Chinese author Mo Yan shot to international fame when he won the Nobel Prize for Literature in October 2012, and his success was wildly celebrated in his home country. No doubt many harbor hopes that Mo Yan can inspire a new generation of young writers in China.
Before they can be inspired by Mo Yan, however, they might need to learn who he is first.
In photos of an elementary school quiz posted on Sina Weibo, China’s Twitter, children were asked to identify a picture of Mo Yan and write down their thoughts. Here are what some fifth graders in Nanjing came up with:
“This man seems conceited because he looks at people sideways. It seems that he looks down on others. We cannot be like that, because that would cause failure.”
“He is Zhou Libo [a stand-up comedian]. He is quite a talker and is pretty funny. He is beloved by the people.”
“He is Zhao Benshan [a skit comedian]. I want to tell him that I am quite impressed with your skills, but I feel sorry that you withdrew from the CCTV’s Chinese New Year Gala.”
“He is a human being.”
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