Throughout his life, Ah Cheng experienced major political and historical events that strongly influenced his literature. The Cultural Revolution and the rule of Mao Zedong spread across China starting in the 1960s and devastated millions of families. Cheng took a different approach to much of the literature ("scar literature") coming out of the revolution and, instead of focusing on the ill effects, chose to use his literature as a way to highlight the faults of the revolution. These counter-revolutionary ideals are subtle but evident throughout The King of Trees, to the extent that political chaos creates a backdrop to the short story, rather than the focal point. They manifest themselves in particular through the use of abundant metaphorical elements. By showing the effects of the "countryside" movement, a major reform during the reign of Mao Zedong, Cheng is able to comment on the Revolution through its characters and setting. Throughout The King of Trees, Ah Cheng reveals his political views towards the Cultural Revolution through his use of symbolism and his descriptions of characters and setting. Symbolism plays a key role in the short story by allowing the author to relay his political ideals. In The King of Trees, Cheng uses many elements of nature to represent both revolutionary and counter-revolutionary ideas. The King of Trees – and trees in general – throughout the novella is a symbol of counter-revolutionary ideals and ancient Chinese customs. Li Li, and in turn Mao Zedong's followers/the Red Guard, believe that "in practical terms, old things must be destroyed" (Cheng 43). This is seen through the felling of trees - the elimination of old Chinese customs...... middle of paper ...... they sometimes had to be ignored for the goals of the Cultural Revolution to become a reality. .The use of characters, setting and symbolism in The King of Trees allows Ah Cheng to display his political ideals. In The King of Trees, Cheng uses nature symbolism to show the positive aspects of Chinese tradition and the negative aspects of the Cultural Revolution. The characters, particularly Li Li and Knotty, represent Confucian ideals, which Cheng finds important to emphasize, especially after their eradication during the Cultural Revolution. Overall, the short story is largely influenced by its author's historical context, and Cheng uses a variety of different elements to convey his personal political messages. Works Cited Cheng, Ah. The king of trees. Trans: Bonnie S. McDougall. New York, NY: New Directions, 2010. Print.