The influence of N. V. Gogol's satire on Sha Yesin's comedy "If I were Real"

Van Zhuangchu Graduate Student, Department of Russian and Foreign Literature, Buryat State University 670011, Russia, Republic of Buryatia, Ulan-Ude, Energetik Microdistrict, 60A, sq. 28 msdevine@126.com Other publications by this author

           The interest in the foreign cultural reception of a literary text in modern literary studies is due to the active cultural interaction between countries, the transparency of borders, the development of technologies that allow for a new translation of a once translated literary text in the shortest possible time, taking into account the changes in the literary language.

Philologists, cultural scientists, philosophers study the mechanisms of transmission and perception of the text, clarifying the concept of reception and expanding it. Thus, N. N. Levakin believes that reception is considered "perception and re-creation on the basis of perceived (read, experienced, seen, realized) own texts (thoughts, ideas, impressions, paintings)" ^{[8, p. 309]}. This definition does not contradict the theory of receptive aesthetics, according to which the process of perception of a literary text should be understood as "the mobility of meaning, its infinite multivariate birth from the interaction of the text and the reader" ^{[2, p. 16]}. The point is that the variety of readings leads to variability of meanings, this idea is all the more interesting in relation to the study of the reception of a literary text by native speakers of a language other than the original language.

The influence of N. V. Gogol's work on the literature of the People's Republic of China attracted the attention of literary scholars on both sides of the border. In this paper, we will be interested in productive reception, which, unlike reproductive reception, is associated with the entry of N. V. Gogol's satirical works as foreign texts into the work of Chinese writers.

For the first time, a systematic study of the history of the appearance and influence of Gogol's work in China of the XX century . carried out by E. A. Serebryakov ^[15]. The researcher described the gradual appearance of translations of N. V. Gogol's prose and dramatic works into Chinese, examined the history of translations of The Inspector and Dead Souls into Chinese, the history of various productions of Gogol's works and reviews of them in the 1940s and 1950s in the Chinese press.

Russian Russian-Chinese relations were strained in the 1960s and 1970s. Research activities to study the influence of Russian literature on Chinese literature were practically discontinued. During the "Cultural Revolution" of 1966-1976, almost all works of Russian literature were banned. Russian Russian literature research has been gaining official status, new journals on Russian literature, scientific works have been appearing, and the Association of Chinese Researchers of Russian Literature is being formed, since 1978, the PRC government has been pursuing a policy of "openness", since the 1980s. The study of the works of N. V. Gogol and their influence on Chinese literature has been resumed by Chinese scientists: "The study of Russian literature is gaining official status, new journals on Russian literature, scientific works are being formed ^{[7, p. 185]}.

In the 1980s, monographic studies appeared in China, among which the most significant are the work of Wang Yuanze "Gogol" (1982) ^[3] and Long Fei "Master of Satirical Art Gogol" (1984) ^[9]. The content of scientific works is also changing, which determined the directions of studying the creativity of N. V. Gogol at the turn of the XX-XXI centuries. Among the studies there are works devoted to the study of various aspects of satire in the creative heritage of N. V. Gogol.

In recent years, the refraction of Gogol's satirical text in China in the works of Chinese writers is considered as the result of the process of author's text generation. Such a reception will not be just imitation, because "during the reception of any cultural phenomena, not a copy, but an original intellectual product arises, which is due to both traditions and institutional features of each culture" ^{[14, p. 22]}. It is about this kind of "product" that we can talk when considering Sha Yesin's comedy "If I were Real", created under the influence of N. V. Gogol's satirical traditions.

Sha Yesin (1939-2018), writer and screenwriter of the People's Republic of China, in 1980-1990 headed the Shanghai People's Art Theater. His plays and screenplays have been repeatedly awarded national literary prizes in China, and have also received recognition abroad. The work of the playwright, in particular, the comedy considered here, immediately became the object of criticism ^[1]; ^[10]. In recent decades, comedy has again attracted the attention of researchers who study the peculiarities of the perception of Sha Yesin's play from the standpoint of modern times, analyze the style of comedy ^[3]; ^[11].

