The True Story of Ah Q

Lu Hsun

This time he did not feel particularly irritated. He supposed that in this world it was the fate of everybody at some time to be dragged in and out of prison, and to have to draw circles on paper; it was only because his circle had not been round that he felt there was a stain on his reputation. Presently, however he regained composure by thinking, "Only idiots can make perfect circles." And with this thought he fell asleep.

But he did not really faint. Although he felt frightened some of the time, the rest of the time he was quite calm. It seemed to him that in this world probably it was the fate of everybody at some time to have his head cut off.

The True Story of Ah Q holds more meaning in its few pages than many novels of longer length. Not only is the character one of the better mixes between allegory and reality I have come across, but from what I know of the political situation in China at the turn of the century, it seems Ah Q is also a very cutting satire. Lu Hsun works his way into the story through the use of a very frank introduction so subtly that you miss the point at which the story begins and his voice fades out. And throughout the entire tale, his voice can be heard sneaking in and vanishing again, leaving the very curious sound of Ah Q's muddled conception of reality.
However you take the political elements of the story, there is no denying that Ah Q is also a fitting portrayal of some of the more disreputable elements of human nature. The life Ah Q lives in his mind as opposed to his life which is reality, remind me of certain tendencies in my own life to spend a little mental power and beautifying an otherwise ugly outlook. Ah Q carries this to a whole new level though, retreating to such a deep level of mental remodeling of reality, that he can go to his own death feeling things really aren't quite as bad as they actually are.
I must admit, I am scared by how much I find Ah Q's dellussional habits to be not so bad a way to live. While this may have been written for a turn of the century Chinese audience, Ah Q has just as many implications for an American. Given the small size of the book, I would say this would be one of the more efficient reads you have. 8/10