This paper examines Hao Jingfang’s speculative fiction—particularly “Folding Beijing” and “Xian Ge” as a critical lens through which to analyze contemporary Chinese science fiction’s negotiation with modernity. It explores how her narratives represent fragmented space-time structures to critique progress, social stratification, and the limits of human identity within technocapitalist societies. By foregrounding marginalized perspectives, Hao’s fiction challenges Enlightenment rationalism and offers a vision of humanity shaped by sociohistorical conditions rather than universalist ideals. The study further contextualizes her work within a broader global framework, positioning Chinese sf as both culturally specific and globally resonant. Drawing on theories of modernity, morality, and environmental ethics, this analysis argues that Hao’s fiction calls for a reconfiguration of human-nature relations and a renewed moral imagination. Ultimately, the paper situates Hao Jingfang’s work as a compelling response to the crisis of the Anthropocene and the failures of modernist ideology.
Hyejin Kwon (Sun,) studied this question.