Guabi Dashen: Hanging on the Brink

My encounter with Guabi Dashen was not by chance but driven by a deep curiosity and personal concern about the invisible forces shaping self-perception, particularly among those marginalized by society. This project is both a documentation of his story and a reflection of my own journey to understand how environment and social structures can limit one's self-awareness, often more profoundly than personal shortcomings.

I was inspired by rural individuals squandering demolition payouts and the "Shamate" subculture's misunderstood expressions in Shenzhen over a decade ago. I felt the need to explore why such pattern prominently emerged from marginalized groups mentioned above. These trap people on society margins (social exclusion).

In addition, prominent sociological theories such as Symbolic Interactionism helped me to understand how negative interactions distort one's "looking-glass self," and Anthony Giddens' Structuration Theory helped frame the battle between agency and systemic barriers ― despite positive agency, people are sometimes still trapped in structural constraints.

Realizing that self-awareness is often limited not by personal flaws but by societal forces, through this work, I aim to reveal the terrifying impact of these limitations, urging viewers to recognize the critical need to break free from external constraints. Furthermore, I feel strongly about my frustration at systemic inequalities and admiration for resilience in the face of adversity.

In documenting this story, I witnessed China's harsh social realities firsthand. I feel the weight of the barriers these theories describe. I oscillated between sorrow for the struggles I uncovered and hope from the determination I observed. I want to question if such obstacles can ever be overcome.

This is not merely Guabi Dashen's story, but a reflection of yours and mine as well―a wake-up call about the invisible forces we all navigate. And so, the story unfolds: Guabi Dashen, residing in Yingxiong Hui Apartment, came to Shanghai eight years ago to pursue a career in the tech industry. After a failed attempt to study abroad, he has been on a relentless quest to uncover the "meaning of life."