Despite public indifference, the awards have maintained marginal relevance to the literary community. Poet Yang Li told NewsChina that winning awards from the LXLP meant not only award money, but also promotional opportunities and other benefits. “For example, if the award-winner works in a CWA village branch, he or she can be promoted to work in CWA city branch. With the award, one can usually receive a higher salary and a better job title,” he explained.
In the meantime, the procedure of selecting the shortlist of works has been criticized for its lack of independence and transparency. To qualify for selection in the LXLP shortlist, a writer must first send his or her own works to the local CWA branch. The CWA then selects about 1,000 pieces to enter into a preliminary assessment, from which a final 100 works will be selected. However, “unless you have a good relationship with your local CWA branch, your works won’t ever be advanced to the preliminary stages,” said well-known poet Shao Fenghua.
Shao’s comment was also echoed by writer Wu Ang. Wu told NewsChina that hardly any work would be recommended by a CWA branch for its literary merit. “They won’t ever recommend Wu Ang’s work,” she joked, “because Wu has never tried to butter them up.”
Xiang Weiguo, a literary critic and poet who has worked as a judge on several government-sponsored literature prizes, described how before the judges begin their selection process, a briefing hinting at the advisory board’s “preferred” candidates is given. Another often-used trick is to guarantee a certain proportion of winners are drawn from among the competition’s so-called “talent pool,” so as to ensure the vailidity of the prize.
When the briefing is complete, judges then begin to factor in “personal relationships,” which might be built on genuine friendships, favors, or financial rewards. “Many awards are bought with cash,” said Yang Li.
“Irrelevant Poetry”
To Wu Ang, the LXLP is more of an elaborate official farce than anything serious, credible or worthy of critical consideration. Several other writers and poets have expressed similar opinions. Wu Hongfei, a controversial poet and rock musician, said, “I’m not interested in any of these prizes. I didn’t even know of the existence of the LXLP before it was awarded to Che.” A famous poet speaking on the condition of anonymity also told NewsChina that many poets, especially those not affiliated to the CWA system, would be ashamed to send their works to the CWA entry committee. “If I submitted my works, the really good poets would definitely look down upon me,” he said.
Surprisingly, such attitudes are even echoed by a number of CWA judges. A previous judge, speaking on the condition of anonymity told NewsChina that, “I only have disdain for those who enter.”
“The prize is irrelevant to Chinese poetry and Chinese literary history,” concluded Yang Li.
“The current poetry scene in China is badly distorted,” said Zhao Lihua, a well known poet. In 2008, she refused the award from the so-called Independent Poetry Prize, a minor government-sponsored honor. Zhao told NewsChina that the mainstream Chinese poetry scene is seriously corrupt and most famous older female poets have chosen to distance themselves from it.
Due to the sensitivity of the issue, many insiders refused requests for interviews. Yet general dissatisfaction is obvious among most of the people we spoke to, including some of the judges. “The core problem lies in the Chinese literary system,” said one critic, again on condition of anonymity. Calls to reform the CWA and its related bodies have been growing, yet no practical measures have been taken.
Critics have since defended Che’s poetry as “not without value,” while his genial personality has also drawn praise from some media outlets. “The Che incident reflects public opposition towards the authorities,” said Cao Kou, a novelist. As Liu Hailong, deputy professor of journalism from Renmin University in Beijing, pointed out, negative news regarding the behavior of government officials has led the public to form a general distrust towards the government, a situation unlikely to change any time soon.
December 2010