The story of the creation of the comedy "If I were real" begins with the fact that in 1979 Sha Yesin read a news article in the newspaper about a young man who for some time deceived the local administration, posing as the son of a high-ranking official. Based on the material of the note, Sha Yesin created the comedy "If I were real", which caused a great resonance in society. The play was based on a real court case of a young man sent to the village, who posed as the son of a high party worker in order to return to the city.

At first, Sha Yesin's comedy was called "The Deceiver". The play was a sharp political satire on party officials, in which the denunciation was directed against caste privileges and arbitrariness of local officials. Already in August 1979, the comedy was staged on the stage of the Shanghai National Theater. Critics noted that the premiere show was a great success. In September of the same year, after the publication of the play in the magazine "Shanghai Xiju" ("Shanghai Theater"), the propaganda department in Shanghai recommended not to show the play to a wide audience and to stop selling the magazine with the text of the play. The return of comedy to the stage and its accessibility for research became possible only in the 1990s.

Stories about liars are rooted in the history of Chinese literature; they have a folklore basis and are also found in many samples of world folklore and literature. From ancient times to the present day, stories about scammers and liars have not lost popularity, because with their help, as in a crooked mirror, the obvious and hidden shortcomings of society and human vices are clearly revealed.

Sha Yesin did not hide his conscious attitude to the similarity with the comedy of N. V. Gogol and later wrote: "These plays are comparable, but not comparable, they cannot be compared formally, because they were created in different eras. In China, the difficult relations between officials and citizens differ from the relations between officials and the people in Russia in the tsarist era <...> the similarities of the works have deep social and historical reasons, although they reflect differences in views on some important social problems" ^{[17, p. 19]}

Sha Yesin's comedy is actually very similar to the "Inspector General" even at the level of the relationship of the title with the text of the comedy. In the same way as the imaginary auditor is taken out in the character title of the comedy by N. V. Gogol, the phrase from the acquittal of the protagonist – the imaginary son of a high-ranking official is taken as the title of the comedy Sha Yesin. For readers and viewers in China who are familiar with Gogol's comedy, the title of Sha Yesin's comedy "If I were real" connects both comedies with the motive of the false essence of the hero, taken for a "big man".

Sha Yesin uses associations with the "Inspector" not only at the level of the title, but also at the level of the plot. The actions of Li Xiaozhang, a liar, expose the desire of officials to obtain various privileges. This desire makes the head of the theater troupe, the director of culture, the director of the organizational department, and the secretary of the city party committee be deceived in Li Xiaozhang. Here the comedy of Sha Yesin differs from the Russian comedy: in the "Inspector" the mayor and officials were deceived in Khlestakov, mistaking him for a "big man", and deceived themselves out of fear of punishment for their unscrupulous activities and illegal acts. However, unlike Khlestakov, who inadvertently got into a situation where he was mistaken for an auditor, Li Xiaozhang in the comedy Sha Yesin deliberately impersonates the son of a "big man", taking advantage of the opportunity and considering it a game that restores justice.

Sha Yesin's reference to Gogol's "Inspector General" and at the same time the emphasized difference with the plot of the Russian comedy become obvious from the very beginning of the play "If I were Real". After the Prologue, in which the arrest of the main character takes place right before the start of the performance, the first picture describes the scene where the viewer gets acquainted with the actors: "On the wall on one side of the theater hangs a large playbill: "The N-sky drama troupe performs the Russian satirical comedy "The Inspector"," the poster also has portrait of Khlestakov" ^{[16, p. 2]}.

The main character, a young man, Li Xiaozhang, wants to go with his girlfriend to this particular performance, but all tickets have already been sold. Near the theater, one of those who wants to get to the play briefly tells about the main character of the "Inspector", retelling the plot of the Russian play, thereby giving the young man the idea of how to get the coveted ticket. The main character, like Gogol's Khlestakov, becomes a liar by accident, thanks to a combination of circumstances. Li Xiaozhang is an intelligent, idealistic young man. He was sent by order from the city to a rural area, to a farm, he has been working in the fields for eight years. In the first act, Li Xiaozhang is dressed in an old soldier's uniform, he has a soldier's bag in his hands. After he found out that his comrades, the children of influential officials, were transferred to the city ahead of schedule, while he lost the years he planned to spend on studies, the young man fell into a severe depression, began to abuse alcohol.

