China and the West

Xiao, Qian. Yibusheng de Pei'er Jinte [ID D26267].
Tam Kwok-kan : Xiao Qian completely revised his view of the play Peer Gynt and admired it as a remedy for the lack of individuality among the Chinese. In 1949 Xiao Qian thought that Peer Gynt was an attack on individualisms and could serve as a weapon against bourgeois ideas in the intellectual reform movement. In 1978 he read the play from a different perspective. Expressing his contempt of the Gang of Four in 1978 when he completed the Chinese translation of acts one and five of the play. He considered it a ridicule of political opportunists, the play's theme provided a contrast between the human and the devil : "a human being shouls have his own self, have beliefs and principles, and is not opportunistic, whereas a devil does not and will avoid difficulties and yield to temptation. The devil's judgement is purely based on advantages, not on the consideration of what is right and what is wrong". In 1981, Xiao was able to notice that all his previous interpretations of the play and of Ibsen, were very much affected by his personal emotions and political naiveté which, he now thought, was not a correct attitude toward a literary work. Refuting his previous position, Xiao recommended a re-reading of Ibsen in terms of a broader philosophical perspective that could shed light on ideals in life and personal integrity.