Review for Please Don't Call Me Human

The satirical story woven by Wang Shuo in his 7^th novel, Please Don’t Call Me Human (1989), is a biting criticism of the inner-workings of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), with blatant and deliberate stabs at the Cultural Revolution and the blind faith and loyalty the Chinese people are so well known for. With such harsh criticism of the CCP’s actions, past and present, it is no surprise that Please Don’t Call Me Human is banned in China. All the pressure from the government does not seem to give Wang Shuo any pause though, who is known for his controversial works in both movies and books, and considered as the Godfather of Hooligan Literature, a genre of literature that marked by cynicism and mockery of all that is traditional and proper. Starting the book can be a rather painful process due to the unbelievable level of absurdness the characters showcase, however once the absurdness is taken in stride, the mockery is an amusing and enlightening show.

Please Don’t Call Me Human is a story of the failings of the Chinese people; the irony of it all though, is that if one reads it at face value, the story reads as a success, much like the Cultural Revolution. It begins with a search for the “supreme Big Dream Boxer” who will “purge the poison that’s been fed to [China] for a hundred years or more” by helping them earn “face” in the eyes of the world and it ends with them finding such a person. The person is Tang Yuanbao who insists throughout the entire novel, that he is NOT a person, he is “not worth shit”, and “[w]hether [he] live[s] or die[s] shouldn’t bother anybody”. This constant self-demeaning speech is encouraged and praised by the National Mobilization Committee, or more aptly nicknamed “MobCom”. Tang Yuanbao’s behavior fits his name because, when spoken, his name sounds like “tangyuan (glutinous rice ball which symbolizes the sweetness of life) busted”. This seems to be a play on words on the author’s part to show the fact that the person China wants is someone without a full life.

The entire novel plays with the Chinese idea of dignity, literally translating to “face”, and the hollowness of the idea when obtaining one’s “face” is achieved at any cost necessary. Tang Yuanbao is named the man with the most face in all of China, but is required to endure many alterations to his physical and psychological make-up, from sex changes to electric shock treatment to mass demonstrations, to be considered ready to represent China. The drastic changes he is told to undergo do not cause him to hesitate at all in fact, he does so with gusto and humility, much like a dumb child. His actions and logic, or lack thereof, are a sharp jab at the traditional Confucius belief that one serves one’s emperor, or government in this case, before oneself without hesitation or regret.

Please Don’t Call Me Human is the literary equivalent of a wrecking ball unapologetically demolishing the idea of a regal Chinese past which can only be fully understood by those who grew up in similar environments however, the message can be understood even by those who did not.