After escaping from the farm, the young man at first only wanted to get to the play. He deceived the officials who came to the theater on invitation cards, posing as the son of a high-ranking party worker. However, then, due to the circumstances and the desire of officials to receive various benefits at the expense of a higher-ranking person, the young man was forced to continue his deception, becoming more and more confused.

The similarities of the works of Russian and Chinese playwrights at the level of the plot can also be traced in the development of the characters' relationships with their surroundings. For example, in the comedy by N. V. Gogol, the mayor settles Khlestakov at home, thinking that he is hosting an auditor, and similarly, the secretary of the Municipal Party Committee invites Li Xiaozhang to live in his house under the name Zhang Xiaoli, because he takes him for the son of a high-ranking official. In the comedy of N. V. Gogol, Khlestakov got used to the house of the mayor so much that he takes care of his wife and daughter at the same time. Sha Yesin did not use this plot move, apparently to maintain a positive impression of the hero. The young man, Li Xiaozhang, is just conducting a tour of someone else's house, as if on his own, for his girlfriend Minghua: "Zhang Xiaoli (in the tone of a guide): Please note that this is the entrance hall of the secretary of the Municipal Party Committee. Upstairs and downstairs there are electric lighting and telephones, cabinets with glass doors, leather sofas, televisions, a record player, a tape recorder and air conditioners. (Opens the door of the inner room). Now the bedroom, please come in <...> I want you to see what a person's life will be like if he has a good father!" ^{[16, p. 24]}.

However, unlike Khlestakov, Li Xiaozhang is well aware of what he is doing. This is indicated by his words, which he says to his girlfriend: "I'm not a bad person. I did not steal, did not rob, did not kill, did not set fire to houses, did not seize power with the "Gang of Four", and I did not want to start World War III. I was just joking with these powerful officials… Well, from tomorrow, the liar and cunning Zhang Xiaoli will become an honest Li Xiaozhang. Minghua, from tomorrow I will be... I have to be the one you like! I don't want to take any more risks" ^{[16, p. 46]}. The young man, despite his unseemly deeds, retained kindness and good intentions: the purpose of his latest deception is to obtain documents for returning from the farm to the city in order to marry a pregnant Minghua, so that the girl could avoid shame. 

This is confirmed by the young man's remark, from which the viewer understands that the whole situation of fraud for him is just a game: "I'm kidding! What is a lie? Isn't the game a lie? You are also deceived" ^{[16, p. 79]}. This inner conviction morally leads the young man out of a difficult situation: Li Xiaozhang returned to the city, but continued to deceive, because for him it was just a game in which the young man saw nothing reprehensible.

In the play "If I were Real," Sha Yesin is sympathetic to the reasons that pushed the protagonist to deceive: Li Xiaozhang became a liar because he was deprived of his legal rights. During the years he spent on the farm, other young people, children of various officials, returned from the farm to the city ahead of schedule, violating the law. By doing this, the officials deprived the young man of precious time to get an education. Hence, an internal conflict arose, which caused an external conflict. The privileged class leaves Li Xiaozhang no choice, he had no other choice but to resort to illegal actions. Li Xiaozhang's deception is a last resort, more like revenge against the class of officials.

The second reason for deception has social roots: the privileges that some party members used for selfish purposes turned them into the same scammers and liars. The system of bribery is well illustrated by an end–to-end detail that occurs throughout the plot - this is a fake bottle of an expensive brand of wine "Maotai". Appearing in the first act, when Li Xiaozhang, who introduced himself as the son of a high-ranking party leader, gives a bottle to the head of the theater troupe as a gift for invitations to the performance, a bottle of Maotai wine then passes from official to official as a bribe until finally it returns to the first hands, to Li Xiaozhang. Thus, the young man is finally convinced that he is surrounded by scammers and liars, therefore there is nothing shameful in his deception.

