Narrative, Visual Model and Dragon Culture: a Narrative Analysis of Value Presentation in Two Movies Preferred by Chinese Adolescents
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DOCUMENT RESUME ED 431 677 SO 030 813 AUTHOR Jin, He TITLE Narrative, Visual Model and Dragon Culture: A Narrative Analysis of Value Presentation in Two Movies Preferred by Chinese Adolescents. Research Bulletin 98. INSTITUTION Helsinki Univ. (Finland). Dept. of Education. ISBN ISBN-951-45-8342-6 ISSN ISSN-0359-5749 PUB DATE 1998-00-00 NOTE 239p.; Academic Dissertation, University of Helsinki (Finland). AVAILABLE FROM Dept. of Education, P.O. Box 39 (Bulevardi 18), 00014 University of Helsinki, Finland. PUB TYPE Collected Works Serials (022)-- Dissertations/Theses (040) EDRS PRICE MF01/PC10 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS *Adolescents; Comparative Analysis; *Criticism; *Cultural Context; *Films; Foreign Countries; Models; Secondary Education; Secondary School Students; Semiotics; Student Surveys; *Values IDENTIFIERS *China; Film Genres; Narrative Text; *Visual Representation ABSTRACT A narrative study was ccnducted of the visual models in two movies preferred by Chinese adolescents in two schools (n=152) . The two movies studied were "Three Decisive Campaigns" (A Chinese Trilogy) and the American science fiction movie, "Jurassic Park." The modified approach from Bandura's modeling theory and film semiotics was used to derive amore adequate explanation of modeling from the relationships among narrative, culture, and values. Results indicated that the narrative and cultural characteristics of the film characters at the levels of text, structure, and logic provide some basic prerequisites for model selection and preference. From the viewpoint of modeling, characters in the movies provide three main kinds of knowledge for vicarious learning:(1) social role norm;(2) the environmental contingency; and (3) the vicarious reinforcing experience. Findings suggest that different genres not only influence what kinds of value models are presented, but also how they are presented and how theyare able to convince the viewer. Attention was also paid to the archetype of Chinese value models. Through the analyses of dragon myths, monarch literature, Confucianist classics, the social construction of the self by such practices as the family, cultural metaphors and socially proved life goals, the main ideas of Mao Ze-dong, and a comparative study of the way Chinese and American cultures present these two movies, the study not only reveals the general development of Chinese values from ancient to modern times, but also offersa perspective on how value models differ from culture to culture. Suggestions for effective movie models in classroom teaching and cultivation of teenagers' critical attitudes towards films and television are given. Contains extensive tables and references. Appended are the survey and a list of 10 preferred films. (BT) 0 y NO A I A I B a I iii iII, ai I. U S DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE AND Office of Educational Research and Improvement DISSEMINATE THIS MATERIAL HAS EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION BEEN GRANTED BY CENTER (ERIC) fecl.:isdocument has been reproduced as received from the person or organization rP__Van..sa. ne n originating it 0 Minor changes have been made to improve reproduction quality TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES Points of view or opinions stated in this INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC) document do not necessarily represent 1 official OERI position or policy ..... BEST B E Cr) A Se A I Ailmi II B A D BB A 0 El A a . A . IA - A% .. Ae4 c II 0 - I Department of Education University of Helsinki Research Bulletin 98 HE JIN NARRATIVE, VISUAL MODEL AND DRAGON CULTURE A Narrative Analysis of Value Presentation in Two Movies Preferred by Chinese Adolescents Academic dissertation to be publicly examined, by due permission of the Faculty of Education at the University of Helsinki in the Festivity Hall at the Department of Educationon November 21, 1998 at 12 o'clock Helsinki 1998 ._ 3 4 ISBN 951458342 6 ISSN 0359 5749 Hakapaino Oy, Helsinki 1998 To My Dear Mother, Father and Son with gratitude for their love CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS vii ABSTRACT (English) viii (Chinese) 1 INTRODUCTION 1 1.1 Presentation of the Topic 1 1.2 The Purpose of the Study 4 1.3 The Clarification of the Concept of Model 5 1.3.1 what are the visual model, the narrative, and the three constituents? 