Lu Xun Medicine Sparknotes

In Lu Xun’s Medicine, it tells a story which shapes the bourgeois democratic revolutionary Xia Yu’s personal selfless sacrifice and as a pioneer of the heroic revolutionary image, he reveals the tragedy of the Chinese society due to its people’s ignorance and calls for the urgent need to awaken the people but they have no awareness and even feel hostile towards it. Xun shows that the Chinese society must be freed from the long rule of Confucius and feudal superstition; otherwise there is no hope for the people. Xun successfully creates several marvelous images and symbols, reflecting the central theme while also giving the novel’s connotation and enhancement of artistic atmosphere. The beginning paragraphs of the fourth part depicting the cemetery setting really intrigues me. The scene seems to be necessary for the development of the plot—Mother Xia and Mother Hua visiting their sons’ graves; however, the underlying meaning of this scene is much more than that. The road leading to the cemetery is a novel image which highlights the significance of the theme, reflecting Xun’s superb language skills and deep subtle literary style:
The area by the city wall outside the West Gate was originally public land. Through it there winds a narrow path made by the countless steps of people takings shortcuts, a path that has now become a natural boundary. On the left lie the bodies of criminals who have either been
The crow “head pulled in, stands straight as a writing brush on the branch, looking as though it were made of cast iron” (259). This is a type of majesty of a revolutionary; its power is concretely reflected in the eerie society. It is a kind of image of “wearing armor” and “standing in confrontation” against the (Chinese) society. This reflects Xia Yu’s heroic revolutionary image and his personal selfless sacrifice as a