A Chinese Life by Li Kunwu and P. Otie is an autobiographical graphic novel based on the experience of the characters in the Cultural Revolution. Li personally went through this whole experience shown in the book as he went through the Cultural Revolution, the Great Leap Forward, the death of Mao Zedong, and the country’s current economic boom.
As the novel progresses, the significance of being from China isn’t the same anymore. Li’s father was a member of the Communist Party in Kunming where Li spent his childhood. His family had more money than the other families around him. So when Mao rose in power, he competed with his equals to see who was able to be the best comrade around school. Li finished school and initiated himself into the army. To Li, Mao’s death was devastating and painful, as he quotes, “Chairman Mao…how will I go on…without you?”. The goal of the novel is to show how their leader Mao affected the typical Chinese civilian and how his death affected their lives. For the impression us Westerners have for Mao, it is hard for us to understand the feeling of the Chinese people. People raised their kids to worship Mao at such a young age and based their entire life on his teachings. …show more content…
Also, it’s concerning that Li never mentions if he criticizes his prior overly-patriotic version. He fails to even put in his input regarding the Tiananmen Square massacre (1989). Maybe he’s trying to make the book about the basic every day Chinese life, but he fails to describe a lot of his personal experiences. Nevertheless, for such a patriotic person who loved the country and its leader, he did a poor job at sharing his personal view on his feelings and experiences about the events like Mao’s death. However, since it is a graphic novel maybe what is not depicted or said is just as important as what is depicted or