Renowned for his absurdist re-visioning of the world and experimentation with the techniques of humour in his writings, Lao She has written about most major historical events in modern China. In is masterpiece Camel Xiangzi, he reveals his prophetic vision of the future of China. The novel depicts the life of Xiangzi, a young rickshaw-puller in Beijing, who fails to improve his life no matter how hard he works. When innocent people's hopes are destroyed, they are awakened to the truth that they are but playthings of fate, which is a Chinese concept for the unnameable in life's absurdities. The novel demonstrates the techniques of bitter humour Lao She employs in his portrayal of characters, who are caught in the endless social turmoil in the 1930s. The novel's socio-historical dimensions have made it a widely used text for the cultural analysis of modern China.
老舍擅長描繪現代中國的重大歷史事件，並以其看待世界的荒誕視角和幽默筆觸著稱。在《駱駝祥子》一書，作者預見了中國的未來。小說描寫北京一個叫祥子的洋車夫生活中遭遇的挫折。當天真的老百姓的生活希望破滅後，認識到自己不過是命運的玩物；這是對造成生活荒誕性的某種不可名狀力量的中國式解讀。小說在人物塑造上體現了老舍的苦澀幽默；這些人物被捲入20世紀30年代中國無休止的社會動盪中。小說展現的社會歷史層面使之成為對現代中國進行文化分析的範本。