DOCSLIB.ORG

In Search of Laughter in Maoist China: Chinese Comedy Film 1949-1966

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
In Search of Laughter in Maoist China: Chinese Comedy Film 1949-1966 IN SEARCH OF LAUGHTER IN MAOIST CHINA: CHINESE COMEDY FILM 1949-1966 DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for The Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Ying Bao, M.A. ***** The Ohio State University 2008 Dissertation Committee: Approved by Professor Kirk A. Denton, Adviser Professor Mark Bender Professor J. Ronald Green _____________________ Professor Patricia Sieber Adviser East Asian Languages and Literatures Graduate Program Copyright by Ying Bao 2008 ABSTRACT This dissertation is a revisionist study examining the production and consumption of comedy film—a genre that has suffered from relative critical and theoretical neglect in film studies—in a culturally understudied period from 1949 to 1966 in the People’s Republic of China. Utilizing a multidisciplinary approach, it scrutinizes the ideological, artistic, and industrial contexts as well as the distinctive textures of Chinese comedy films produced in the so-called “Seventeen Years” period (1949-1966). Taking comedy film as a contested site where different ideologies, traditions, and practices collide and negotiate, I go beyond the current canon of Chinese film studies and unearth forgotten films and talents to retrieve the heterogeneity of Chinese cinema. The varieties of comedy examined—mostly notably the contemporary social satires in the mid-1950s, the so- called “eulogistic comedies,” and comedian-centered comedies in dialect and period comedies, as well as lighthearted comedies of the late 1950s and the early 1960s— problematize issues of genre, modernity, nation, gender, class, sublimity, and everyday ii life in light of the “culture of laughter” (Bakhtin) within a heavily politicized national cinema. Situating my study in the current scholarship of comedy and Chinese cinema, Chapter 1 historicizes the genre of comedy and provides an overview of its definitions in both Western cinema and Chinese cultural criticism. Using Unfinished Comedy—a 1957 satire banned before its completion—as a starting point, Chapter 2 revisits the crisis of the genre in the early years of the PRC and examines the tensions between artistic autonomy and the control of the authorities through a case study of the director Lü Ban. Chapter 3 looks into the mechanism of how ideal social relations were imagined and articulated in eulogistic comedy. Chapter 4 focuses on dialect comedies and film adaptations of folk comedies across regional divisions, which engage a complex dialogue between the local and the national. Chapter 5 examines how filmmakers tried to fuse satire and eulogy in lighthearted comedies of family life and work life. The epilogue reflects on how comedy films transcend a binary opposition between propaganda and entertainment, and it seeks to prompt further studies on the resonance of films from the Mao era in contemporary China. iii Dedicated to Mom, Dad, Kang, and Keyu In love and appreciation iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS William Arthur Ward has a famous quote: “The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires.” I am truly privileged to have a group of great teachers who have inspired me in my pursuit of knowledge and self-realization. I would like to thank above all my dissertation committee members for their unfailing support, guidance, encouragement, and patience. I am immensely grateful to my adviser Professor Kirk A. Denton for his faith, insight, humor, generosity, integrity, critical feedback, and tolerance that have seen me through my graduate work. Being his advisee and research assistant was my most rewarding and enjoyable experience at the Ohio State University. I am deeply indebted to the many stimulating conversations with Professor Patricia Sieber, whose sharp intellectual insight, high expectations, moral support, and generous help were a constant source of inspiration and encouragement. Many thanks to Professor Mark Bender for prompting me to rethink Chinese national culture with his expertise in Chinese oral traditions and folk cultures and for offering much needed advice at many critical moments in my graduate life. And I greatly appreciate the inspiration and guidance from Professor J. Ronald Green, whose v genuine passion for alternative cinema and amazing knowledge of film history are instrumental to the entire project. I am also grateful to Professor Marjorie Chan for her affecting intellectual enthusiasm and professionalism; to my former Professor Xiaomei Chen, who now teaches at University of California, Davis, for her enthusiastic encouragement and intellectual stimulation that helped initiating this project six years ago; to Professor Weihong Bao at Columbia University for sharing her perspectives and expertise on film studies with me. I have also benefited from courses and conversations with Professors Julia Andrews, Cynthia Brokaw, Christopher Reed, Meow Hui Goh at OSU, Chen Ruilin from Tsinghua