The usually insular world of Chinese literature has been shaken by an unlikely voice: that of the nation's vast and often overlooked workforce. Wang Jibing, a 56-year-old food delivery rider, has made headlines with his recent win of China's top literary prize, highlighting a seismic shift in the country's cultural landscape.
This surge in worker-led writing marks a significant departure from previous eras, where intellectuals championed the cause of the working class. In the early 20th century, Chinese writers sought to portray the realities of labour, while under Mao Zedong, literature by workers was encouraged and tightly controlled. However, this era's emphasis on state-directed writing aimed at educating and mobilising the masses has given way to a more organic movement in the 21st century.
Today's worker-writers offer a starkly different narrative from their predecessors. Their works often reflect individual struggles, feelings of numbness, or despair, rather than idealised portrayals of collective toil. The poetry of Xu Lizhi, a Foxconn worker who tragically died in 2014, uses the imagery of a 'screw' to convey insignificance and replaceability. In contrast, memoirs like Xiao Hai's 'Adrift in the South', published in English last May, recount the 'bitterness and regret' of losing a decade to factory work from the age of 15.
Despite their growing visibility, these grassroots writers frequently navigate a landscape of censorship, with the Communist Party maintaining little tolerance for works that delve into sensitive subjects such as corrupt officials or collective organisation. Many writers post their work online, where it can be easily deleted, and publishers have reportedly demanded extensive changes to works like Zheng Xiaoqiong's 'Woman Worker', preventing its full publication.
The resonance of these narratives extends far beyond China's borders. Hu Anyan's memoir, 'I Deliver Parcels in Beijing', which became a bestseller in China last year, has since been sold to 16 countries, with an English edition released in 2025. These accounts offer an unvarnished look at the foundations of the globalised economy and tap into a broader unease felt by many. The growing sense of precarity within China's middle classes, alongside the struggles of its labourers, contributes to a shared concern about the country's trajectory and the potential for social status to slip.