Ah Q mentality

The "spirit of Ah Q" or "Ah Q mentality" (阿Q精神, A Q jingshen)


Sudah dua kali teman ini bercerita tentang Lu Xun yang berhenti belajar ilmu perubatan kerana berazam mengubati masyarakat yang sakit dengan menjadi penulis. Maka jadilah Lu Xun itu penulis yang besar. Salah sebuah karyanya yang terkenal ialah ‘The True Story of Ah Q” ― sebuah karya yang mengingatkan saya kepada Don Quixote.

2.

Dari Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, kita petik bahan berikut untuk renungan bersama:

Synopsis

The story traces the "adventures" of Ah Q, a man from the rural peasant class with little education and no definite occupation. Ah Q is famous for "spiritual victories", Lu Xun's euphemism for self-talk and self-deception even when faced with extreme defeat or humiliation. Ah Q is a bully to the less fortunate but fearful of those who are above him in rank, strength, or power. He persuades himself mentally that he is spiritually "superior" to his oppressors even as he succumbs to their tyranny and suppression. Lu Xun exposes Ah Q's extreme faults as symptomatic of the Chinese national character of his time. The ending of the piece – when Ah Q is carted off to execution for a minor crime – is equally poignant and satirical.


References in modern culture

In modern Chinese language, the term the "spirit of Ah Q" or "Ah Q mentality" (阿Q精神, A Q jingshen) is used commonly as a term of mockery to describe someone who chooses not to face up to reality and deceives himself into believing he is successful, or has unjustified beliefs of superiority over others. It describes a narcissistic individual who rationalizes every single actual failure he faces as a psychological triumph ("spiritual victory").


3.

Berapa banyak Ah Qkah di sekeliling kita?