Chapter 44 The second section reflects on history from the standpoint of "fellow travelers": "The Traitor"

The novella "Internal Traitor"2 is quite a typical work in "reflective literature". The author Fang Zhi was a member of the Jiangsu "seeker" group3 in the 1950s, and was later labeled a "rightist". A representative work of .The story narrated in the novel took place in the rural areas of northern Jiangsu, from the period of the Anti-Japanese War in the early 1940s to the end of the 1970s, spanning nearly forty years. Tian Yutang, a businessman in Yumian, is the protagonist. Through a series of legendary plots and vivid scenes, in comparison with various communists, he reveals the complex connotations under the name "internal traitor", which reflects the author's love for the traitor. Forty years of Chinese history's profound and distinctive reflections.This way of presenting social tragedies in the depth of history and exploring the historical causes of the tragedies was representative at the time. Based on the painful and persistent thinking of history.

The protagonist Tian Yutang portrayed in the work is a very unique one in the gallery of literary figures after the "Cultural Revolution".The so-called "not clean, easy to brag about" is just a vaguely defined evaluation with a specific political and ideological perspective.During the war years, this ordinary small businessman was terrified by the ravages of the Japanese invading army, and also surprised by the growing strength of the Eighth Route Army.When he saw that Yan Chi, a wealthy landlord, not only joined the Communist Party, but also sold and donated all his property, he wondered: Why is the Communist Party so attractive?Since then, he no longer avoided the Communist Party like he avoided bandits, but was also happy to associate with them. As a businessman who was friendly with the Communist Party, he not only provided a lot of medicines for the New Fourth Army, but also cared about their life and death all the time. When the Japanese army encircled and suppressed the New Fourth Army in 1942, Commander Huang asked him to try to cover Yang Shu, a female Communist Party member who was about to give birth. She was the wife of Deputy Commander Yan Chi.With years of business acumen and social connections, Tian Yutang overcame many difficulties and finally made the mother and son safe and sound.This is the story narrated in the first part of the novel.The second edition is already in the era of the "Cultural Revolution". Tian Yutang, a respected democrat who became the director of the county mosquito-repellent incense factory, suddenly turned into a ghost and a snake god amidst the sound of "smashing" Yin-Yang head, jet type, etc., are mediocre, there is nothing to say", but when someone framed Commander Huang and Yan Chi and his wife as "internal traitors" out of ulterior motives and asked him to give false testimony, he acted on his own He told the truth to his conscience, so he was beaten up, dismissed as a civilian, and sent back to his hometown to feed the pigs.Tian Yutang said to the "rebels" who tortured him: "In the future, when there is a war, who will cover your comrades at work?". In the history of political struggles in China, its meaning often changes dramatically with the changes of party positions and times. The story and background of the old cadres who were falsely accused of being "traitors" during the "Cultural Revolution" and finally rehabilitated in "Internal Traitors" did not go beyond the scope of the forty years of party history struggle, and were in line with the popular "scar literature" and " There is not much difference in the themes of the "Reflection Literature" works, but the narrative perspective chosen by the author is quite unique.The novel takes Tian Yutang, who is full of folk color, as the protagonist, and looks at the political situation in the past forty years from his perspective, which gives another explanation for the twists and turns of this period of history.As far as Tian Yutang is concerned, as an ordinary businessman, his history has nothing to show off.He did things for the Communist Party out of the conscience of a Chinese and his simple affection for the organization. He never gave himself up to the organization out of a belief. For a true Communist, he has always been He is a "fellow traveler". From being afraid and staying away from the Communist Party, to sympathizing with, admiring, and finally participating in the cause of the Communists, he became the director of a small business, all out of the conscience of ordinary people.But the tragicomedy is that in his peculiar and even weak way, he not only protected the integrity of his own personality, resisted the ultra-left political line and the actions of political conspirators, but also became a hero in a certain sense. He became the savior of heroes like Commander Huang and Yan Chi; it also formed a sharp contrast with "Communists" like Tian Youxin who carefully concealed their self-interest under a "clean" white coat.

The novel does not show and explore the tragedy of the "Cultural Revolution" and its historical causes from the front, but reflects the tragedy of the times with the sorrow and pain of a timid, cautious, and flattering ordinary person. Tian Yutang's tragedy will not arouse Great sorrow and great sorrow, but a faint bitterness, in this sweet and sour bitterness, we feel the beauty and humbleness of ordinary people, which arouses our deep pain.As a small folk figure, he cannot enter the noble and magnificent official history because he has no epic historical feats, and it is difficult for him to be admirable hero because he did not face the bleak and blood-stained reality. However, he narrates the tragedy of political history from a folk perspective. Sexual change itself is a manifestation of historical reflection.

The artistic specialness of this novel is also reflected in the legendary and unique irony of the story. The author of "The Traitor" adopts the "talking" method of Chinese classical story-telling novels. At the beginning, he highlights the duration of the story and the characters involved, and then speaks slowly, with a clear context and a pleasant eloquence.The author does not describe the environment, events, and characters in isolation, nor does he describe the portraits, psychology, actions, and dialogues of the characters statically. Instead, he takes Tian Yutang's experience as the main line and selects the escort Yang Shu in 1942 in the 40-year history. Escaping from danger by seeking medical treatment and falling into an unjust prison during the Cultural Revolution, these two legendary events entangled many characters together, portraying the characters and expressing the times in the ups and downs, unexpected and reasonable story development.At the same time, the legend of the story is related to the unique narrative language adopted by the work, and the narrative language of the novel complements the narrative structure and narrative style.

The bitter satire of "The Traitor" is not only reflected in making the satirized object self-deprecating and self-contradictory, such as comparing Tian Youxin's holy words with despicable actions, but more importantly, it is reflected in the grasp and arrangement of characters and plots.Tian Yutang, a Yumian businessman who is proficient in business, has a wide range of friends, and likes to show off, was originally a character with a folk comedy color. The irony is that Tian Yutang didn't understand the Communist Party at first, but he was impressed by the two communists, Huang and Yan, and he took risks and worked hard for it. In the end, he was regarded as an "internal traitor"; When he was showing off, he was not treated as a bad person. During the Cultural Revolution, he acted on his conscience, didn't brag or show off, and was honest and honest, but instead he was beaten repeatedly.In the eyes of Tian Yutang, a folk character, the connotation of the history of the times, combined with the sigh of "good people fall into trouble, villains succeed" and the vicissitudes of the world, has achieved a unique satirical effect.