“Spiritual victory method” of Ah Q ｜Call to Arms
This classic work “The True Story of Ah Q”, which was completed before and after the 1911Revolution in the last century, depicts the story of an ordinary person named ah Q. Behind a tinyfigure lies Lu Xun’s profound satire on the age of “people’s mental numbness”. A person who isdeeply oppressed and scolds and scolds but doesn’t fight back has his stubbornness in his heart.The spirit victory method is a good embodiment. This is not only a character’s sorrow but also letsreaders see the “dirty” soul of people in the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China.
“Spiritual victory method” is ah Q’s humble vanity. “Ah Q didn’t argue that his real name was Zhao.“He just touched his left cheek with his hand.” “Zhao” ranks first among the Hundred Surnames,which is a symbol of noble power. Lu Xun also made a metaphor here, “Zhao” refers to ZhaoKuangyin, the emperor of the Song Dynasty, which embodies Ah Q’s desire to find contact withauthority. “People who know ah Q say it’s too absurd to fight by themselves”, which is the greatcontrast between people’s views and Ah Q’s but also highlights a character image of “self-esteemand arrogance, self-contempt” and an ignorant person who is happy for a while.
“Spiritual victory method” is weak obedience and compromise. As long as Ah Q helps Weizhuangpeople, they only make fun of him, and Ah Q himself doesn’t say it, but instead uses “we used tobe much richer than you! What are you!” as a response. This kind of no bottom line obedience andcompromise eventually lead to an “abnormal servility” mentality. “However, although Ah Q oftenwon the battle, he was famous only after being hit by Lord Zhao.” the word “Won” is usedwonderfully here. It means a sense of “thank you”. Even after being hit by a senior official, he willbe proud. This “extraordinary” thinking exposed the severity of the persecution of feudal thoughtat that time, which is a great irony!
“Spiritual victory method” lies in bullying others to achieve psychological balance. “I don’t knowwhy I am so unlucky today, because I saw you!” when I saw the little nun in the nunnery, I scoldedfor no reason. “Cough, bah!” “Baldy! Go back quickly. The monk is waiting for you…” “Twist Yi’scheek, and then twist it hard to let her go.”. Ah Q turns the anger of all people on him to the nun,and he is also a man, bullying women by his gender advantage, which makes the readers havesome anger against this sad heart. The people around were still smiling smugly. This is such aridiculous and heinous scene, which is a good expression of the inferiority of that era.
In a nutshell, the “Spiritual victory method” is a particular product of the new cultural movementperiod, and also the situation of the Chinese people in a chaotic state.
Skyler 