Niqiu Protects the Watermelons 泥鳅看瓜 (1974) #

Niqiu Protects the Watermelons 泥鳅看瓜, illustrated by Zhong Shan 钟山, translated by Laura Aymar, Bettina Jin, Piet Kortenjan, Lena Henningsen, Sascha Sacknieß, Sophia Schöller, Joschua Seiler, Miriam Stadler, Yixiong Wang and Jenny Wiggermann, Tianjian: Tianjin renmin meishu chubanshe, 1974. (No author or editor named).¹

Introduction to the text #

Lena Henningsen

The first two pages set the scene for this story which takes place during the Second World War in China – or, rather, during the War of Resistance against Japan, as the Second World War (1937-1945) is commonly termed in China. The story takes place in Zhangjia Village which could also be translated as Zhang Family Village in Hebei Province. Despite the clear location, Zhangjia Village could be anywhere where fighting took place among the communist forces of the People’s Liberation Army and the Japanese invaders. These fights, the reader of this comic book learns soon, directly impacted the villagers as they fought on different sides. The village has been liberated and is now headed by cadres of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), who continue the fight against the threats posed by the invaders. The kids in the village are organized in a Children’s Corps, and Uncle Zhang is described as a family member of a member of the communist forces on page 2 (抗属, translated here as “military dependent”), rendering him a respected member of the community. On the enemy’s side, there are the Japanese soldiers, and, more despicable in the eyes of the local villagers, there are puppet soldiers (伪军), i.e. Chinese soldiers who fought for the Japanese invaders, and later on traitors (汉奸队 26), including a plain clothes spy (便衣队特务 31).

The time of action is specified to 1942, which marks one of the turning points in the history of the CCP. The CCP had set up headquarters in Yan’an (Shaanxi Province). 1942 saw the beginning of the first rectification campaign (延安整风运动) through which Mao Zedong consolidated his power. The reference to the Yangge tradition (秧歌, pages 13 and 19) also serves as a reference to the revolutionary, pre-1949 past of the CCP. Yangge are a popular dance form originating in rural North China. The CCP used this dance form as a tool to disseminate socialist ideas among the population.

The second historical point of reference for an understanding of the story is 1974, the year of its publication. After the tumultuous early years of the Cultural Revolution, the country is returning to a distinct level of normalcy, including the fact that publishing houses resume publishing new works of art, including pocket-sized lianhuanhua 连环画. With their combination of images and brief texts and with their entertaining qualities, these books addressed young readers in particular and thus could be used for their educational and propagandistic values. The story celebrates the heroism of Niqiu, a courageous and honest young boy who is clearly created to serve as a role model for his young readers. Niqiu is given the task to oversee the watermelons because of his integrity and because he is a good swimmer: He needs to cover a distance of half a Chinese mile (里) each day (5). Historically, the length of a mile varied depending on regions, today it is defined as half a kilometer, so half a mile equals 250 m – indicating that the water pond is rather big, and that Niqiu is a good swimmer.

The story contains scenes of youthful play and of careless mischief. At the same time, the children are called upon to contribute to the rightful cause – to which Niqiu responds by taking up the fight himself, despite the warnings of an older villager. A careful reading may reveal that the children’s playfulness anticipates a contribution to the larger cause. When Niqiu fools his friends using the watermelon, this trap is referred to with the term 空城计 (literally “empty city strategy” in which an enemy is deceived into thinking that an undefended location is full of ambushes, thus causing the enemy to retreat 22) which can be traced back to the 36 Stratagems, thus locating the plot both within the Chinese tradition and within the 1970s when the 36 Stratagems continued to be referred to. Moreover, it frames the story of a young boy within the realm of strategies of military defense against a potent enemy.

His courageousness is crowned with victory – and framed within the proper rhetoric of the Cultural Revolution. He resists the threats of the spy, as “children raised by Mao Zedong's Thought do not listen to such kinds of threats, and temptations have no effect on them.” (47) And the villagers similarly make an explicit connection between Niqiu’s success and the efforts of the CCP by stating: “Niqiu is a good boy educated by the Communist Party, he averted yet another harm to the villagers!” (57). As such the lianhuanhua is as much a witness to the historical past of the War of Resistance against Japan as it is a witness of the rhetoric of its Cultural Revolutionary present.

About the translation #

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Read the translated lianhuanhua #

Front and back cover

Frontmatter

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