NPR’s Louisa Lim interviews graphic novelist Xie Peng, whose first novel, “Darkness Outside The Night,” is described as, “a psychological journey into the world of young Chinese,” reflecting the anxieties and stress of life in China today. NPR also posted an excerpt from the book. From Lim’s interview:
On whether his generation is freer than his parents:
“In our generation, you are free, but things have to be purchased. Freedom needs to be bought. Without money, you will have no freedom. Dignity also needs to be bought. It’s an illusion.”
On the stress that young Chinese are under:
“Competition is very fierce. For example, exams are a competition with a very low chance of winning. And at work, too, for example when I do a project, there are many others doing the same project, so my chance of success is very low; probably only 10 percent of the projects are successful. In different eras, we suffer from different problems, and the problem at the moment is massive stress.” [Source]
Read more about the book or download it via Amazon.
