아큐와 장자, 무엇이 다른가?

Abstract

Chinese educator and politician Guan Feng claimed that Ah Q, who is the main character of the novel The True Story of Ah Q and the Zhuang Zi, share the same idea, and that they should be criticized. Ever since such allegations were made, Chinese scholars have been having some confrontations between the pros and cons of Guan Feng's view and they had actively discussed. Of course, until this day there has been no clear conclusion on the issue, and scholars are expressing their views by presenting their own arguments. Ah Q had a habit of comparing himself with others – a weak attitude to the strong and a strong attitude to the weak – a standard of conduct that did not undergo a minimum of reflective thinking. And when he encountered a reality that he could not overcome by his competence, he actively realized the concept of the so-called “The Spiritual Victory”. On the other hand, after dividing the inside and outside of the body, Zhuang Zi thought that he should really care about what was the inside of the body, in other words it's mind. He insisted that he should clear his mind through Xin Zhai and practice Zuo Wang until he could forget who he was. For Zhuang Zi, this is exactly the state of Xiao Yao You. Although he admits that it is difficult to reach Xiao Yao You, he argues that if by the time one reaches Xiao Yao You, the spirit will not be bound by anything and would have already achieved complete freedom. Ah Q and Zhuang Zi wanted to gain comfort in the face of inevitable reality, but the methods and contents they chose were quite different. This is because Ah Q was obsessed with reality until the end, but Zhuang Zi honestly admitted her limitations in front of reality and focused more on gaining freedom of mind. The point where these two persons contrasted sharply is the event of death. In the face of death, Ah Q's “The Spiritual Victory” failed, but Zhuang Zi's Xiao Yao You had a philosophic death and greeted it with a disinterested attitude.