介绍:
Subei juvenile Don Quixote is the first nonfiction work from Bi Feiyu, winner of the regional Man Asian Literary Prize and the national Maodun Literature Prize. The autobiography records his childhood in north Jiangsu in the 1960s.
Bi Feiyu says the most important influence throughout his childhood is his father and the first thing he taught him is to know how to cherish the beautiful things around.
(sb1, Bi Feiyu, Male Mandarin)
"My father is kind of the man that you can call him casual and relaxed. A man doing superb farm work is deemed as a collective person in the countryside, but not him. You can see him stand there watching sunset and praise the beautiful trees and clouds."
Apart from teaching him to find nice things in life even during a difficult times, Bi Feiyu says his parents also helped him realize what the most valuable quality is for a man.
(sb2, Bi Feiyu, Male Mandarin)
"My parents particularly taught me the importance of maintaining dignity. They put a lot of attention on a person's decency, like your posture and other common courtesies. Bear in mind that was a time of widespread poverty."
Here is a paragraph from the autobiography.
(Male script voice over)
"When I was young, I liked listening to my father chatting. He never talked too much – always to the point. I always believe what a father says could decide what kind of person his child will be, especially for a boy. What the father says over and over again, even without certain intentions, could shape a person."
Bi Feiyu depicts almost every aspect of his childhood in the countryside of north Jiangsu in detail. He also fills his stories with strong emotions.
One of the aspects Bi particularly touches upon is his hometown's craftsmen.
(sb3, Bi Feiyu, Male Mandarin)
"How those craftsmen handle their work is quite significant. They are doing it slowly and peacefully. What they want is just finishing the work. They are not rushing to make money so they never look anxious. It is not a surprise that what they make is different from today. In a certain way, that presents the true meaning of working – working could be enjoyable too."
The ideology is also being applied to the writing of himself.
The Nanjing-based author and winner of the 2010 Man Asian Literary Prize has turned one story after another into award-winning masterpieces.
Several of his novels have been translated into other languages.
The 1995 movie Shanghai Triad, for which Bi wrote the screenplay, and the 2014 film adaptation of his novel Blind Massage have both won awards at international film festivals.
Bi Feiyu is attributing the success to his childhood.
(sb4, Bi Feiyu, Male Mandarin)
"I am very lucky because I was born in a small village, and grew up in a small town. Then I went to school in Yangzhou, which is a secondary city. Then I married and began writing after I moved to a big city. I have a richer life experience compared with most people. I have experienced the life in small villages, little towns, secondary and big cities, step by step. "
Despite the rich and priveledged life Bi Feiyu has lived, his works always focus and reflect on his memories in the countryside.
Such influences are not only embodied in the subject matter, but also profoundly in his portraying of characters, depicting of images, management of plots as well as in his unique expression and distinctive aesthetic preferences.
Literature critic with Beijing Normal University Prof. Zhang Qinghua gives a thumbs-up and praised the writer's skill of depicting people.
(sb5, Zhang Qinghua, Male Mandarin)
"I think he is very good at depicting people's inner world and following the logic of people's personality. Eventually speaking, a writer's skills and inner power will be reflected on the depicting of people. Once the writer establishes the logic of characters' personality, all the stories will come out naturally."
Critic Li Jingze is echoing this view, saying Bi's works are filled with the bright side of human nature.
(sb6, Li Jingze, Male Mandarin)
"He lets us see clearly what people should give and what people can get from this world. The golden part is the visibility of his characters' dignity no matter they live in a successful or disappointing life. He wants to show us the dignity of the human nature is the world's last resort."
Just like Bi Feiyu says, no matter what stories he tells, he tells based on his real life with respect to the human nature.
