1. Rather than wanting writers to play prophets and judges, Gao suggests that they serve as observers ("better to wait and see," he says; perhaps this is like Szymborska's stance of "I don't know.").

• • What would it mean for the writer to "revert to the role of witness and strive to present the truth" (4)?
  • In what ways (and in what stories) might we see Gao assuming the role of "witness" (or how he uses his narrators)?
  • What "truths" does he present in his stories?