Once literature is contrived as the hymn of the nation, the flag of the race, the mouthpiece of a political party or the voice of a class or a group it can be employed as a mighty and all-engulfing tool of propaganda. However, such literature loses what is inherent in literature, ceases to be literature, and becomes a substitute for power and profit.

Gao Xingjian

The Case for Literature

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Gao Xingjian. "The Case for Literature." Nobel Lecture. 7 Dec. 2000, Swedish Academy, Stockholm, Sweden.