Mao And The Little Chinese Seamstress Summary

Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress
An overview of the book and political propaganda at the time
By Sujatha Changolkar 10-1, Liz Heit 10-2, and Cristelle Fremont 10-2

Main Characters:
The narrator (nameless)
He is a seventeen-year-old violin player, and once is referred to in the novel as "the fiddler. His name in English translates as, “Horse Sword Bell.” In the original version of the book, the narrator goes by the name Ma.
Luo
He is the narrator’s best friend and son of a famous dentist who bragged about fixing Chairman Mao’s teeth. He has a talent for storytelling. The book portrays him as a calm and cool character. He came up with the idea to trade one of Four Eye's book, Balzac, for labor. He reads the novels to the
Little Seamstress in order to “re-educate” her.
The Little Seamstress
She is the daughter of the famous chinese tailor.
The narrator describes her as a rare beauty. She has no formal education and does not know how to ead, so Luo and the narrator read to her. Luo takes his time “re-educating” her. She gets impregnated by Luo and gets an abortion. She eventually leaves the mountains to start a whole new life in the city.
Four Eyes
He is the son of a writer and poet. He possesses a suitcase full of banned novels that Luo and the narrator eventually steal. He’s referred to as someone who is used to humiliation. He ends up leaving the mountains when his mom convinces the government to end his re-education. He gets a job at a newspaper company.

Plot Overview:
During the Chinese Cultural Revolution in the 1970s, two boys are moved to be re-educated on a mountain known as “Phoenix in the Sky.” They are forced to work in coal mines, as both of their parents were revolutionists, and considered as threats to the government. During one of their trips, they meet the Little Seamstress, the daughter of the only tailor on the mountain. She is described to be the most beautiful lady on the whole mountain. The Little Seamstress is illiterate, as Luo describes her to be “uncivilized” but is captivated by the film plots Luo and the narrator tell her. Though both boys develop feeling for her, Luo is the only one to act on the feelings when he has sex with the Little
Seamstress.
At the same time, the two boys meet Four Eyes, who has a suitcase full of books forbidden under Mao Zedong’s rule.
The most prominent author is Balzac, and by reading these books, Luo and the narrator become passionate and open about the world around them. Soon, Luo, and the narrator decide to steal all of the books to continue educating the Little Seamstress. Once while reciting the story of The Count of Monte Cristo, the narrator is overheard by the village headman, a strict communist. The headman threatens the narrator that he will be jailed unless Luo fixes his teeth (Luo is the son of a dentist). To punish the headman, they drill very slowly, causing him great pain. He later thanks Luo and grants him a two month leave, to take care of his sick
mother.
When Luo is away, the Little Seamstress comes to know that she is pregnant, and with the help of the narrator, she goes to the city for a secret abortion. After their return, the personality of the Little Seamstress is completely transformed. She begins tailoring herself modern, city clothes, and adopts the city accent. One day, she comes to realize the power she had with her beauty and leaves for the city without letting the two boys know. Because their “re-educating”, the seamstress leaves them, and the novel ends with Luo burning all of the foreign books in grief.
Prominent Themes/Ideas:
Both education and literature can provoke curiosity in human beings.
Need for knowledge can never be banned.
Past trauma dramatically affects life decisions.
Prohibition can be a major influence for rebellion.
The difference between love and sexual desire.

Propaganda:
Chairman Mao, through the use of posters, portrays himself as almost a god. The Little Red Book is his ‘Bible’ that discusses his views. his portraits are suppose to give the people of China strength and his image becomes a true icon in the Chinese Revolution. → Use of education as an empowerment tool i.e. the re-education of the boys in Balzac and thousands of others during the time period
→In the book: The Little Flower Seller (the film that corresponds to a real Korean propaganda movie)

Examples of propaganda posters used by Mao’s party during the Cultural Revolution

Propaganda posters all promoting the Little Red Book

‘The sunlight of Mao Zedong Thought illuminates the road of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, 1966’