Chapter 9 He Grows in the Barren Soil - Preface to "Sons and Daughters of Muslims"

Although Zha Shun has put on a suit now, I still get the impression that he just came from the field. Before he was admitted to the Lu Xun Academy of Literature and went to study in Beijing, he came to my house to say goodbye and said something that touched me very much: He had already walked out of the village with his luggage on his back. I hurried over and told him that the weather is hot now, wearing rubber shoes wears my feet, and I want him to change into cloth shoes.This is a small detail, which may be too ordinary for others to hear, but it brought me into an ancient and desolate artistic conception: Pengmen Chaifei, wives and children looking forward, and students traveling far away hidden in the boundless Among the cooking smoke; here are the hearts of family members, and the vision of a strong man for the future, and everything gives people a sense of uncertainty, as if there is a suspense lurking.At that time, I only said some words of encouragement in general, telling him not to rush to achieve success, learn more knowledge, and so on.Those who speak are reluctant, but those who listen are indifferent.In the next two or three years, he studied in Beijing most of the time, and also returned to his hometown for internships to experience life and engage in creation. In addition to seeing his works in "Yanhe", "Shuofang", "Tianjin Literature", "National Literature" and other publications Apart from a few short stories with some pursuit and exploration, he doesn't seem to have made any major achievements.Sometimes I also wonder, his novella "Moon Shines on Lihua Bay" in 1982 aroused repercussions inside and outside the district. What trouble?But today, he suddenly came up with a long novel.

I don't read many contemporary literary works, and only as far as I can see, Zha Shun's novel can be said to be the first full-length novel written by a Hui author in contemporary Chinese literature that positively reflects the lives of the Hui people.I can't help but be happy for him, his wife, and his old father, and I also thank the editors of the People's Literature Publishing House.According to the famous American editor Sachs, the first principle of publishing is to communicate ideas.Then, the publication of Zha Shun’s novel made a new small but meaningful link in the ideological communication between an ancient and great nation—the Hui nationality and other nationalities of the Chinese nation, especially the Han nationality. A constant trickle of channels.

I have always been reluctant to write prefaces or prefaces.I am very self-aware: Although I am a bit famous, it has mixed reputation and bad reputation. If it is not done well, it will not only be a dog's end, but it will ruin the text.But I still want to say something about Cha Shun's first novel. In recent years, there are many people who advocate and study "Western Literature".My feeling is that advocates and researchers focus more on the object of creation, just like our introduction to magic realism, the focus is also to say that it faithfully represents the magical reality of Latin America.As for the author himself, we forget that it is from this reality that he comes to us.The regionality described and expressed in the works is the basis of the author's way of thinking, aesthetic experience and aesthetic psychology.If we can confirm that there is a kind of "Western Literature", then I think this "Western Literature" can only be written by "Westerners"; It was completed in the hands of tourists who happened to set foot here.And when we talk about "western literature", we should also keep in mind that the western part of China is a region where many ethnic minorities live together.Therefore, the literature of various ethnic minorities should serve as the backbone so that "Western Literature" can stand firmly on the Chinese literary world.

Sadly, that doesn't seem to be the case yet.The authors of various ethnic minorities, except for one or two in Tibet, have not yet developed their comprehensive richness within their limitations.correct!It is the abundance within that limitation.The limitations belong to themselves, and any genius from another nation can't express that charming limitation, but will destroy the charm of that limitation; and there is infinite richness in that limitation.That kind of richness can only be felt by themselves with their unique hearts, and revealed bit by bit. That's the only way, so I think Zha Shun's novel that belongs to him, his nation, and the big nation of China is commendable.

I am extremely familiar with the local conditions and customs described in Zha Shun's novel.As long as I close my eyes in this carpeted room with modern audio equipment, I can feel the breath of the loess and the voices and smiles of the Hui villagers with my whole body.He wrote about their love, especially the love and interpersonal relationship between the children of two rival families, which makes people think deeply and inspire people.He wrote about their encounters in the ever-changing contemporary political situation, and re-wrote their deeds of hard struggle on the western plateau, all of which are full of historical sense.But if I were to write it, I would not write it like he did.We both have our own limitations, our own ways of perceiving.In my opinion, as a Hui, he has a more unique observation and understanding of the elderly, youth, women and girls of his own nation than a Han writer.This is very important in literary creation.When reading Zha Shun's novel, you will find a distinct color and style.The language, plot, characters, and their psychology and temperament of the works all carry his and their breath, full of unique aura and interest of Muslims.When Han writers observe ethnic minorities, what they feel at first is only information about language, clothing, and folk customs. To penetrate into the psychological quality of the subject, he must spend a lot of effort to explore.And Zha Shun seems to have no effort at all, he just needs to express himself in the novel.Even the flaws are his own.

The Hui people are an ethnic group closely related to Islam.Although we are atheists, we do not accept any form of religion, but just because we are historical materialists, we cannot avoid the existence of religion, and we cannot avoid the influence of Islam as a culture in the formation of the psychological quality of the Hui people. important role.When Han writers are in the "root-seeking craze", it is impossible for Hui writers not to describe the influence of Islam in their works reflecting the life of Hui people.Islam, after more than a dozen centuries of propagation, has become one of the main factors in the cultural accumulation and psychological formation of the Hui people in modern times.Looking at Zha Shun's novel, I feel that in his description of this aspect, while he is galloping freely, he still tries his best to grasp the so-called "property".

If we are familiar with the soil where Zha Shun grew up, we can know how difficult it is for him to take this first step bravely in art and thought.The plain along the Yellow River in Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, which is called "Hetao" in geography, is a beautiful and rich land.There are four million Han people living here. A writer and artist may find many touching stories here, but as far as he grows up, this is a lonely place.The combination of thought and thought and the collision of heart and soul are lacking here; people with artistic talent and diligent pursuit often drift like lonely molecules outside the dignified matter.The spark of inspiration only depends on the friction with the stagnant life, and you must grasp it immediately. This requires not only your experience and artistic sense, but also your imagination to break through this narrow space.

Of course, I am not saying that the things expressed in this novel are only limited to Ningxia or the west. As a work of art, especially a novel, it should pursue a broader and deeper connotation.I think Zha Shun is trying to achieve this, as he himself once said: "It is difficult for a writer who does not face the world or mankind, but only stares or thinks about his own nation to write a true It’s a work of art.” When I held this novel in my hands, I felt that the weight was far heavier than it was.Nearly 300,000 words, five revisions of the draft, which lasted several years, each reform requires a great price of denying, getting rid of, and surpassing the original self.If you add his lonely sighs in the dim lights of his hometown and the pressure of competition from fellow students of Lu Xun Academy of Literature, it will be an unbearable weight.However, he endured it after all. He started from his own limitations in the field of art with such a weight on his back, and pursued the richness in the limitations step by step, because he realized his responsibility.

More than two years of life in the Faculty of Arts has come to an end, and this work is undoubtedly an answer sheet dedicated to his alma mater and society.Now, he is admitted to the writer class of Peking University to study. I believe in hard work and hard work.Cha Shun, who is good at seeking, will have greater ambitions.I wish him success! 1986.12.20.