Preface to the English Edition of 

The Human Realm

— Liu Jiming, February 10, 2026

It has been exactly ten years since the publication of The Human Realm. In my original postscript, I reflected on its twenty-year gestation—a journey starting in the mid-1990s and concluding in 2015, accompanying me from my youth to the present. In the summer of 2015, I stayed in Changshengzhuang, a mountain village retreat for the Wansongpu College of Letters. There, amidst orchards and reservoirs, I rediscovered a long-lost earthy vitality; at night, under the vast starlit sky, I found a profound tranquility far removed from the clamor of the world. Upon returning to Wuhan, I completed the final revisions, restructuring the novel into its parallel paths for Ma La and Murong Qiu.

Upon its release in 2016, the renowned writer Zhang Wei noted: “The Human Realm allows us to rediscover the simplicity and dignity that contemporary literature once possessed amidst today's shallow clamor”. Later that year, critics at a Beijing symposium recognized the novel’s "stubborn growth" within a climate suppressed by capitalist production relations. Scholar Chen Fumin remarked that without such voices, this historical period would be a disgrace, linking the work to the inner spirit of the socialist movement. It was here that the critic Li Yunlei first proposed the concept of "New Socialist Literature," viewing The Human Realm as a profound exploration of "where China is headed".

"In a letter to me, Mr. Han Shaogong wrote: 'An unprecedented reconstruction of utopia, a comprehensive reckoning and quest for answers. In this sense, such writing is itself a momentous act of spiritual merit that deeply moved me. The topicality of this book is likely to be enduring, broad, and profound—far exceeding all our expectations.'"

Despite this acclaim and several awards, the mainstream literary establishment’s reaction remained lukewarm—a reflection of the long-standing marginalization of socialist themes. At the time, I viewed this novel as the "conclusion" of my literary career. However, at the urging of scholars who saw my characters as being in an "unfinished state," I eventually produced Black and White—a novel that many consider the culmination of the themes started here.

Now, one year after the English release of Black and White, The Human Realm is finally making its debut in the English-speaking world. I am deeply gratified and wish to thank Mr. Gang Chen and Vero Publishing for their unwavering support in bringing my work to a global audience.