- Published
"A star sent from the heavens," is how Zihan Han describes the man she's become a huge fan of recently, a man who young Chinese people call an "idol".
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people → send → who
Professor Biao Xiang has become an unlikely guide for an increasingly disillusioned generation.
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Xiang → become → generation
And it's because of what he talks about: anxiety and how to navigate it.
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he → talk → it
China's economy and tech have grown at breakneck speed, but there is plenty worrying its Gen Z, from jobs to romantic prospects to the sheer pressure of keeping up.
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economy → grow → pressure
"The transition from school to the real world brings a lot of uncertainty now, and people often feel anxious because they don't know how to face it," says a 23-year-old Chinese graduate who didn't want to reveal her name because she was worried speaking to foreign media might affect her chances of finding a job back home.
uncertain
speaking → bring → job
"People need an anchor in their life.
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People → need → life
And his words make us feel there is someone that gets me."
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that → make → me
She and Zihan were among some 500 people - mostly Chinese diaspora - who piled into an auditorium recently in Singapore.
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who → pile → Singapore
Xiang spoke for more than an hour in Mandarin before he took questions.
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he → speak → questions
When it ended, dozens queued to meet and take photos with him.
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dozens → end → him
The Chinese grad called it "an academic fan meeting".
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grad → call → it
Xiang has been interviewed by major Chinese outlets and has travelled to top Chinese campuses to talk, including at his alma mater, the prestigious Peking University – one talk earlier this year was live-streamed because the auditorium was full.
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auditorium → interview → mater
In Sinapore, Xiang spoke of the recognition young people seek in today's China, where they often look to systems for approval - from competitive exams to secure jobs - and how that approval becomes a measure of self-worth, which can be exhausting and damaging.
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which → speak → worth
It is healthier, he suggested, to seek meaning and understanding from others and use that to understand ourselves better.
uncertain
he → suggest → ourselves
But in a country where discontent can be politically sensitive and heavily censored, he is a rare public figure who addresses what he calls the "pain point of the times".
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he → censor → times
"Everyone knows where the issue is, but they are reluctant to look at it.
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they → know → it
Sometimes it is too painful to look at, or they don't have a way," he tells the BBC over tea in Singapore.
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he → look → Singapore
"But as an academic, it is not terrifying if you can describe it – that's how you analyse and manage it."
He now lives in Germany, where he is the director of the Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology, and studies social change in China and other parts of Asia.
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he → describe → Asia
Xiang believes Chinese society is at a "turning point", where people are searching for meaning while making sense of rapid social and economic change.
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people → believe → change
He sees contradictions – uncertain youth in a powerful, assertive country; disillusionment despite huge advancement – and his job, he says, is to unpack what is driving it.
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what → see → it
China's leader Xi Jinping has acknowledged it too: he said the "principal contradiction" was "between the people's ever-growing needs for a better life and unbalanced and inadequate development".
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contradiction → acknowledge → life
Xiang has catchy names for what is causing this.
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what → have → this
"Floating" is how he describes people working relentlessly just to survive, like a hummingbird that keeps flapping its wings to stay mid-air.
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that → float → wings
"The nearby" refers to what is immediately around us.
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what → refer → us
Xiang argues that people are preoccupied by the "very near" (themselves) and the very far (the world) while the space in between - "the nearby" - is neglected.
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space → argue → between
This, he says, leaves them feeling disconnected.
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he → say → them
This seems to be resonating deeply with young people looking for answers.
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This → seem → answers
One user on RedNote writes, "He consistently views issues from the perspective of the vulnerable, attributes personal stress to macro-level causes, and encourages people to actively engage with life - it's truly wonderful."
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it → write → life
Another says, "He never spouts empty, feel-good platitudes; instead, he crouches down to face real-life dilemmas alongside us."
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he → say → us
Zihan says it boils down to Xiang's willingness to talk openly about these things:
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it → say → things
"Those who have said similar things aren't as kick-ass as Teacher Xiang, yet people who are as kick-ass as him haven't said such things."
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who → say → things
Born in 1972, Xiang came of age during another turning point, as China emerged from the brutal chaos of Mao Zedong's rule to trade with the world.
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China → bear → world
It urbanised, ordinary people turned into entrepreneurs and businesses took off for the first time in the Communist nation.
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people → urbanise → nation
Growing up in Wenzhou, which transformed into an industrial port, Xiang witnessed this first-hand.
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Xiang → grow → this
"It was a vast landscape of small business owners," he recalls.
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he → recall → owners
"Most people didn't care too much about education, the focus was on practical matters - specifically, how to make money."
And many of them did.
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many → care → them
Their children grew up in a glorious era of double-digit economic growth.
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children → grow → growth
But the economy slowed during Covid and hasn't bounced back.
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economy → slow → Covid
The old equation - hard work = secure job - no longer works, and they want a new narrative, Xiang says.
Youth unemployment hit 21.3%, before the government stopped publishing the data in mid-2023.
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government → work → mid-2023
Those with "good jobs" - civil servants, corporate employees, engineers - are anxious about losing them.
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Those → lose → them
…and 16 more, not listed.
The Aporia
