The True Story of Ah Q

The True Story of Ah Q is an episodic novella written by Lu Xun using third-person narration perspective, first published as a serial between December 4, 1921 and February 12, 1922. It was later included in his first short story collection Call to Arms (吶喊; Nàhǎn) in 1923 and is the longest work in the collection. The novella is generally held to be a masterpiece of modern Chinese literature, since it is considered one of the first major piece of works to fully utilize vernacular Chinese after the 1919 May 4th Movement in China.

It was first published in the Beijing Morning News supplement as a serial. Originally Lu Xun wrote the story under the name "Ba Ren" (巴人, "crude fellow"), and so few people knew who wrote the novella. The first installment was published on December 4, 1921, and additional installments appeared weekly or fortnightly. The final installment was published on February 12, 1922. The novella had nine chapters.

Furthermore, The True Story of Ah Q also achieved considerable international influence. The translation of the novella began in 1925, indicating its early recognition abroad. During Lu Xun's lifetime, the work was translated into eight languages: Russian, English, French, Japanese, German, Czech, Korean, and Esperanto. Remarkably, Lu Xun personally encountered several of these translations, actively participating in the proofreading process for some. Expanding upon Lu Xun's international reach, Peng Xiaoling and Han Aili's article, "Ah Q: 70 years", found in Paul B. Foster's journal article, documents the novella's translation into over thirty languages, its adaptation into more than sixty reprints, dramatic renditions, a film, a ballet, and even its artistic expressions through cartoons and woodcuts.