Together, all these episodes help Sha Yesin to create a picture of local governance similar to Gogol's: those who embody state power and who must fulfill their duties for the benefit of the people are absorbed in selfish desires and the preservation of their privileges. Their activities in positions do not correspond to what they should do according to their official duties, and officials, both in Gogol's play and in Sha Yesin's play, think about this the least. The description of the scene before the fourth act of the comedy is eloquent, which shows the work of the head of the farm where Li Xiaozhang worked before his escape to the city: "Chaos reigns in the office of the director of the Haidong farm. All household and office supplies are out of place. An old pennant was hung on a broken wall near the floor, and a broken broom was tied to a cable switch rope. There are several tufts of weeds growing in the corner of the house, so that viewers can fully imagine what the farm fields look like. When the curtain opens, farm manager Zheng enters the stage with a spray can for spraying pesticides on his back, and then sits down at his table to drink" ^{[16, p. 72]}

This description refers the viewer to the comedy "The Inspector", or rather, to the instructions that the mayor gives to judge Lyapkin-Tyapkin about correcting violations in the arrangement of "public places" in court so that the judge eliminates the mess. "Mayor: I would also advise you, Ammos Fedorovich, to pay attention to the public places. In your front hall, where petitioners usually come, the guards have brought home geese with small goslings that are darting under your feet. It is, of course, commendable for anyone to start a household, and why shouldn't the watchman start it? only, you know, it's indecent in such a place... In addition, it's bad that all sorts of rubbish is dried in your very presence, and there is a hunting bag over the very cabinet with papers. I know you like hunting, but it's better to take him for a while, and then, as soon as the inspector passes, perhaps you can hang him again. Also your assessor... of course, he is a knowledgeable person, but he smells as if he has just left the distillery – this is also not good" ^{[6, pp.13-14]}.

At the level of the conflict between the two plays, there is also a certain similarity. Sha Yesin, like N. V. Gogol in the comedy "The Inspector", focuses on social shortcomings, therefore, in the play "If I were real" a situation develops, as in "The Inspector": Li Xiaozhang, a liar, on closer examination, turns out to be guilty only indirectly, and his "victims" are unscrupulous officials deceived by themselves. Sha Yesin shifts the main semantic load from the final episode of exposing the deceiver, which is traditional for Chinese picaresque literature, to exposing various social shortcomings, which are embodied by the heroes of the comedy – officials. Almost like N. V. Gogol's, the blame is shifted from the young man to those who allowed their vices to come to life in this whole situation.

Although the comedy "If I were Real", as well as the work of N. V. Gogol, is intended to satirically expose the unscrupulousness and dishonesty of officials, nevertheless, a significant difference from Gogol's "Auditor" will be Sha Yesin's strict reference to the national literary tradition of the victory of good over evil. This attitude of the author determines the largely predictable ending of the play, which is natural, since it fully corresponds to the canons of Chinese accusatory literature: a group of corrupt officials is exposed, their unseemly deeds are punished.

Recall that in N. V. Gogol's comedy "The Inspector", the main denouncer of social vices and a positive hero is satirical laughter. Gogol deliberately refused to depict positive characters, which was due not only to "fidelity to the accepted artistic system", but also to the fact that in the comedy "laughter acquired the role of the only delimiter of existing and proper, the role of the only "honest person"" ^{[12, p. 343]}.

For the national literary tradition of China, such a state of affairs is unacceptable, a character embodying an ethical ideal, a "different", correct view of things must be presented. To depict the victory of goodness and justice, Sha Yoshin introduces a positive hero – this is the "wise old man" Zhang, who suddenly arrived from the capital, whose son the hero introduced himself.

