'Wishful thinking' to link Mo Yan's Nobel prize with China's rise
Official declarations that the world's most coveted literature prize recognises Chinese 'soft power' is wishful thinking, critics say
The awarding of the 2012 Nobel Prize for literature to Mo Yan is a great recognition of Chinese literary talent, but for the government to say it symbolises China's "soft power" and rising influence is wishful thinking, critics say.
Leading the media scrum after the Thursday announcement of the award, Li Changchun, the Communist Party's propaganda chief, proclaimed that "the Nobel literature prize for Mo Yan is both the embodiment of prosperity of Chinese literature and a reflection of the country's growing prowess and its international influence".
A day later, the English-language newspaper Global Times said recognition of the author was proof that not only Chinese dissidents were acceptable to the West.
"China's mainstream cannot be kept out for long in the West," it said.
Huang Yu, a journalism professor at Hong Kong Baptist University, said that the Nobel award had little to do with "China's rise", but was certainly reward and recognition for Chinese literature, given the prize's long tradition.
"Citing the prize [for Mo Yan] as a general endorsement of China's prominence is largely wishful thinking by the Chinese," Huang said.