Title: "Talking about Lin Shengbin"
Date: 2021-07-10T08:30:21+08:00
Slug: "Talk-about-Linshengbin"
Tags: [Essay]
Draft: false
To be honest, my impression of Lin Shengbin is mostly based on the news of his family's brokenness - his wife and children died in a fire deliberately set by the nanny. I feel sympathy for him in such a situation. In fact, if anyone encounters such a thing, I would feel sorry for them.
As for the subsequent developments, I haven't paid any attention. How he writes love letters to his deceased wife, how he holds public memorial services, how he interacts with netizens, what does it have to do with me? Very little. So why should I spend extra time paying attention to them? His series of actions after the incident, are they truly expressing his pain or deliberately seeking sympathy? This is too complicated, and it is difficult to define, especially for someone you don't know at all. Everyone's thoughts, actions, and reactions to similar situations are different.
I remain neutral about this, and my attitude towards this matter is: I deeply sympathize with Lin Shengbin's experience, but his other life has nothing to do with me. The pain that Lin Shengbin showed when he heard the news of the fire, I believe it was genuine. But his subsequent actions and his pain are two different things. A few years ago, when my grandfather passed away, I almost fainted when I heard the news, I couldn't move on the road, and my heart was filled with regret and memories of the past, this was the first round of pain. That night at the train station, I couldn't suppress the discomfort in my heart, tears streaming down my face, this was the second round of pain. When I finally arrived home, I had already accepted the fact in my heart, silently lighting a stick of incense for my grandfather and keeping vigil next to him.
In comparison, my cousin burst into tears in front of my grandfather's spirit when he returned home, and he didn't want to get up until someone pulled him away. In the eyes of others, my silence may give the impression that I am not sad about my grandfather's passing. But that's not true, my pain and the way I experience pain are not visible to them. I use this example to illustrate that the pain of losing a loved one is real, and I believe this kind of pain exists in everyone's heart. After a certain period of time, this pain will gradually fade away. Different people have different reactions and ways of expressing their pain when facing the loss of a loved one. I was initially in pain, but after the pain, I began to face this matter calmly. My cousin may also have been deeply saddened when he heard the news and was moved by seeing my grandfather's photo, unable to control his emotions and cried loudly. We show our grief differently, but it doesn't deny our sadness.
I sympathize with Lin Shengbin, but I don't understand his subsequent actions. First, publicly expressing the pain of losing a loved one, and then prolonging this pain. Almost everyone has experienced the death of a loved one to some extent. Faced with the departure of a loved one, one would rather quietly accompany other family members and mourn the deceased during those few days. But Lin Shengbin made this matter public and made it a big deal. Of course, it is understandable that he wants justice. In China, there has always been a tradition of "making noise to distribute". In the end, he succeeded in turning this matter into a public event and sparking discussions among netizens nationwide. If he hadn't done these things, would he have attracted attention and received reasonable compensation? Does his final receipt of a huge compensation of hundreds of millions have anything to do with his actions? If it does, it would be too despairing.
Furthermore, the most incomprehensible thing is that he continues to prolong and publicize this pain. Whether it is holding offline memorial services or starting a children's clothing brand, he showcases his personal pain and life on Weibo. If it were someone else, they would rather not mention this matter again to avoid stirring up sad memories. It's not just about this matter, I also don't understand the behavior of those who share every detail of their lives on social media. When a loved one dies, they light incense and post it on their Moments; they stay up all night to keep vigil and post it on their Moments; the day after tomorrow, they attend the funeral and post it on their Moments. What's the use of posting these? Can it alleviate their inner pain? Can others truly empathize? Or is it just to establish an image of being a filial child? Similarly, posting about having a meal or gathering with friends on Moments. Does posting make the meal taste better? Does it deepen the relationship between each other?
There are too many things I don't understand. I don't understand the act of publicly sharing one's life, and I am not willing to do so for a simple reason - I don't know most of the people on social media, and they don't know me either. It doesn't reach the level where I can openly share my personal life with them, and I don't think there is a need to share. Because of the lack of familiarity, sharing inevitably leads to suspicion and comparison. In this sense, I seem to understand why online arguments are so common, because there is a lack of understanding between each other, coupled with anonymity, the cost of expressing emotions is very low, so anyone can come and argue. Of course, everyone is posting on Moments to share their lives, and I may have a unique perspective with this opinion. If everyone had the same perspective as mine, social media would probably be extinct.
Lin Shengbin recently made headlines again, and I briefly looked at various opinions. I found that many netizens' anger mainly stems from his new life - a new wife and a new child. To be honest, isn't it a good thing to be able to move on from the darkness of a broken family? But netizens are not happy - what about the image of being a "devoted man," a "good husband," and a "good father" that was previously established? It instantly collapsed. The netizens who used to support him were mostly influenced by his actions. Now, the netizens criticizing him are probably the same group of netizens from before - they rise and fall with the image.
Note: The translation provided is a general translation and may not capture all the nuances and cultural references present in the original text.