Iron & Silk: A first-person account on Chinese Culture
The reality of a group of people is not revealed by books, encyclopedias or scholarly investigations, but rather through the simple words of one who has lived in this culture. Mark Salzman’s Iron & Silk gives an account of the Chinese culture as experienced by Mark Salzman. Not only does Salzman present a personal portray of this culture, but it is also a side which most outsiders do not ever notice, as the popular image of China is usually Beijing, a , and not the Hunan Province or Changsha. Through his eyes, we discover a whole new world of ideals, morals and behaviors, as he tells specific stories of his life in China.
Salzman’s experience in China does not represent the wealthy foreign tourists who visit China’s metropolis. The well-known educational, political and cultural center, Beijing, is never a setting where events occur. Instead, we see the filthy conditions in which people in the Hunan Province and Changsha live in. The depicted images of poverty and flat rats laying on the streets right away places us in an unfamiliar position, as this is a China that most of us do not know of.
Perhaps the most impacting impression on the Chinese people is presented as soon as the book begins, and is developed as new stories are told. This issue is the relationship between foreigners and locals. There seems to be an issue about superiority going on throughout the book. First, the officers in the train station will not allow Mark to leave with his bag because of the contents he has in them. When this is no longer an excuse, they say his bag is too long to go in the train. Later on, we see another occasion in which the mail lady asks him to pay extra taxes to receive his mail, and when he finds himself in a lose or lose position, he is forced to unfairly pay this tax if he wants to receive his international mail. One last example is when Mark wants to get a cup of coffee in a club, but does not wish to stay in the club. After the long argument with the door lady, she pours some of his cup on the floor because his cup was oversized. In all of these examples, there is an emotionless reaction from the Chinese people. In Mark’s perspective, he would just be considered one more pest who does not deserve of their time or attention. From these examples we learn about a specific group of people, those who are too worried about their business to care about anything else.
In contrast to this bold relationship with foreigners, the book presents another style of life in which certain groups of Chinese people feel comfortable around a foreigner. When Mark’s students begin to introduce themselves, some begin calling each other names, creating a very clear informality in the classroom. This initial behavior develops into situations in which his students shout out random comments for mere fun. There comes a time where the topic of kissing comes up, and after much uncontrolled laughter, one of his students ends up calling him a naughty boy. Why the contrast? Why this duality in the behavior between different groups of people, who apparently come from a same cultural background. The answer to this question is not clear in the book, but what is clear is that this “socialist” China is not full of robotic people who always do as they’re told, and do what’s “right”.
A major ideal we perceive in this book is the loyalty and close attachment between teacher and student. Mark is assigned a teacher at his arrival to the Hunan Province. Teacher Wei is to help him progress educationally. Yet, we see that teacher Wei become concerned about his development as a person too. She also demonstrates a sincere interest in Mark as she waits for him after him after his first trip in China. In contrast to the non-concerned people, Teacher Wei represents a sensitive group of people who do care. She demonstrates that all Chinese people are not old in their relationships with foreigners.
Another important issue is the patriotism of this people in an environment of partial ignorance. They see China the ideal place to live in and as the solution to problems in the world, such as war. One of the most interesting experiences Mark has is the class discussion he has about WWII. His class seems very passionate about the subject. The subject of newspapers arises and Teacher Zhu, one of his students, mentions that newspaper in China always say the truth. Then he says that the world would be a much more peaceful place if China was the most powerful country. This is an ironic statement if we consider that what it implies. If the world were to be a “better” place because of one country, this means that this one country is exerting an abusive power over everyone else. This idea is similar to what socialism means. So we can argue that Teacher Zhu’s statement is incorrect as peace should come along freedom, and socialism is neither. Connecting both of Teacher Zhu’s comments, we can conclude that this is yet another group of people presented to us by Mark Salzman. They are those who have been deceived by socialism, and are as patriotic as could be, thinking that China is free of defects.
There are many more examples of very unique characteristics of different people that interact with Mark at some point throughout his two years in China. What matters, though, is the idea that Mark Salzman presents to us a face of China that could become controversial for the socialist government of China. His account on China takes away from the perfection that a country like this intends to show off to the world. Nevertheless, the author still admires and highlights the small details of kindness that certain people demonstrate to him. Mark Salzman presents to us a dual picture of China; the stereotypical type, bold rigid and perfect, against a delicate, humoristic and friendly side, with imperfections, but nonetheless, human. Salzman’s experience in China is meant to depict to us a culture within people, the way they live, their ideals, beliefs and morals, and he is effective in portraying this picture in a very personal approach.