Yang Guodong (www.yznews.com.cn): Mo's winning the Nobel Prize is something to be celebrated as a milestone in the history of modern Chinese literature. However, as for whether Mo's works should be included into middle school textbooks, there are certain principles to bear in mind when compiling educational material. The rules should not be broken now that Mo is a Nobel laureate. If someone's work is included in school material just because of a prize, textbook selection and editing teams can be dissolved. Why? Textbooks full of prize-winning material could marginalize the work of lesser known, but equally inspiring writers.

Textbooks must be suitable for teaching purposes and helpful in the improvement of learning. For many years, few Nobel laureates have had their works utilized as education material for middle school students. Why? Most of their works are difficult to understand. Even adults have trouble coming to grips with certain books, let alone scholars. In some cases, Nobel laureate works can be pretty hard to sell.

Although he won the Nobel Prize, Mo's work remains controversial.

Peter Englund, Permanent Secretary of the Swedish Academy, says that Mo makes readers see the dark side of society through sarcasm. For this reason, Mo's works are regarded as vulgar and carnal. Englund adds that, "Mo's stories are some of the most terrible I've read." Although some people say The Red Radish is an excellent work and can help teenagers experience the beauty of Chinese literature, it is partly a sexual piece of writing and unsuitable for scholars. If his works must be taken into textbooks, I think publishers should instead consider college material. After all, college students are adults who have a better understanding of explicit content.

Ma Diming (Yangcheng Evening News): My worry is that to what extent can students understand Mo's works? Is Nobel Prize literature suitable for middle school education? Indeed, I doubt that literature featuring such a magical style is fit for the purpose. More importantly, what lies behind the decision to include Mo's works in middle school textbooks? Is it to improve reading ability or provide a nutritional reading experience? Or is it only because he won the Nobel Prize?

If Mo's works are so suitable for Chinese middle school education, why has it been left out for so many years? Only when he won the Nobel Prize did his works become eligible, even though publishers have made little comment as to the exact reasons behind its suitability. Perhaps students are equally puzzled regarding the future of their textbooks?

Theoretically speaking, Nobel laureate works can't be too bad. However, it's ridiculous to include a writer's material only after he or she has just won such a prestigious award. In many cases, books that have nothing to do with the Nobel Prize are also very good.

Mo's works are not bad, but after all, few have actually read his books, based on the fact that literature is not high on most people's agenda at present. The craze after Mo's works, thus, is probably more related to his scooping the Nobel literature award than to the quality of his writing.

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