Chinese-American
Chinese Americans are Americans of Han Chinese ancestry. Chinese Americans constitute a subgroup of East Asian Americans which also constitute a subgroup of Asian Americans. Many Chinese Americans along with their ancestors trace lineage from m ...
author
Ha Jin
Jin Xuefei (; born February 21, 1956) is a Chinese-American poet and novelist using the pen name Ha Jin (). ''Ha'' comes from his favorite city, Harbin. His poetry is associated with the Misty Poetry movement.
Early life
Ha Jin was born in L ...
(哈金) which won the
National Book Award
The National Book Awards are a set of annual U.S. literary awards. At the final National Book Awards Ceremony every November, the National Book Foundation presents the National Book Awards and two lifetime achievement awards to authors.
The Nat ...
the same year. It is based on a true story that Jin heard from his wife when they were visiting her family at an army hospital in China. At the hospital was an army doctor who had waited eighteen years to get a divorce so he could marry his long-time friend, a nurse.
The plot revolves around the fortunes of three people: Lin Kong, the army doctor; his wife Shuyu, whom he has never loved; and the nurse Manna Wu, his girlfriend at the hospital where he works. Beginning in 1963 and stretching over a twenty-year period, ''Waiting'' is set against the background of a changing Chinese society. It contrasts city and country life and shows the restrictions on individual freedoms that are a routine part of life under
communism
Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...
. But ''Waiting'' is primarily a novel of character. It presents a portrait of a decent but deeply flawed man, Lin Kong, whose life is spoiled by his inability to experience strong emotions and to love wholeheartedly.
Plot summary
Army doctor Lin Kong marries Shuyu, a village woman, as decided upon by his parents. While Lin spends most of his time away from home working as a doctor in Muji City, Shuyu raises their daughter, Hua, and cares for Lin's sick parents in Goose Village. Lin feels no love for her, and once he meets Manna Wu, a nurse at the hospital, he falls in love with her and feels that he must divorce his wife. Year after year, Lin tries to divorce the woman he is embarrassed to be married to, and every year when he comes home for a few days during the holidays, he goes with her to the courthouse. Shuyu agrees to the divorce but each time a hiccup crops up at the last moment. Meanwhile, Manna is frustrated that she cannot be Lin's official wife. Though she endures for the sake of Lin, Manna receives unwanted attention for remaining unmarried, particularly by male coworkers who sexually harass her.
Lin finally succeeds in divorcing Shuyu due to a law that states that if a man and wife have been separate for 18 years, the man can divorce her without her consent. Once he lives with Manna, however, he feels unhappy with her as well, despite expecting that he will love her since they had chosen each other. After the divorce, Shuyu and their daughter move to Muji City as well. Shortly after Manna gives birth to twin sons, Lin is devastated to learn that her heart is failing and he will be left to raise his children alone. After a heated argument with Manna, Lin reflects on the foolishness of waiting for something that ultimately failed to assuage his discontent.
During this time, he realizes too late how much he relied on and failed to appreciate Shuyu's devotion to him. He goes to Shuyu, asking her to forgive him, to wait, and help him raise his children after Manna dies. Lin's visit fills Shuyu with joy, and when Hua goes over to visit Manna and the twins, she tells Lin that they will always be waiting for him.
Reception
''Waiting'' won both the
National Book Award for Fiction
The National Book Award for Fiction is one of five annual National Book Awards, which recognize outstanding literary work by United States citizens. Since 1987 the awards have been administered and presented by the National Book Foundation, but ...
National Book Foundation
The National Book Foundation (NBF) is an American nonprofit organization established, "to raise the cultural appreciation of great writing in America". Established in 1989 by National Book Awards, Inc.,Edwin McDowell. "Book Notes: 'The Joy Luc ...
. Retrieved 2012-03-27. (With acceptance speech by Jin and essay by Ru Freeman from the Awards 60-year anniversary blog.)
and the
PEN/Faulkner Award
The PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction is awarded annually by the PEN/Faulkner Foundation to the authors of the year's best works of fiction by living American citizens. The winner receives US$15,000 and each of four runners-up receives US$5000. Fi ...
, was a finalist for the 2000
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made h ...
, and has been lauded for its insights into life in communist China.
Censorship
In June 2000, an article attacking the novel was published in a weekly publication called ''Chinese Reading News''. The author of this article is Liu Yiqing, a professor from Beijing University. Liu accuses Jin Ha of portraying China in a negative light, and claims that he has been used by the American media to vilify China. After the publication of this article, Beijing Publishing Group, a major publishing house in China owned by the Chinese government, decided to cancel the plan to translate and publish the novel in China.