In this paper the two authors, Lu Xun and Xiao Hong, treat the subject of social stigma, isolation, and social hygiene similarly.
Written in 2006; 1,543 words; 0 sources; $ 50.95
Paper Summary:
In both stories, the protagonist is a female and both women are ostracized from their peers and their community. The paper explains how pollution is portrayed by both authors as being socially defined. Hsiang Lin's Wife of "New Year's Sacrifice" is polluted for no reason other than her socially unacceptable past, whilst Wang Ya-Ming of "Hands" is polluted not only because her hands are dark and different but also because she is very poor. The paper shows how in both stories those who do not or cannot conform suffer dearly. The paper therefore details how Hsiang Lin's Wife and Wang Ya-Ming were ostracised and as a result became ill and weak. Both "New Year's Sacrifice" and "Hands" show how norms can severely affect people who are different, or people who step outside the boundaries of the social code.
From the Paper:
"The fear of pollution is a recurrent theme in both Lu Xun's "New Year's Sacrifice" and Xiao Hong's "Hands." The two authors treat the subject of social stigma, isolation, and social hygiene similarly. In both stories, the protagonist is a female: in a sense, she is already born polluted. Although Hsiang Lin's Wife is older than Wang Ya-Ming, both women are ostracized from their peers and their community. Hsiang Lin's Wife of "New Year's Sacrifice" is shunned and scorned because of her socially unacceptable past. Twice a widow, her boy child died from a wolf attack. Hsiang Lin's Wife is therefore viewed by the people of Luchen as being dangerous as well as spiritually dirty. Lu Xun describes her symbolic pollution through the use of color contrasts, namely whiteness versus blackness. Similarly, Xiao Hong relies heavily on color symbolism to convey the central theme of social pollution in "Hands." The story's protagonist Wang Ya-Ming and her family members have black hands. Furthermore, both authors show how poverty and pollution are closely linked, as Wang Ya-Ming and Hsiang Lin's Wife are both destitute. Lu Xun and Xiao Hong show that social persecution causes loneliness and illness. At the same time, the polluted characters in the two stories retain a sense of inner strength in spite of their ordeals."
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