Gao Xingjian
After the Deluge
"When literature becomes a hymn of praise for a country, the flag of a nation, the voice of a political party or mouthpiece of a class or group, it can be used as a powerful and crushing instrument of propaganda, but it loses its intrinsic nature ..." These words of Gao Xingjian, the Nobel Laureate for Literature in 2000, sum up his speech to be given on the inauguration of Kosmopolis 2008. The great Chinese writer spoke on the raison-d'être of literature and the sacrifices involved in defending creative literature against abuses of political and mass-media power.
Participants: Gao Xingjian
Related to Kosmopolis 2008, Kosmopolis
22 October 2008