Xingjian Gao’s The Other Shore can be analyzed from many different points of view as it has many exciting aspects. This work can be viewed in the context of personal experiences and problems, Buddhist spiritual concepts, or on a larger scale, for example, within the framework of China’s modern experimental theater and the general situation in the country. Despite the many themes that can be highlighted in The Other Shore, it should be considered primarily in the context of the cultural and political events in China at the time of writing this work. As a central thesis, it can be concluded that Xingjian Gao, with his play, wanted to reflect China’s interest in achieving success in various fields using both Buddhist and Western images and metaphors.
This idea is somewhat challenging to understand and analyze, primarily due to the fact that this theatrical play, even under the influence of the French Avant-Garde movement, still retains many specific Chinese elements. Since the story is built on metaphors and concepts that are close and understandable to Buddhism followers, for people outside this religion, some things may be incomprehensible. Besides, the piece’s perception can be complex if it is not possible to observe the performance directly (Zhao, 2010). Therefore, it is highly recommended for a complete analysis to visit this play in-person to thoroughly imbue with the ideas that the author is trying to convey. With this approach, one can fully understand the stylized and abstract concepts embodied in this Chinese drama.
An additional motivation to analyze and attend the production is that Xingjian Gao is virtually the only successful contemporary stage director in China. Besides, despite the radical and even eccentric approach, the author still combines elements of both Chinese and Western concepts in the production (Mambrol, 2020). This fusion makes the play more accessible to Western audiences, even though the issues at stake are specific. This is partly what makes Xingjian Gao so successful and The Other Shore such a famous play. The combination of several techniques and concepts at the same time gave the author an expanded set of tools with which he was able to reveal his main idea.
First of all, in The Other Shore plot, one can see a representation of the various problems that a person faces in the process of their development. Among the topics considered in the human subconscious are both the light aspects of personality, such as spirituality and hope, as well as hatred and cruelty (Swarthmore, n.d.). Thus, the author seems to describe the human personality from various sides, showing the soul’s versatility. This approach is reinforced by the presence of a similar concept in Buddhist philosophy that human life consists of suffering on this shore, while happiness and enlightenment are on the other side (Mabel & Liu, 2018). The author demonstrates that the play’s characters achieve what they want only by arriving on the other side. However, despite this concept’s seeming simplicity, the play’s text contains hints of a more significant theme. First, the characters are constrained and hindered by the desire for power and, especially, legitimacy. These themes include a reference to human consciousness and a specific situation within China, in the context of which the play is being staged.
At this stage, one can suspect the presence of some hidden meaning, which is easier to detect if you know the history of the development of the play and the author’s logic. For example, a hint that the work contains political overtones may be that the author left China almost immediately after the start of rehearsals, and his play was never performed in his homeland (Swarthmore, n.d.). The reason for this is the communist-realist theater of China, which would subject Gao’s play to strict censorship, effectively making it meaningless. Only outside his home country, Xingjian Gao could fully formulate and convey his thought through the prism of Buddhist images mixed with European culture.
By the state of enlightenment that a person hopes to achieve, Gao explains China’s achievement of success. Turning to the historical context, one can see China’s rapid economic, political and technological growth over the past several decades (Song, 2019). Using all possible resources, the country is trying to achieve the state of nirvana through success in various fields. Thus, The Other Shore is a metaphor for modern China’s development process, which seeks to break out of the backward state and get to the other side (Ren, 2012). Besides, the play reflects the processes of globalization taking place in China due to attempts to achieve the highest form of success.
In the pursuit of these values, the state actively tries to prove to everyone around its legitimacy and make others respect its growing power. In doing so, ordinary citizens often struggle to maintain their individuality in the face of such changes (Swarthmore, n.d.). Combining all these images, Gao shows through the life of an ordinary person and his desire to achieve enlightenment by reaching the other side, the processes taking place in China. The desire to gain power, the struggle within oneself is both a reflection of the human essence and the events inside the eastern country.
References
Mabel, L., & Jianmei L. (2018). Gao Xingjian: Transmedia aesthetics. Cambria Press.
Mambrol, N. (2020). Analysis of Gao Xingjian’s The Other Shore. Literary Theory and Criticism. Web.
Ren, Q. S. (2010). Historical reality, fictional narrative: China in the frame of Gao Xingjian’s theatre. China Perspectives, (82), 13–23.
Song, B. (2019). The experimental drama of Gao Xingjian inspired by avant-garde theatre. Neohelicon, 46(1), 69-79.
Swarthmore. (n.d.). The Other Shore. Web.
Zhao, H. (2010). Towards a modern Zen theatre: Gao Xingjian and Chinese theatre experimentalism. School of Oriental and African Studies: University of London.