Reality and Fantasy （2）: Works by winners of the International Bing Xin Literature Prize

Reality and Fantasy （2）: Works by winners of the International Bing Xin Literature Prize

Synopsis of “Reality and Fantasy” Zhang Junbiao's “Reality and Fantasy”, one of his most important novels, is unprecedented in the history of 20th-century Chinese fiction. Its main body is realistic, almost entirely devoid of contrived plot, ramblingly depicting the 60-year life journey of the protagonist, Dongfang Hui. The most significant focus is on his spiritual romances with five women he encounters, characterized by genuine affection but devoid of physical intimacy. A smaller portion of the text roughly describes Dongfang Hui's experiences of the treacherous nature of officialdom, his wanderings and feelings in his hometown, temples, and the plateau, and so on. The novel not only describes Dongfang Hui's experiences in heaven after his injury and death but also meticulously details his encounters in the eighteen levels of hell. Furthermore, the realistic sections also depict Dongfang Hui's endless dreams and hallucinations. Thus, the world depicted in this novel is composed of three main parts: heaven, earth, and hell. This novel is structurally very similar to Dante's *Divine Comedy*. The only difference is that Zhang Junbiao depicts the Chinese people's paradise, purgatory, and hell. It is truly a Chinese *Divine Comedy*. “Reality and Fantasy” contains several passages describing Dongfang Hui's soul leaving his body and ascending to the heavens, wandering the land of China under the guidance of immortals. Two passages are particularly profound. One is his encounter with the spirit of General Liu Zhidan, who recounts the circumstances of his being shot, hinting at the brutal internal factional infighting of that time. The other is his meeting with the spirit of General Dong Zhentang in the Hexi Corridor, who tells him about the injustice suffered by Ji Zhentong and other commanders of the Fifth Red Army Corps, the unique circumstances of this unit that rose from rebellion during the Long March, and their ultimate demise in Gaotai County due to erroneous command. These are two blood-soaked pages of history in modern history whose truth remains unrevealed to this day. The souls of these two generals, filled with resentment, have lingered for over forty years, hoping that Dongfang Hui will one day reveal the truth to the world. These two passages are profound and weighty, each sentence heavy with the author's pent-up frustration. The most challenging part of the novel is undoubtedly the depiction of hell. Folk temple paintings also describe the eighteen levels of hell, but only briefly, and the author had little indirect experience to draw upon, making it a significant writing adventure. It was a test of the author's imagination. “ality and Fantasy”through the lens of Eastern wisdom, describes the conditions of the eighteen levels of hell layer by layer. Various evildoers suffer excruciating torture and torment in the earthen, water, and fire hells, unable to die, unable to be reborn. While not yet a meticulously detailed depiction, the eerie and terrifying atmosphere of hell is already palpable. Overall, this novel is not a traditional realist novel, but rather an impressionistic one emphasizing subjective expression. It skillfully blends realism and romanticism, magical realism and magical romanticism, and incorporates modern avant-garde and stream-of-consciousness writing techniques, exploring and innovating a new mode of novel writing for the new era. It is a novel that dares to speak the truth.