Yang Shuangzi: Only Those Willing to Bear Social Responsibility Can Be Called Intellectuals

Yang Shuangzi, the author who won the International Booker Prize last month for 'Taiwan Travelogue,' attended the '44th Wu San-lien Award Laureate Cultural Lecture' today. Yang stated, 'Only those willing to bear social responsibility can be called intellectuals,' and expressed hopes that young people would value this land.

The event was held at the Huashan 1914 Creative Park in Taipei. Under the theme 'When We Love Deeply: Preliminary Observations on the Contemporary Taiwanese Literary Scene and the Characteristics of Millennial Writers,' Yang recounted her personal growth, literary influences, and how she has 'become' Yang Shuangzi, a Taiwanese, and a writer through active practice. She also analyzed the backgrounds and focal points of her contemporaries in literature.

In her speech, Yang discussed 'how to interpret failure,' noting that Taiwan's democratic pioneers made many efforts that appeared to fail. 'The event itself is neutral; its value isn't fixed at the time but emerges later when different meanings are assigned to it across time,' she said.

Using the 'Great Recall Movement' as an example, Yang noted the outcome appeared as 32 to 0. 'I wouldn't call it a failure. What matters is that we collectively experienced it. It didn't leave without a trace—it has become part of different generations' political experience, and people will each find their own value in it,' she emphasized.

Yang shared that during university lectures, she often asks students, 'Is anyone still interested in talking about intellectuals today?' While many hold university degrees, she stressed that having a degree doesn't automatically make one an intellectual. 'To me, an intellectual must take on social responsibility—that's a historical assignment everyone must face,' she said.

She also discussed varied international reader responses to her book, reflecting each culture's historical memory. Japanese readers approached it with reflection, Korean readers with caution, and Western readers focused on 'Did those two end up together?' Yang joked, 'No wonder—they're老牌 colonial empires,' noting how the weight of colonial history remains largely invisible in the West.

Some readers have accused her work of 'glorifying colonialism,' a view she disagrees with but respects. 'Colonialism is absolutely wrong because it deprives residents of their rights,' she asserted, adding that no progressive contributions by colonizers can justify it if imposed against the will of the local people.

During a lecture in Malaysia, a Chinese reader asked, 'Now that China has risen and become powerful, what's wrong with all Chinese-language speakers becoming Chinese?' Yang countered with Japan's imperial 'Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere,' saying, 'By that logic, China should have accepted the Co-Prosperity Sphere and prospered together for the past 100 years.' (Edited by Li Heng-shan) 1150613

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