In the composition of the final part of the comedy, Sha Yesin uses the same technique of "double exposure" as Gogol: just as Khlestakov, exposing himself in a letter, discovers at the same time the shortcomings of officials, the hero of the comedy Sha Yesin, pleading guilty and explaining the reasons for his deception, reveals the truth about those who pushed him to do this: "Zhang Xiaoli: (excitedly) This scam was created by everyone! Don't people who have been deceived by me deceive others? At the same time, they not only provided me with all the conditions for lying, but even more: some of the deceived ones taught me how to deceive others. I don't deny that I used your name and position to achieve my goals, but didn't they try to use my fake name to get even more privileges for themselves? Yes, I pretended to be your son, and they flattered me so much, provided various amenities and allowed me to do things that I could not afford to do before. If I introduce myself as the son of an ordinary worker or farmer, will these same people give me so many opportunities? Would they help me just like that? Of course not. If they didn't have these opportunities and privileges, I wouldn't pretend!" ^{[16, p. 105]}.

As mentioned above, the playwright shifts the focus in the "unmasking" scene from exposing the identity of Li Xiaozhang to exposing officials. The plot device "incriminating letter", which is widespread in world literature, allows him to do this, which Sha Yesin also borrows from N. V. Gogol's comedy, but transforms in accordance with his artistic tasks. So, in the comedy "The Inspector", officials learn that Khlestakov is not the one he pretends to be, from a letter intercepted by Khlestakov himself to his friend in the mail, in which the young man gives everyone he met an unflattering characteristic.  In Sha Yesin's comedy, on the contrary, officials themselves expose themselves in their misdeeds with their own letters addressed to the high-ranking "father" of the protagonist, in which they state their personal requests that violate the law: "Zhang Xiaoli (takes out several letters from his pocket): Look, this letter is for you from Director Zhao, she wants to get a bigger house out of turn; this is from Director Sun, he wants to transfer his son–in-law back from the Northeast district to the city. This is the letter that Director Qian wrote to you yesterday, she asked me to give it to you personally so that she and Secretary Wu could be part of the delegation traveling abroad" ^{[16, p. 105]}. This technique of "incriminating letter" helps the reader familiar with the comedy of N. V. Gogol to easily draw parallels between the two works.

However, not all the techniques of the Russian playwright Sha Yesin uses in the plot of his comedy. Recall that N. V. Gogol ends the "Auditor" with a silent scene, which is a reaction to the arrival of a real auditor. With this technique, which has received the term "open finale" in literary criticism, the playwright leaves the reader room for imagination: we do not know whether the mayor will be able to escape punishment or he, along with his subordinates, will get what he deserves. In the play "If I were Real," Sha Yesin, as we remember, is guided by the national literary tradition, therefore, in the last act, a real auditor arrives with a check, who becomes an instrument of retaliation: unscrupulous officials are exposed and brought to justice. The auditor in Sha Yesin's play turns out to be the same "father" of the main character – the elder Zhang, who first talks with his fake son, and then unexpectedly declares to officials that he was sent by the government to check their loyalty to the ideals of the party and official discipline.

The accusatory pathos of Sha Yesin's comedy reaches its peak in the acquittal of the protagonist at the trial, which becomes a direct accusation of corrupt officials. It is no coincidence that the author puts into the mouth of Li Xiaozhang, sitting in the dock, the phrase that became the title of the play: "I was wrong, because in fact I am not at all who I pretended to be. However, if I were real and really were the son of the head of Zhang or some other head, then everything I did would be completely legitimate" ^{[16, p. 107]}. By the power of the accusation, these words of Li Xiaozhanao can be compared with the famous remark of the mayor: "What are you laughing at? you're laughing at yourself!" ^{[6, p. 94]}. However, Sha Yesin did not use the Russian playwright's find – "the destruction of the fourth wall" – a direct appeal to the viewer from the stage to designate the role of laughter as the only positive hero of the comedy "The Inspector".

Sha Yesin prefers to use the "destruction of the fourth wall" to expose the vices of officials, concluding with this technique the speech of the elder Zhang in defense of the young man at the trial in the finale of the comedy. In the last act, Li Xiaozhang asks his "father" to speak for the defense at the trial. Elder Zhang agrees, but during the court session, from the defendant's lawyer, he becomes the accuser of officials mired in corruption. Here is a fragment from his speech: "Li Xiaozhang is also a victim, so please consider whether the defendant should be treated one-sidedly. The reason for his skillful deception is that some unreasonable officials create favorable conditions for such deception <...> they all wanted to satisfy their whims with the help of the defendant, so it is obvious that they are not so much victims as participants in this scam <...>. Do you want people to work hard and strive for a luxurious life? We cannot share our joys and sorrows with our people, but we have the same heart and the same virtue. Injustice and inequality can ruin! Be vigilant!" ^{[16, p. 108]}.

