The Underlying Power of Movies

Sijie uses the symbol of the movies to show how the narrator and Luo working to creates a feeling of unity within the village and young intellectuals, thus furthering their hope of acceptance and returning home. The narrator and Luo begin to retell a film to the village. As they conclude the enticing tale, the villagers are moved by the unique story. The narrator observes that “The effect had been as grandiose as that of the screen version. The whole audience wept, even the village headman, who, for all his harshness, couldn’t hold back the tears pouring hotly from his left eye...” (Sijie 35). Luo and the narrator are able to reach out and connect to every single villager through these reenacted movies. Not only can the simple act of coming together once a month to watch these performances bring the village together, but the overwhelming shared emotion brought upon each and every villager bring a sense of unity. Having a purpose in the village, and being the ones to be responsible for this unity in the village can further bring a sense of hope and purpose to both Luo and the narrator. Additionally, After the narrator and Luo had taken several trips to the town, the narrator feels grateful for the opportunity of leaving the grueling work. He expresses his gratitude, thinking, “I wouldn’t go so far as to say that our visits to town had become an obsession but at least having to trudge across the mountain to see a film meant getting four days off from labouring in the fields…”(Sijie 81). The films gave a sense of refuge for the two youth. Rather than being forced to spend their entire time in the desolate fields working, the narrator and Luo are given a chance to travel. This provides hope for them to get through the strenuous re-education since they have journeys to look forward to. Therefore, the films unite the villagers through emotional affect, and at the same time give hope to the youth.