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This book focuses on a representative group of contemporary Chinese female celebrities including actors, directors, writers and reporters, notably personalities such as Liu Xiaoqing, Hong Huang, Chai Jing and the most sought after young generation actors, Yang Mi and Guan Xiaotong. It analyses the on- and off- screen roles of these famous Chinese women, and the cultural, gender and social impact and significance embedded in them, whilst highlighting controversial social and cultural concerns and debates in contemporary China. The book furthers the understanding of the role played by contemporary female celebrities who are considered as social, cultural and feminist icons in present-day China, as reflected in their work, careers and private lives, and whose experiences help to understand Chinese women's attitudes towards key issues such as career trajectories, marriage and family, gender identity, social changes, civil debates and political transformations, all of which are at the center of societal transformation in China.
List of contents
Introduction.- A Feminist Reading of Chinese Actress Liu Xiaoqing's Screen Roles and Life Story.- Chai Jing: The Power of Vulnerability.- Subverting the "good wife and wise mother": the roles and public persona of Xu Jinglei.- Female Subjectivity On and Off the Screen: The Rare Case of Writer-Director Peng Xiaolian.- Talented Celebrity Rene Liu: Spokesperson of the Left-over Women (Sheng Nu).- Changing Platformativity of China's Female Wanghong: From Anni Baobei to Zhang Dayi.- Women's Access to Political Power: An Analysis of the Life Trajectory of Wu Yi.- In Search of Celebrity Feminists in Contemporary China.- Hong Huang: An Unconventional Woman's Life: The Highborn "Ruffian".
About the author
Shenshen Cai is a Chinese lecturer with Swinburne University of Technology in Australia. She completed her PhD in contemporary Chinese culture studies at the School of Humanities, Griffith University, Australia. Her research interests focus on contemporary Chinese literature, film, theatre and folklore studies. Shenshen is the author of State Propaganda in China's Entertainment Industry (2016), Television Drama in Contemporary China: Political, Social and Cultural Phenomena (2016) and Contemporary Chinese Films and Celebrity Directors (2017).
Summary
This book focuses on a representative group of contemporary Chinese female celebrities including actors, directors, writers and reporters, notably personalities such as Liu Xiaoqing, Hong Huang, Chai Jing and the most sought after young generation actors, Yang Mi and Guan Xiaotong. It analyses the on- and off- screen roles of these famous Chinese women, and the cultural, gender and social impact and significance embedded in them, whilst highlighting controversial social and cultural concerns and debates in contemporary China. The book furthers the understanding of the role played by contemporary female celebrities who are considered as social, cultural and feminist icons in present-day China, as reflected in their work, careers and private lives, and whose experiences help to understand Chinese women’s attitudes towards key issues such as career trajectories, marriage and family, gender identity, social changes, civil debates and political transformations, all of which are at the center of societal transformation in China.
