China in Ten Words

Yu Hua discusses the concept of “copycatting” in contemporary China, exploring its various manifestations and implications, and the societal factors that have contributed to its rise. He begins by tracing the origins and evolving meanings of the Chinese word for “copycat,” which has come to represent not only imitation and counterfeiting but also a spirit of rebellion against authority. Yu Hua argues that the copycat phenomenon has penetrated every aspect of Chinese life, from consumer products and entertainment to politics and social interactions, becoming one of the most commonly used words in the country today.

To illustrate the pervasiveness of copycatting, Yu Hua provides several examples, such as the proliferation of knockoff cell phone brands like “BlockBerry” which feature President Obama as their spokesman, the appearance of Mao Zedong impersonators in various contexts, and the creation of parody TV programs and news reports that mock the rigidity and dogmatism of official media. He suggests that these instances represent a grassroots challenge to the elite, since the copycat phenomenon embodies an anarchist spirit that allows for plagiarism, piracy, burlesque, and parody to gain a degree of respectability in public opinion.

Yu Hua attributes the rise of copycatting to China’s “lopsided” development over the past few decades, particularly in the wake of the Tiananmen protests (189).