The Detective Turns Gentle, But the World Becomes Uglier: Chi Wei-jan on His New Work 'Game of Humanity': Witnessing the Triumph of the Death Drive

"Today, 'goodness' in the human world is triggered by 'evil'; in other words, society needs 'badness' to understand where it truly excels in being 'good.' Good and evil are engaged in an unfair baseball game with no distinction between first and second half—evil keeps batting, remaining undefeated, while good can only defend, with no vision of victory." This is how renowned novelist Chi Wei-jan expresses his critique of contemporary society through the protagonist Wu Cheng in his latest work, 'Game of Humanity: Private Detective 3.'

On the 25th, Chi Wei-jan appeared with fellow novelist Chang Kuo-li at the INK Literary Lecture titled 'The Detective's World: Inner and Outer,' where he discussed the emotional journey behind creating the 'Private Detective' series. Over the past 15 years, both he and the world have undergone significant changes.

Chi's protagonist, Wu Cheng, once taught for decades and was a renowned playwright, but under the pressure of a midlife crisis, he could no longer sustain his career or marriage, ultimately abandoning everything to become a 'private detective.' The third installment of the series, 'Game of Humanity: Private Detective 3,' has recently been published, depicting Wu Cheng's move to Tamsui and his involvement—prompted by a tea friend—in collaborating with a detective agency and a mysterious organization to investigate a sexual assault case involving elite power figures.

Origin of 'Private Detective': Using the Detective Genre to Process Inner Turmoil

Why did Chi decide to write detective fiction? He recalls that when he began writing the first 'Private Detective,' he was "at the lowest point of his emotional state." At the time, his playwriting had hit a wall: "I realized my personality and the tone of my scripts were becoming increasingly sarcastic and misanthropic. I didn't like myself that way, nor did I like the state of my scripts." He decided to pause writing and use storytelling to organize his thoughts. "But I don't keep a diary, so I chose to process my emotions through the format of a detective novel." This led to the birth of the first 'Private Detective' in 2011.

Chi realized that Wu Cheng and the murderer are two sides of the same coin. "Symbolically, the murderer is born from Wu Cheng himself. It's a cliché theme." He explains that when a person chooses path 'A,' they naturally follow it. But when they take 'A' to the extreme, he believes an opposing force—anti-'A'—emerges within. Thus, as Wu Cheng pushes himself to extremes, the very things he tries to suppress resurface. This is the core theme of 'Private Detective.'

Chi gives an example: Wu Cheng moves to Wolong Street, wanting to sever all human ties, but "when he takes it too far, another (the murderer) appears and pulls him back, reminding him he's made a mistake."

After the first 'Private Detective' was published in 2011, it received unexpectedly enthusiastic responses. Chi considered writing a sequel, but 'DV8: Private Detective 2' wasn't published until 2021—ten years later. According to Chi, the sequel's sales were disappointing. One reason, he says, is the long gap between books—"people had forgotten who Wu Cheng was." But he points to a deeper cause.

When writing 'DV8: Private Detective 2,' Chi was nearing retirement. His mindset had softened, and he felt less pressure—this affected Wu Cheng's character. "Fans of 'Private Detective' didn't like the new Wu Cheng; they thought he had become too gentle, strangely so."

In the latest installment, 'Game of Humanity: Private Detective 3,' Chi once again uses Wu Cheng to express his evolving worldview. Since 2021, his mindset has shifted again. Despite the abundance of communication platforms today, he often sees hate speech and racial discrimination. "Under external influence, I feel the world is becoming uglier, and the sense of kindness between people is disappearing."

The World Turns Ugly: Fascist Rhetoric Spreads, Calls for Corporal Punishment in Taiwan

Chi references Freud's concept of life and death drives. In his view, "today's situation is one where the death drive has already overwhelmed the life drive." Hence, hateful language and actions are increasing, and wars continue to erupt.

The life drive (Eros) seeks life, connection, construction, and creation; the death drive (Thanatos) seeks stillness, separation, destruction, and annihilation. Freud's theory holds that these two drives form the foundation of all human psychological activity and behavior. This originates from Freud's 1920 work 'Beyond the Pleasure Principle' (Jenseits des Lustprinzips).

Chi expresses concern that fascist rhetoric is becoming increasingly rampant—not only in the U.S. and Europe but also in Taiwan. Meanwhile, left-wing forces are weakening. He cites examples: in Taiwan, some wish to return to the martial law era, and others advocate for corporal punishment like flogging, receiving significant public support. "Sometimes, these right-wing discourses frighten me."

In response, Chi uses Wu Cheng's dream in the novel to reflect on the current political climate. He writes of a family who wakes up one morning to find all their left shoes missing, leaving only the right ones. They suspect the manager or a prankster and call Wu Cheng for help. Wu Cheng stays up all night over the case, and at exactly 12:01 a.m., a power outage occurs. At that moment, he realizes his own left shoe is also gone. In that instant, he sees the left and right shoes fighting—but the left shoes lose and flee into a valley.

Chi continues: in Wu Cheng's dream, he follows to the valley and is shocked to find all the defeated left shoes gathered there. In the valley, the left shoes constantly bicker and fight, yet also huddle together for warmth. Through this dream, Chi conveys his view of the current situation: "Leftist discourse seems powerless. But right-wing rhetoric is extremely rampant."

'Private Detective' Will Have a Fourth Installment—Let's See How the World Changes

Chi says that as the kind-hearted Wu Cheng navigates this world and confronts evil, will he triumph—or be corrupted by it? This is the ongoing narrative of the 'Private Detective' series. Chi reveals he plans to write a fourth installment: "I don't know what kind of person I'll be by then. First, let's see what kind of world we'll be living in."

More exclusive reports from Wind Media: - The Hardboiled 'Private Detective' Was All a Misunderstanding: Chi Wei-jan Jokes Wu Cheng Is the 'Iron Egg Detective'—Love Is the Fatal Flaw - The Detective Turns Gentle, But the World Becomes Uglier: Chi Wei-jan on 'Game of Humanity': Seeing the Victory of the Death Drive - In a Noisy Era, Silence Is the Most Serious Protest: Excerpt from Chi Wei-jan's Novel 'Game of Humanity'