpret Can Xue's works by many possible ways (or on the other hand to simply pronounce her work indecipherable), but it doesn't mean that there are no clues to at least get closer to the underlying meaning of them. These clues lie in a thorough analysis of her works.
An analysis which should be at least partly done within the context of contemporary literary-political circumstances in general and also - because of its idiosyncrasy - within the context of authors own view on literature. Contemporary Chinese fiction in the 80s of the 20th century was marking a change in Chinese literary history (in its importance rather than ideological content) comparable the May 4th movement.
In the avant-garde fiction that emerged in the second half of the decade the diversion from Maoist discourse of utilitarian and above all political purpose of literature, as it was defined in Mao Zedong's Talks At The Yenan Forum On Literature And Art, was most visible. The disrespect of avant-garde authors for the "literary rules" of Maoist discourse itself represents an inherently political act.
This must be a basis for any interpretation but still it doesn't mean all the works of avant-garde fiction have their political agenda expressed in an explicit or allegorical way. On the basis of close reading of Can Xue's works as well as in the context of what other critics have discussed, we can determine two main approaches to the interpretation of Can Xue's work - the (socio-) political and the (sexually) psychological.
The author herself has denied the political features of her works, but that of course doesn't make the political interpretation of some of her early short-stories less likely or just impossible. Some of her works more than others incline to political interpretation.
The political aspects of her works, however, do not represent or criticize concrete political issues from the past or present as such. More likely they represent the impact of the negative socio-political phenomena on human psyche.
The fatalistic, hopeless impression of most of Can Xue's early works is common to both the more likely to be politically as well as the psychologically read stories. The hopelessness might as well concern the impossibility of change of the political system, i.e. the impossibility for the individual to find an adequate place in society, as the intricacy of interpersonal relationships.
What counts is the hopelessness itself. Can Xue attempts to have a deep insight into human mind which is partly formed by the external circumstances.
The external circumstances penetrate human mind the same way as they penetrate Can Xue's works, where they are once again transformed into the matters of human psyche. Excessive political interpretation which causes author's work to become an extrospective one is therefore misleading.
The introspective nature of Can Xue's works is the key reason why to put the psychological interpretation of her works above the political interpretation.