Synopsis

Through descriptions of folk traditions, rituals, and life on the steppe, Wolf Totem compares the culture of the ethnic Mongolian nomads and the Han Chinese farmers in the area, praising the 'freedom, independence, respect, unyielding before hardship, teamwork and competition' of the former and criticising the 'Confucian-inspired culture' of the latter, which the author referred to as 'sheeplike'.