Swedish sinologist considers future of Chinese literature positive

The future of Chinese literature was positive, said Swedish sinologist Torbjorn Loden at Nobel Prize winner Mo Yan's lecture at Stockholm University on Sunday.

"When I look back at China's development over the past 30 years I can see that nowadays Chinese writers are living in a much more open environment than 30 years ago," said Loden during the dialogue with the Chinese laureate of 2012 Nobel Prize in literature.

He added that he saw Mo Yan mostly as a story teller, so readers could enjoy Mo's stories even if they didn't understand the cultural background in his work.

Loden then suggested that people come to learn Chinese so that they could have a better understanding of Mo Yan's literature.

"I think Mo Yan's novel is very different from what I have read in Sweden because he has such a great imagination," said Michael Karlsson, Mo Yan's Swedish reader.

He said he had read Mo Yan's "Life and Death Are Wearing Me Out" and enjoyed reading it.

"I want to go to China in the future and see the world that was described in his book," said Karlsson.