Wang Anyi's Humanistic Care

Wang An'yi has proved herself to be a miracle in the current literary circle, who always stands beyond the general trend while in the meantime remains to be the focus of public attention. She writes changefully, in spite of which her works are also penetrated with a permanent feeling, that is, the concern for the individual life and the embrace of humanistic spirit.In Wang's horizon of humanism, all men are born equal in reality with different value orientations. Whether the secular desires of the common people or the ideals of the elite shall be well respected. Thus she never puts on a commanding pose to give directions to the public nor denies the values of the elite by the conventional standard.Consequently, in Wang An'yi's novels, the triviality of the daily life is always her chief concern, whether it is the narration of history or the description of Shanghai and the countryside. The basic necessities of life are all reflected in her novels, suggesting kind of worldly spirit of the writer. However, this description of the daily life by Wang An'yi varies widely from the identification or pursuit of the secular life embodied in the works of those new realistnovelists.On the other hand, Wang An'yi's humanistic value system involves two types of values, that is, the secular concern and the ultimate concern, which complement each other, forming an organic whole. She will not betray the personal integrity as a conscious intellectual despite her concern for the worldly affairs. In the same way, never will she give up her pursuit of the ultimate meaning of life while at the same time identifies with the popular culture and the secular desires. Accordingly in her novels there also exists the metaphysical consideration of the human beings, "where to? And where from?" It remains an eternal ideal for the human beings to seek a spiritual home, and for Wang An'yi, the identification with destiny is the effective means to comfort those weak and insignificant individuals. But compared with such idealists as Zhang Chengzhi, Wang An'yi shows more rational thoughts in her works.Therefore, Wang An'yi first of all identifies with the worldly affairs and asserts the secular desires. She never imposes her own value orientation upon those characters under her pen or any individual in reality. Her novels more displays understanding and toleration.