Medicine by Lu Xun. The complicated historical background is even difficult for Chinese. Here is something you might be interested in.
Uncle Kang is the one who told Big-bolt where and when they could get the blood (p256, line 10-11 & line 19). Executor sold Xia Yu’s blood to many people to earn money (Big-bolt was one of the buyers)(the beginning in the 4th paragraph in p.254)
The idea to consume human blood to cure tuberculosis is a folk remedy known by everyone. (p. 253, the last two lines from the bottom) (p.256, line 30-32)
Xia family: Mother Xia is the Fourth Master Xia’s wife (the Fourth Master had passed away), and her son was Xia Yu. Xia Yu’s uncle, Third Master Xia, turned him in and was rewarded for 25 white silver.
Mantou looks like this
Footnote 2 on p.259, Xia Yu suggests Qiu Jin, a woman revolutionary. Qiu Jin joined the anti-Qing revolutionary group which in 1905 led by Sun Yat-sen who overthrow the Qing Dynasty in 1912. Qiu Jin and her cousin Xu Xilin worked to unite many secret revolutionary societies, unfortunately, they both got caught in 1907. They died as heroes..
Lu Xun and Qiu Jin were both studied in Japan that time, but Lu Xun refused to go back to China. Qiu Jin scolded Lu Xun as a traitor who knows nothing but bully Han (the biggest race in Chinese). That was probably the reason Lu Xun wrote this article to insult her back.
Medicine is written in 1919; however, it is based on a true story about Qiu Jin that happened in 1907 (footnote 3 on p. 254, that was Qing Dynasty soldiers’ uniforms)
This is Qiu Jin’s story if you are interested.
Lu Xun satirized about Chinese ignorance about the superstitions of human blood as a treatment for tuberculosis. Also, he claimed that revolution is not the medicine saving the country especially when people are superstitious and ignorant.
Lu Xun is for communism, when he wrote this article, he disapproved the new government which was established in 1912 (Republic of China). That was why Mao Zedong praised him. Mao Zedong finally took control of China in 1949 (People’s Republic of China); and at the same time, because of military losses in the Chinese Civil War, Republic of China retreated to Taiwan.
To what extent does “Medicine” offer a bias view of revolution
The way people reacted to Xia Yu’s execution in the tea shop (257) is only Lu Xun’s bias.
Many people during that time didn’t dare to support the revolution in public, but it didn’t mean they didn’t want it. Most Han population disapproved Manchu’s ruling. Otherwise, how could Sun Yat-sen overthrow the Qing Dynasty? Moreover, someone who believed in revolution had placed the wreath with red (means the revolutionary’s blood) and white (means sun, metaphors bright future) flowers surrounded by Xia Yu’s tum. (258)
How Lu Xun controlled his manipulations by dealing with ambiguities
The crow appears in the end is how Lu Xun’s point of view on revolution.
- Xia Yu’s mother’s reaction to the crow was a symbol of superstition and ignorance as all the people except Xia Yu in the story.
- For Chinese, crows symbolize tragedy, death, fright, and the unknown. Lu Xun hints that revolution is like what a crow represents. It never works especially when people are superstitious and ignorant.
Two different philosophies/points of view/interpretations
Xia Yu in Jail was still passionate about revolution by trying to persuade the jailer to rebel against the emperor.
Vs. Uncle Kang
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