AI Wei Wei: Never Sorry, Essay Example

The film Ai Wei Wei: Never Sorry presents a glimpse into the life of a Chinese artist and activist. The depictions in the film provide insight into the way in which individuals in his society face the judgment of the authoritarian government when speaking out on issues concerning its regime. In antagonizing the government through his art and poetry, he has essentially garnered a following that has propelled him to international fame.  This narrative presents insight into how the global perspective has shifted in regards to the individuals within countries and their relationships with their governments.  These relationships are informed by the social interactions that individuals within society are able to have.

The narratives and images seen in a film, from a global geography and social sciences context, present an insight into the way in which this individual has struggled to tell his story to the people of the world.  In this way, the advent of the internet is an essential factor in his ability to overcome the geographic limitations that he faces.  The discovery of blogs allowed him to continue to put his voice out there.  In this way, the internet was an important factor in his ability to overcome the limitations that he had in the time and place that he found himself in.  The fact that the internet was there provided him the opportunity, and so the responsibility, to act in order to create some type of change.

Despite efforts for the government to keep his artistic expressions from gaining traction, he has attained worldwide fame for the struggles that he has faced. This presents insight into the way in which the government’s attempts at controlling the aesthetic purposes of his following have only resulted in their growth.  In this way, the movie presents the importance of the international community in helping individuals such as Wei Wei in overcoming these obstacles.  Through the support he received, it made it much harder for the Chinese government to take advantage of his situation.  In this way, he was able to overcome that level of injustice, and continue to do his work.

One of the fundamental aspects that are represented in the documentary is the importance of social responsibility.  The actions of Wei Wei exemplify his commitment to the social responsibility that individuals have in stemming the amount of say that the government has in the ability for people to express themselves.  In the film, he discusses the fact that he must shoulder this responsibility due to the fact that his parents’ generation were unable to.  This idea stresses the importance of social responsibility that underlies the artistic expressions that he creates.   Beyond simply commenting on social injustices, he displays his ideas, being a symbol himself for social justice.

The idea of a person’s origins is important in this story.  It relates the aspect of his home country to the problems that he sees in everyday life.  Although he identifies as a Chinese citizen, and has national pride, it does not stop him from commenting on the issues that he sees in his everyday life. In this way, his example is important for all people. He faced danger and complex political motivations that could have resulted in his imprisonment or death.  However, bearing this sense of responsibility, he has continued to crease his artwork in order to help make his home country a better place.

The importance of his origins is represented in the movie by his unwavering ability to criticize the country despite the danger that it posed to his person and his future as a successful artist.  This is regarded as a social and geographic representation of his identity.  Beyond his Chinese cultural views, he sees the importance of seeking justice on the international stage, and his art, as well as his political activism, are reflections of that fact.  In this way, his creations are social and political interpretations of the geographical relationships that countries the world over share with one another.

The work that Wei Wei has made represent the international ideas of social order that he sees as important. In this way, his work represents the geographic underpinnings of national pride.  While he is under the hammer in China, he could easily move to the United States.  However, with the help of the international community, he is able to continue to work in China and make his social observations.  This is interesting, as he faces dangers in doing so, and presents the idealized struggle that he depicts in his own art.  These dangers represent the importance of his responsibility as both an artist and a global citizen.

The social underpinnings of Wei Wei, Never Sorry are presented through the lens of his artistic expression.  The symbolism in his work, while abstract, expresses a mix of Chinese culture and global ideology. In this way, his works seem to represent the common social struggle being waged by individuals across the world.  In this way, his work transcends the geographic and social dimensions of his own country and touches upon those ideologies that are important to those in the rest of the world.  His ability to provide this social commentary is important in artist’s role to express he injustices of society.

This idea represents the tension in his work between culture and the influences of global trends. While his work is mainly rooted in Chinese historical ideas, he also incorporates many western ideas and symbols, from his time in New York.  His ability to continuously produce this work while simultaneously incorporating social issues from both China and the international stage is important in the aesthetic representations of political commentary that he is trying to create.