ABSTRACT
In his story “Fuguan” (Adjutant), Shen Congwen writes about a country person’s impression of a clock, the modern instrument for keeping time:
He slightly lifts up his head and sees the white magnetic surface of the clock, on which he finds 12 Roman numerals and two sharp and slim hands, one long and the other short. At this moment, the pointed ends of the two clock hands are drawing close to each other, pointing to the top. Realizing that time is up, he hastily throws the money on the table and walks out of his office.
How far removed is his glance at the clock – silly, farcical, and ignorant – from modern civilization! On most occasions, time does not make any sense to these people:As for people like No.7, on the seventh day they saw away at their timber; on the eighth, they saw more timber; and on the ninth and the tenth, they still move their saws, the only difference being that they bend down to saw from above in the morning and lie down to saw with their faces upward in the afternoon. Who cares what day it is?
(“The First Eighth of the Month”)