The Shortcomings Of Ah-Q And The Revolution

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Despite Ah-Q’s distorted view about the revolution, he also tries to test the legitimacy of the revolution by becoming successful through monetary power and joining the revolution with the other supporter, along with his own desires. As Ah-Q realizes the shortcomings of his impoverished state in the progress of social reform, he tries to seek other methods to become respectful and victorious in addition to his ideal moral victory method. After Ah-Q’s change in fortune, everyone’s attitude towards him change, “even though everyone recognized him as Ah-Q, his possession of a new jacket meant that a reassessment was perhaps in order. Waiter, manager, drinkers and other random passer-by arranged their faces into expression of tentative respect” …show more content…

Although the goal of the revolution is originally to change the old traditions of identifying one’s nobility and reputation based on the family and the family’s wealth. The people of Weizhuang, especially the Zhao family, immediately sees Ah-Q’s growing wealth as a concern and tries to make sure that Ah-Q will not do any harm to them with his newly gained power, even though Ah-Q is only concerned about himself becoming rich. Ah-Q’s distorted mindset that the revolution will bring him wealth limits the effects that the revolution actually aims to cause, which is to eliminate the polarized distribution of wealth and power among the rich and the poor. He is only becoming one of the rich people with the help of the revolution without executing the actual goals of the revolution. Ah-Q only tries to help himself to rid his current status while the revolution tries to help all the poor workers to have a chance to come together and fight for their deserved status without the oppressions of the old system and social pressure of being monetarily wealthy and respected by …show more content…

Ah-Q’s obsession with moral victory reflects both his unsuccessful life and the unsuccessful revolution, because he is only concealing the fact of his failure. The revolution calls for the unification of the lower working class to overcome the oppressions it has suffered under the current practices inherited from the old traditions in Weizhuang. However, the revolution only superficially changes the old ways without teaching the people of Weizhuang the actual meaning of the change because they all have their own desires and have the tendency to distort the goals of the revolution based on their own interests. The lack of enforcement and clear goals eventually leads to the doomed consequence along with Ah-Q’s

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