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This unique survey of the evolution of the modern Chinese national character incorporates a rich blend of history and theory as well as nation, gender, and film studies. It begins with the dawn of the concept of "nation" in China at the end of the Imperial period, and follows its development from early Republican China to the present People's Republic, drawing on themes of national identity, "Orientalness," racial evolution and purity, cultural and gender roles, regional animosities, historical impediments, and more. The book also takes up the changing American perceptions of Chinese personality development and gender, using materials from American popular culture.
List of contents
Chapter 1 The Birth of a “Nation”; Chapter 2 National Psychology; Chapter 3 Orientalness and Degeneration; Chapter 4 Superman and Underman; Chapter 5 North and South; Chapter 6 “The Rock from a Distant Hill”; Chapter 101 Epilogue: Toward a Postnational Age?;
About the author
Lung-kee Sun was born in China but grew up in Hong Kong. He spent his college years in Taiwan and went on to advanced studies in the United States, first getting a masters degree in Russian history from the University of Minnesota and then his Ph.D. in East Asian history from Stanford University. Dr. Sun has taught at the University of Kansas, Washington University (St. Louis), the University of Alberta, and the University of Memphis. Among his numerous publications, the most influential one was The “Deep Structure” of Chinese Culture, excerpts of which have been translated into English; a complete German translation, Des Ummauerte Ich: Die Tiefenstruktur der chinesischen Mentalitat, was published in 1994.
Summary
This unique survey of the evolution of the modern Chinese national character incorporates a rich blend of history and theory as well as nation, gender, and film studies. It begins with the dawn of the concept of "nation" in China at the end of the Imperial period, and follows its development from early Republican China to the present People's Republic, drawing on themes of national identity, "Orientalness," racial evolution and purity, cultural and gender roles, regional animosities, historical impediments, and more. The book also takes up the changing American perceptions of Chinese personality development and gender, using materials from American popular culture.