These words of Elder Zhang, as a representative of the central government, criticizing corrupt officials, as well as his call to citizens to be vigilant in the finale of the play, reflected the author's desire for the ideal of a bright future. Following the traditional ethical norms of Chinese society, which condemn deception, flattery and any fraud, Sha Yesin, despite sympathy for his hero, still considers it necessary to show that fate also punishes for deviation from the truth. After Li Xiaozhang's deception was discovered, the young man was not only punished by law, but also paid a heavy price for his shameful behavior – he was punished by life itself. The bride of Minghua, who found out about his deception, loses her child, she is in the hospital, doctors are fighting for her life.

Along with tragic and dramatic moments, Sha Yesin uses comic situations that bring his comedy and the work of N. V. Gogol closer together. Note, for example, the reception, which was called "the conversation of the deaf" and the reception "one instead of the other". At the heart of the reception of the "conversation of the deaf" is an alogism. For example, in the comedy "The Inspector" there is a scene when the mayor comes to Khlestakov's hotel room to ask him to move, and Khlestakov believes that this is an arrest. Both heroes are afraid, each thinks about his own, so they do not hear each other. There is a similar scene in Sha Yesin's comedy "If I were Real". When, at the beginning of the comedy, Li Xiaozhang introduced himself as the son of a high-ranking official from Beijing and received the desired tickets to the performance, the director of the theater troupe Zhao invited the young man to his office and began to talk with him in order to find out how he could help the young man to get a new apartment at the expense of the "father" in exchange for the service Li Xiaozhang. The young man is nervous because he is afraid of exposure and punishment for having taken a false name and for having escaped from a farm in the Northeast, so he suspects the director of the troupe in an effort to punish for lying and answers questions evasively, his answers are incomprehensible to the interlocutor.:

"Chief Zhao: How is the weather in Beijing?

Zhang Xiaoli (nervously): Thanks, it's fine, it's snowing.

Chief Zhao: Is it still snowing in summer?

Zhang Xiaoli: No, it snows in winter. It's the same all over the country: it always snows in winter.

Chief Zhao: Yes, yes, of course. Did you come from Beijing on some business this time?

Zhang Xiaoli: I'm so nervous. I'm most afraid of business trips.

Head of Zhao: So you came to visit friends? What other intentions do you have?

Zhang Xiaoli: (warily): Why are you asking? What's wrong with intending to watch a play? Is it forbidden?

Supervisor Zhao: No, I mean, apart from visiting friends, what other goals do you have?

Zhang Xiaoli: I just want to relax and watch the play" ^{[16, p. 5]}.

Sha Yesin uses the "one instead of the other" technique in the episode when the main character calls from Director Qiang's apartment, allegedly to the Nanhu Hotel, to cancel the room reservation. Wanting to deceive the official standing next to him, Li Xiaozhang dials a random number and gets into a funeral home. The hero's words about the details of his life in the context of the topic of death in a dialogue with an employee of the bureau generate a comic effect.

Thus, we can say that the refraction of N. V. Gogol's satirical traditions in Sha Yesin's comedy "If I were Real" is largely due to the domestic political situation in China in the 1970s, as well as the influence of national traditions of Chinese literature. In this regard, the satirical traditions of N. V. Gogol's comedy "The Inspector" in Sha Yesin's work were used to the extent that it was necessary to express the author's main idea based on the ideological side of Gogol's plot, which explains the priority of borrowing plot techniques and humorous situations presented in the comedy "The Inspector". The productivity of comparing N. V. Gogol's comedy "The Inspector" and Sha Yesin's play is another confirmation of the idea that "a work of foreign literature, once in a new context and becoming part of it, participates in the development of perceiving literature, on a par with the works created inside it" ^[13]. The reception of Gogol's satire allowed Sha Yesin to create an original work that enriched Chinese literature.