Party Members by Arthur Meursault is an intense, ugly, gruesome work of fiction that will leave most feeling nauseous. It’s also a page-turner that is kind of essential reading for China observers. Reader discretion is advised, be aware that this one may offend many if not all…
Basically, the novel is a satire which viciously critiques the excesses of contemporary post-economic reform China. As titled Party Members, it stars a low-level Communist party member who lives in a third-rate polluted city and decides to indulge in the very worst of corruption. It is incredible how far it goes, which is a testament to author Meursault’s mind in both imagination and depravity.
The protagonist, who is certainly no hero of the story, is Yang Wei. He starts out as a very unremarkable Chinese man. “Not one in a billion, but one of a billion,” exceptional in his mediocrity. The story starts out critiquing how dull and quaint the average Chinese citizen can be in their complacency, but soon Yang Wei stands out indeed as being a particularly shameless party member.
To be specific, one day Yang Wei’s penis starts talking to him and pushes him to literally act like a dick in order to get what he wants. So begins an series of progressively worse moral failings, from familiar disrespect to copious descriptions of prostitution and shallow consumerism. The literary critic in me ponders whether hearing of voices represents schizophrenia, or if an unreliable narrator device is at play. Although later scenes seem to indicate that it is ‘true’ in the world of the story, for reasons unknown his penis seems to gain the ability to speak and thereafter instructs him to be a terrible person.
Comparisons of Irvine Welsh’s Filth come to mind, which was about a corrupt police officer who had a tapeworm that could talk. Somehow, Meursault is even able to outdo the famed Welsh in writing vulgarities.
Despite whether or not the particulars of the story will appeal to all readers, Party Members is mostly well-written by technical standards and stays interesting one way or another. However, the descriptions can get too dense, and there are far too many adjectives. Even several long-winded speeches, satirical as they are, can come across as whiney nihilistic teenage rants. “The only way to be successful is to be a complete and utter dick… Just shit all over it!” More often than not the novel descends into telling not showing, with plenty of words such as “scumbag” thrown around in the narrative, unnecessarily reminding the reader how to judge the various scenarios.
Subtle, Party Members is not. Crass and disgusting, it still can’t be denied that it reads fast. It’s also hilarious at times, with ridiculous situations one can’t help but laugh at. In a sick sort of way. From toilet humor (there is actual drinking of piss as part of a scam marketing campaign), to the recurring theme of copiously describing greasy KFC food.
Yet, as the plot goes on it gets uncomfortably worse. Once the chapter about the child named Shanshan comes—which is about a terrible urban legend in China concerning car accidents and homicides—it becomes very hard to read.
The ending is legitimately horrifying. The question remains though, is this strange China tale supposed to be classified as horror?
Most unlikable protagonist ever. Which is of course the point.
It must be said that China is an enormous and complex country, with major problems but it may not be fair to look at it through the lens that Party Members embraces. The most cynical possible interpretation of Chinese society is a point-of-view worth exploring through this book, but there is a bigger picture and hopefully this isn’t the last word when it comes to China fiction. Meursault is certainly very knowledgeable about China issues and a talented wordsmith, but it just doesn’t seem healthy to focus that intently on the worst of the worst with no solutions whatsoever. Perhaps the genre is dystopia, in that case? Dystopia which takes place in the present.
All in all, reading this will leave a bad taste in one’s mouth. And being able to do that is something of a literary feat, in a way.
Party Members is available on Amazon.com and the ever-offensive Arthur Meursault blogs at arthurmeursault.com.
Ray-Comics 
Seems interesting in a depraved sort of way
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I would agree with that
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Especially the part abt the talking penis…I must admit, it’s a first ( for me anyway ha)
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I have this book and have been meaning to read it. Sometimes I feel so jaded about relationships in China that I wonder if it will faze me.
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Hi Ray,
Thank you for your kind review – I’m glad that you got time to read it and fair points made all round.
I was interested to see your thoughts on my use of adjectives and dense descriptions, as I had a converse opinion on your use of them in South China Morning Blues. In fact in my review of your book I wrote:
“Again, there are two types of people: those who love purple prose and convoluted description, and those who prefer a spartan style. I am the former while Hecht is obviously the latter. It’s HP Lovecraft versus Ernest Hemingway. Hecht favours a minimalist writing style with straightforward descriptions of the world he creates. To his credit, he “shows” rather than “tells”, thus avoiding the traps that a lot of writers fall into. Nobody can accuse South China Morning Blues of drowning in adverbs. However, this Hemingway school of writing has always rung flat with me and I found many of the scenes in the book lacking in local detail or colourful description.”
I do think that you and I are at opposite ends of this spectrum. Isham Cook would be another writer more at the descriptive end of things and I noticed he had similar thoughts on SCMB. There’s no right or wrong about it – just different taste and style I suppose. Some appreciate subtlety while some relish in detail – Tibetan Vs Zen Buddhism if one wants to get religious about it.
Thanks again and good luck with the new book!
Meursault
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Ha, Tibetan vs Zen. I certainly prefer Zen. Would descriptive writers also be Catholic then?
Thanks for your comment! An interesting discussion…
It’s true that I even used a lot of adjectives in this review. I suppose a book review is in fact essentially an opinion piece so it seemed appropriate to me. In fiction I suppose I do prefer a certain style. Not to totally disparage a whole class of grammar.
Overall I think the book is a great feat, albeit uncomfortably so (which, again, shows the power of the writing), and that was the main point of the review. I’d still argue there was a bit too much of a judgmental vocabulary that wasn’t necessary in my view. That’s all. Talking about how the kids are stupid, the parents are clueless, the shoppers are zombified, wasting time, watching dumb shows, that sort of thing could have been implied indirectly in a way which the reader would get without telling the reader so directly that they have to know how awful they all are. Do you know what I mean? That’s my view anyhow.
The debate can go on forever…
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Haha! I DO think Catholics are more descriptive than Protestants – just read some Michel Houellebecq!
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“it just doesn’t seem healthy to focus that intently on the worst of the worst with no solutions whatsoever. Perhaps the genre is dystopia, in that case?”
“dɪsˈtəʊpɪə, noun, an imagined place or state in which everything is unpleasant or bad.” Nothing in Party Members is imagined save for the talking phallus, which really is just an exaggerated metaphor for how Chinese officials view themselves. Every scene and anecdote throughout the book is ripped straight out of the headlines here. I myself would classify Party Members under the “officialdom lit” and “chaohuan” (ultra-unreal) genres.
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Pingback: Ray Hecht reviews Party Members – I am Meursault
Doesn’t sound like the kind of book I’d want to read, but having an utterly unlikable lead character doesn’t necessarily mean it’s not well-written.
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