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In a country like China that is drenched in censorship, people who have opinions that differ from those of the government resort to any means possible to get their message across.

"Bookstores Become Sites of Subtle Protest Against Xi Jinping", by Alexander Boyd, China Digital Times (7/18/24)

The novel “Changing of the Guard” displayed at left, alongside “Study Outline for Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics”

Chinese bookstore shelf arrangements rarely go viral—that is, unless they contain a hidden message calling for Xi Jinping to step down. Since Xi has risen to power, placing Xi’s works next to other books to make a political point has become a relatively common, low-key mode of political dissent. It’s often unclear whether the juxtapositions are created by bookstore employees or the product of cheeky swaps by politically astute customers—or simply accidental.  

The two large characters of the book on the left side of the photograph are:  huànjiè 換届 ("change the tenure / term [of the office holder]").  Note between the two characters the following pinyin spelling:  HUANJIE.  I think the publishers may have added that because the variant 屆 of the second character, 届, is also widely used, which leads to confusion in the minds of some readers, although supplying the pinyin of book titles on their cover is frequently encountered.  At one point, at least, it was required of publishers to include it, although some publishers "forgot / overlooked" that not strongly enforced regulation, or printed the pinyin as faintly as possible.

The novel itself is not a work of secret dissent, but rather a paean to Party governance. Written by Zhang Ping, a former vice-president of the Party-dominated China Writers Association, the novel is set in the fictional city of Linjin. The novel’s plot centers on unprecedented rain and flooding striking the city just as the provincial and municipal authorities are set to undergo a leadership transition. Yet put alongside Xi’s works, the implication is obvious. 

Previous instances have seen Xi’s books paired with the work of the philosopher Karl Popper, novels by Ernest Hemingway, childhood psychology books, Winnie the Pooh, books on Hitler, and studies of China’s imperial system. CDT has compiled a slideshow of the works:

[photos omitted]

“The Constitution of the People’s Republic of China” alongside “Winnie the Pooh”

“Xi Jinping: The Governance of China” alongside “The Era of Creating Gods”

“Xi Jinping in Zhejiang” alongside “The Emperor’s Destiny and Dignity” and “Chronicle of Chinese Emperors

“Xi Jinping: The Governance of China” alongside “The Dictator’s Handbook”

“Xi Jinping Tells a Story” and “Mao’s Last Decade” alongside “The Dictator’s Handbook”

“Xi Jinping: The Governance of China” alongside “Elementary School Psychology Cartoons II”

A number of Party books, including Xi’s, alongside “Adolf Hitler: The Definitive Biography” and “The Nazi Seizure of Power”

A number of Xi’s books alongside “The Last Empire: The Final Days of the Soviet Union”

Xi Jinping’s works alongside “1984,” “The Last Empire” and “For Whom The Bell Tolls”

“Xi Jinping: The Governance of China” alongside “The Open Society and its Enemies”

“Xi Jinping’s Seven Years of Educated Youth” alongside “Hitler’s Last Plot”

Once, about ten years ago at a book exhibit during the annual meeting of the Association for Asian Studies (AAS), one of the booths had 900 copies of Xi's The Governance of China in around a dozen languages.  Except for a small handful of copies that a few people had picked up for free, they all had to be pulped.

Selected readings

• "Circumventing censorship in the PRC" (11/7/21)
• "Xi Jinping thought: watch for the possessive suffix" (9/2/17)

[h.t. Nick Kaldis]

June 22, 2024 @ 7:47 pm · Filed by Victor Mair under Books, Censorship, Language and politics

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