THE　LITTLE　STORY

Recently，the　“little　story”　has　developed　to　a　large　extent　and　has　been　warmlyreceived　by　many　readers　in　China．This　is　not　hard　to　understand．The　year　1958　witnessed　a　great　leap　forward：steel　production　increased　by　one　hundred　per　cent，grain　output　more　than　doubled，and　tremendous　harvests　have　beenreaped　on　every　production　front．Our　people，with　boundless　drive　and　energy，are　working　enthusiastically　to　substitute　prosperity　for　poverty　and　to　change　our　country　into　a　paradise　on　earth．It　is　true，everyone　has　been　bust：but　eachknows　in　his　heart　why　and　for　whom　he　is　working　so　busily．

With　the　whole　nation　leaping　forward　at　a　flying　pace，it　is　only　natural　that　the　little　story　should　flourish．Concise　and　deft　，it　is　able　to　grasp　the　latest　developments　and　portray　them　promptly　．All　of　our　little　stories　depict　people　who　are　devoting　themselves　to　production　and　construction，their　determination　and　boldness　in　overcoming　difficulties　and　their　eagerness　to　realize　at　the　earliest　possible　time　the　noble　ideal　of　creating　a　land　of　happiness—in　this　case，including　also　people　from　past　revolutionary　struggles　as　those　in　Seven　Matches　and　Into　the　Mountains　in　the　following　selection．

Brief　and　simple　in　plot，the　little　story　succeeds　in　portraying　the　spirit　and　the　true　face　of　the　ordinary　people．The　characters　in　the　stories　win　the　heart　of　their　readers　who，in　turn，are　enouraged　and　inspired　to　strive　for　progress．People　like　Mr　．Dulles　，who　knows　nothing　about　China　and　things　Chinese　，probably　will　claim　that　these　stories　are　instruments　of　“forced　labour　”！They　can　claim　anything　they　like　．The　Chinese　people　and　their　writers　believe　in　themselves　and　pay　no　attention　to　the　ravings　of　Mr．Dulles　and　his　like.

The　authors　of　these　little　stories　are　mostly　new　to　the　art　of　writing．Living　amongst　the　people，and　writing　about　things　they　find　moving　and　interesting，they　do　not　draw　their　material　out　of　thin　air　but　depict　real　people　and　true　incidents．Their　stories　are　something　like　reportage，and　yet　not　quite．Although　valuing　truthfulness，the　writers　do　not　overlook　artistic　expression．Because　they　know　the　necessity　of　artistic　handling，instead　of　elaborating　on　a　story，they　sometimes　compress　a　complex　plot　into　a　very　brief　compass　．

Who　are　the　readers　of　the　little　stories　in　China？They　are　workers，peasants，soldiers，students　and　administrative　personnel．Culturally，they　are　people　who　have　developed　new　interests．They　are　glad　to　spend　a　couple　of　minutes　a　day　reading　one　or　two　stories　about　outstanding　persons　in　the　great　leap　forward．This，again，is　not　something　Mr．Dulles　cares　to　know．He　would　like　to　see　China　remain　in　the　time　of　Confucius　when　the　people　were　illiterate　and　ignorant．But　contrary　to　his　wish，illiteracy　has　been　greatly　reduced　in　China　and　our　workers，peasants　and　soldiers　can　now　read　literary　works．

What's　more，they　not　only　read　literature，but　take　part　in　writing　it．In　1958，Chinese　workers，peasants　and　soldiers　wrote　tens　of　thousands　of　poems　and　songs，some　of　very　high　quality．The　poems　are　mostly　written　on　outside　walls　toaccompany　large　murals　．China　has　recently　harvested　rich　crops　in　poems　and　paintings　as　well　as　in　grain　and　steel．Under　the　circumstances，it　is　not　difficult　to　see　why　the　Chinese　people　are　so　interested　in　little　stories．

This　form　of　writing　first　appeared　in　China　in　ancient　times．Today's　new　crop　of　stories　may　not　compare　in　artistic　technique　with　the　old　masterpieces　yet，but　if　we　bear　in　mind　that　this　form　began　its　renaissance　and　won　its　popularity　during　the　great　leap　forward，we　can　readily　see　a　brilliant　future　for　it．It　will　soon　become　a　literary　vanguard　，arousing　the　people's　enthusiasm．Our　new　cultured　workers，peasants　and　soldiers　will　themselves　also　write　such　stories．

I　do　not　mean　to　say　that　the　little　story　will　replace　the　longer　story　or　even　the　novel　which　I　have　no　intention　of　disparaging　．But　we　alsourgently　need　short，concise　writings　portraying　the　new　and　colourful　scenes　in　the　drama　of　our　people's　leap　forward．The　little　story　is　a　lovely　flower　which　is　blooming　luxuriantly　in　our　garden　of　literature．