Death's End

Cixin Liu is the most prolific science fiction author in China; his numerous novels have sold millions of copies around the world, garnering widespread international support, as well as many awards. Liu’s journey to science fiction prominence ended the genre’s dearth in China: “Science fiction was a rarity in China when Liu was growing up because most western books were banned. Living in a coal mining town in Shanxi province as a young man, he found a book hidden in a box that once belonged to his father” (Reed, Betsy. “Liu Cixin: ‘I’m Often Asked—There’s Science Fiction in China?’” The Guardian, 2024). The book he found was Journey to the Centre of the Earth (1864) by Jules Verne; this speculative adventure novel sparked Liu’s intense interest in science fiction.

Liu has written many science fiction novels, the most prominent of which is the Remembrance of Earth’s Past trilogy. Its popularity has transcended China, largely due to Liu’s eagerness to have his works published abroad as well as domestically: “Liu was motivated to have his books translated into English partly ‘to let people in the United States and the English-speaking world know that China also has science fiction novels’” (Reed).

Broadly speaking, the genre of science fiction is divided into hard and soft modes; hard science fiction is typically more focused on the technological aspects and relies on extrapolating current research and theory into potential future applications. Liu works in this mode; for example, the Remembrance of Earth’s Past trilogy explores the potential of multidimensional quantum computers, gravitational-wave communications devices, light-speed travel that leverages relativistic time, and cryonics.

Some critics have pointed out that hard science fiction often leaves little room for character development and psychological depth—a comment often made about this trilogy, which is less interested in in-depth characterization or character arcs than in planet-wide generalizations of human behavior. There are also other concerns about some aspects of Liu’s work; critics cite the trilogy’s reliance on sexist depictions of women as stereotypically delicate and weak, as well as its praise for authoritarian governance as the best way to resolve crises.