Rural areas should not be consumed with prejudice; take a rational view of the true face of the countryside
Expressions that appear to be "where there are pictures, there is truth" are mixed with quite a few "hidden agendas." Overgeneralizing, transplanting one thing onto another, and false correlations: with this mindset and discourse, one cannot see the real countryside, still less the splendor of China's countryside. In the face of the vast and profound countryside, one must not consume it with "prejudice," and even less may one smear it in the name of sentiment.
During the Dragon Boat Festival, an article titled "Cruel Tales from the Underclass: A Video App's Chinese Countryside" flooded many people's WeChat Moments. Taking a certain video application as an example, the article used all kinds of so-called "bizarre" videos on the platform, such as a Hebei auntie eating light bulbs for self-abuse and firecrackers exploding in trouser crotches, and various other bizarre people and events, to describe how rural youth try every possible means to "fight for attention," leaving many readers deeply shocked. Within just a few hours, the article's readership surpassed 100,000, and it also sparked controversy from many sides.
"On one side are Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen, with high-speed rail speeding and high-rises standing in profusion. On the other side is the chaotic, sinking Chinese countryside in the videos. Two plates, symmetrical like black and white, exactly form a complete and real China." In this article, the author's description of impressions of China's countryside includes seemingly objective cases and data, and also repeatedly reveals his own humanistic concern for the rural underclass. However, this seemingly "where there are pictures, there is truth" mode of expression is mixed with quite a few "hidden agendas" of prejudice against the countryside, making one feel as if there is a bone stuck in the throat, compelled to speak out.
Hidden agenda one: overgeneralization. The most central issue in data analysis is the representativeness and authenticity of the data; only reasonably sampled data can reflect the real situation to a greater extent. However, in this article, first, the traffic statistics ranking concerning the video app lacks objectivity and authority. Second, even without considering authority, what proportion do the "freakish" videos presented by the video app account for among all videos related to the countryside on that video app? None of these core data are provided. In fact, on the video app, besides these absurd videos, there are also many other videos of normal rural life. Qualitative research certainly needs typical cases, but one cannot casually take a case or cut out a fragment and say this is the Chinese countryside. The impression this article creates for readers is brought about by interspersing data analysis and typical cases; however, the reliability and validity of the article's data are questionable, and the cases lack representativeness.
Hidden agenda two: transplanting one thing onto another. "Brick-carrying Xiaowei" is an internet celebrity from multiple variety shows, and whether he is a construction laborer is doubtful; "Kuaishou Auntie" is from Congtai District, Handan; "Young Mommy-to-be" is from Xuchang, Henan... To stick a rural label on these people, it would be more appropriate to call them second-, third- and fourth-tier cities. The vast world has everything under the sun; why must these absurd and freakish videos be labeled rural? Why must the countryside be consumed in this way?
Hidden agenda three: false correlation. Seeing self-abuse videos makes one think of the harsh living conditions of left-behind children in rural areas; this is a correlation that many people easily establish. However, correlation is not equal to causation, and moreover, many of the impressions created in the videos are false correlations. As for those absurd videos, why did their creators film them? Did these videos attract attention because of rural identity? There is no evidence showing that the main producers and consumers of these video contents are rural people. False associations that ignore causation, after the impact and packaging of text and video, stride openly into the hearts of many readers; on reflection, this too is a kind of sorrow.
After reading this article, many people will wonder: Is this the Chinese countryside in our minds? Because in many people's impressions, even if the countryside is not a "pastoral poem," it is not a "dregs ground" filled with "vulgarity" and "cruelty." The real Chinese countryside is not a scene of prosperity, but it is even less a magical-realist concentration camp full of absurdity and freakishness. In fact, the principle is simple: from absurd videos to all videos, from that video app to all video apps, from video impressions to impressions in all media forms, from media impressions to actual conditions, the real Chinese countryside is far more profound and complex than a few absurd videos.
The countryside has the countryside's splendor; it is simply that we have not gone deep enough. Rural young people also have their love, lives and dreams. Perhaps they are not as grand and spectacular as in urban dramas, yet they have a distinctive mellow fragrance. Every brick and tile, every blade of grass and tree they build through their own hard work, tractors and modern farms, are in no way inferior in splendor to careers in urban office towers.
In today's China, the impressions of the countryside that people perceive, whether lively variety shows set against a rural background or the vigorous various notes on returning home during festivals, include no shortage of genuine feeling and true insight, but they often come mixed with silt, full of gimmicks, novelty-seeking, puerility and cheap laughs. Many times, some impressions of the countryside that seem full of emotion are in fact produced by a condescending mindset that consumes the countryside from above. With this mindset and discourse, one cannot see the real countryside, still less the splendor of China's countryside, and it will further create opposition between countryside and city, reality and imagination.
What this incident is worth reflecting on is: Why was such an impression of the countryside, full of loopholes and prejudice, widely reposted? Apart from many people's novelty-seeking mindset, it also reflects that against the backdrop of rapid change, China's countryside lacks too much excellent rural work. From screens and literature to media, impressions about the countryside lack works that are true, profound and deeply moving. When excellent works do not play their due role, the rural cultural market will inevitably be reduced to a stage for vulgarity.
A thousand readers have a thousand Hamlets. In the face of the vast and profound countryside, one must not consume it with "prejudice," and even less may one smear it in the name of sentiment. To prosper the rural cultural market and enrich rural spare-time cultural life, at the same time more excellent works must be created to truly, vividly and comprehensively reflect the actual conditions of the countryside, and to use excellent works to wash away non-mainstream prejudiced imaginings.