5 1.3.2 The connections between visual, narrative, and cultural models 6 1.3.3 The narrative and tlree constituents of a visual model 7 1.4 Outline of the Study 9 1.5 Limitations of the Study 10 2 RELEVANT PSYCHOLOGICAL AND FILM THEORIES OF VALUES 12 2.1 The General Field of Philosophical and Psychological Theories about Values 12 2.2 Identification and Values 13 2.3 Attachment and Values 17 2.4 Modelling and Value 19 2.4.1 The five effects of modelling and attributes of models 21 2.5 Criticisms of Bandura's work 22 2.5.1 Complex vs. simple nanative models 22 2.5.2 Entertainer and knower vs. vicarious learner 23 2.5.3 Film language vs. writing language 24 2.5.4 Narrative reinforcement vs. incentive reinforcement 26 2.6 Film Semiotics 27 2.6.1 A historical view of film semiotics 27 2.6.2 The narrative 29 2.6.3 Berger's modified approach 32 2.7 The Relevancy of Bandura's Work and Berger's Approach to the Chinese Case 34 2.7.1 Modelling and values: an ancient Chinese issue 34 2.7.2 The linkage of semioticians' binary oppositions with yin and yang 36 3 THE ORIGIN OF CHINESE VALUES 40 3.1 A Historical and Ethnographical Background 40 3.2 Mythology as the Archetype of Value Models 42 3.2.1 Dragons and monarchs 42 3.2.2 Mythological heroes 45 3.2.3 Emperors Huang and Yao as monarch models 47 3.2.4 Emperor Zhou as an immoral model 49 3.3 Confucius' Ideal Man and Values 50 3.3.1 Confucianism and the conception of man and Heaven 50 3.3.2 Confucius' ideal man and ren 51 3.3.3 The ideal man and its reinforcers 53 3.4 Social Censure and Modelling 57 3.5 The Chinese Social Censures 59 3.6 The Social Construction of the Self 61 3.6.1 Family function and the self 61 3.6.2 Traditional role norms and the self 63 3.6.3 Life goals and the self 64 3.7 Conclusion 66 4 THE METHOD 67 4.1 The Method of the Study 67 4.2 Sampling 68 4.2.1 Subjects 69 4.2.2 The selection of the movies 70 4.2.3 The ground for choosing the episodes and images 79 4.3 The Terminology of the Analysis 80 4.4 The Analytical Procedures 87 4.4.1 The textual level 87 4.4.2 The structural level 88 4.4.3 The logical level 89 4.4.4 The linkage of narrative and culture 89 7 iv 5 THE TEXT: FORMULAIC ELEMENTS AND VALUES 91 5.1 The Trilogy Three Decisive Campaigns 91 5.1.1 Mao Ze-dong and his ideology 91 5.1.2 A note on the movie 94 5.1.3 A synopsis of The Liao Shen Campaign 95 5.1.4 A synopsis of The Huai Hai Campaign 96 5.1.5 A synopsis of The Ping Jing Campaign 97 5.1.6 Setting, location, and their values 98 5.1.7 Costume, locomotion, weaponry and their values 102 5.1.8 Characters and their values presented 103 5.1.9 The conclusion of Three Decisive Campaigns 121 5.2 Jurassic Park 125 5.2.1 A synopsis of Jurassic Park 125 5.2.2 Setting, location, and their values 126 5.2.3 Costume, locomotion, weaponry, and their values 129 5.2.4 Characters and their values presented 131 5.2.5 The binary oppositions of Malcolm's and Hammond's lines 139 5.3 Conclusion 141 6 NARRATIVE STRUCTURES AND VALUES 143 6.1 Chinese Narrative and the Proppian Functions 143 6.1.1 The motif, its three dominant rules, and cliches 145 6.1.2 The narrative pattern and the sequence of the events 146 6.2 The Narrative Structure of Jurassic Park 153 6.2.1 Science fiction, narrative rules and cliches 153 6.2.2 The narrative pattern and the sequential events 155 6.3 Conclusion 157 7 NARRATIVE, MODELLING AND CULTURE 159 7.1 From Narrative Characters to Value Models 159 7.1.1 Characters and the informative function 159 7.1.2 Three premises for an effective movie model 161 character and reality 161 Three Decisive Campaigns 162 Jurassic Park 165 character and rationality 169 Three Decisive Campaigns 169 Jurassic Park 171 character and efficacy 175 Three Decisive Campaigns 175 nvis ,kro Jurassic Park 178 7.2 Conclusion 180 7.3 From Narrative to Culture 181 7.3.1 Chinese culture vs. American culture 181 7.3.2 Context-related thinking vs. abstract thinking 183 7.4 Conclusion 185 8 DISCUSSION 186 8.1 The Main Results of the Study 186 8.1.1 The textual level 186 8.1.2 The structural level 188 8.1.3 The function of a character as a value model 189 8.1.4 The three premises for a character as a value model 190 8.1.5 Modelling, narrative and culture 192 8.2 From the Movie Values to Adolescents' Ethics 193 8.3 New Challenges to Traditional Values 194 8.4 Bandura's Social Learning Theory: Its Explanatory Power and Its Bias 197 8.5 Some Reflections about Film, Television and Education 198 8.6 A Starting Point for a Further Research Project 199 REFERENCES 201 APPENDIX 218 Appendix I The Questionnaire Items 218 Appendix II The Ten Preferred Films and Their Genre 219 s.