University, and Dai Jinhua from Peking University. I must also thank Hong Kong scholar King Cheng for generously sending me his new publication on the history of Chinese comedy film and encouraging me to take on this study; Nicolai Volland at Singapore National University for offering critical feedback and generously sharing research resource with me; Greg Lewis at Weber State University for his remarkable effort of introducing PRC films to the English-speaking classrooms; Hu Ying and Jeff Wasserstrom at University of California, Irvine, for their enthusiastic feedbacks on my research; Rao Shuguang at China Film Archive for kindly answering my questions about his book on Chinese comedy film. I am truly grateful to Debbie Knicely for her good sense of humor, care, and administrative expertise. An exceptional debt of gratitude is owed to Peace Lee and Brian Bare for years of friendship and generous help. Sai Bhatawadekar is deeply appreciated for being such a wonderful friend who shares with me her perspectives on academia and vi life. Thanks also go to Ping-Chuan Peng, Yan Jing, Pat McAloon, Li Minggang, Chunsheng Yang, Yunxin, Tim, and many others for their friendship and help. I also want to thank various funding bodies at OSU: Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures for years of graduate associateship; PEGS Grant, OIA International Travel Grant, and College of Humanities’ Small Grant for enabling me to conduct research in Shanghai in 2003 and 2006. No words can express enough my gratitude and appreciation for my entire family. Without their unconditional love, understanding and unfailing support at all emotional, intellectual, and practical levels, I would never have come this far. My husband Kang has made my academic pursuits possible with his love, care, faith, perception, encouragement, and most generous support. My father Bao Zhonghao and mother Lin Xiuqing have nurtured my intellectual curiosity and given me the freedom to follow my heart since I was a little girl. Cao Tingwu and Liu Yiping have always been there for me whenever I need help. Bao Jie helped me obtaining research materials and has taken upon a lot of my share of family duty. The last but not the least, my son Keyu, who once thought of me as the funniest mom in the world, has been constantly bringing pleasant surprises and wonders to my life. He has shown me the power of humor and curiosity and makes life more interesting and all worthwhile for me. It is to my family that this dissertation is dedicated. vii VITA October 1972…………………………... Born in Shangrao, P.R. China 1992……………………………………. B. A. Chinese Language and Literature Jiangxi University 1995……………………………………. M. A. Literary Criticism Nanjing Normal University 1995—2000……………………………. Lecturer, Jiangnan University 2002……………………………………. M. A. East Asian Languages and Literatures The Ohio State University 2001—2004……………………………. Graduate Teaching Associate The Ohio State University 2005—2008…………………………… Graduate Research Associate The Ohio State University Spring 2008……………………………. Visiting Instructor of Chinese Denison University PUBLICATIONS Bao, Ying. “Whose Voice to be Heard? Narrative Strategies and Self-Identity in Fifth Chinese Daughter, The Woman Warrior, and Typical American.” Comparative Literature: East & West Vol. 7, No. 1 (2005). 83–99. Bao, Ying. “Hu Mage.” In Edward L. Davis, ed., Encyclopedia of Contemporary Chinese Culture. London: Routledge, 2005, pp. 262–63. viii Bao, Ying. “Liu Suola.” Co-author: Lily Xiaohong Lee. In Edward L. Davis, ed., Encyclopedia of Contemporary Chinese Culture. London: Routledge, 2005, p. 346. Bao, Ying. “Yang Yi.” In Edward L. Davis, ed., Encyclopedia of Contemporary Chinese Culture. London: Routledge, 2005, p. 693. Bao, Ying. “Religion, Rebellion, and Revolution: Zhao Shuli and ‘Little Erhei’s Marriage’.” CUEAGA Conference 2004 Conference Proceedings CD, University of Colorado, Boulder, 2004. Bao, Ying. “New Interpretation of Meng Haoran’s ‘Spring Dawning’ (Chun xiao).” Co- author: Kang Cao. Academic Journal of Suzhou University 4 (2000). [In Chinese] Bao, Ying. “An Analysis of the Major Difficulties in Teaching Basic Writing.” Academic Journal of Jiangnan University 14:1 (1998). [In Chinese] Bao, Ying. “On Deng Xiaoping’s Conception of Writing.” Writing 160 (1997). [In Chinese] FIELDS OF STUDY Major Field: East Asian Languages and Literatures Specialization: Modern Chinese Literature, Performance, and Media Studies (Advisor: Professor Kirk A. Denton) Minor Fields: Film Studies (Professor J. Ronald Green) Oral Tradition and Folk Culture (Professor Mark Bender)
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Chapter 5 Sinicization and Indigenization: the Emergence of the Yunnanese
    Between Winds and Clouds Bin Yang Chapter 5 Sinicization and Indigenization: The Emergence of the Yunnanese Introduction As the state began sending soldiers and their families, predominantly Han Chinese, to Yunnan, 1 the Ming military presence there became part of a project of colonization. Soldiers were joined by land-hungry farmers, exiled officials, and profit-driven merchants so that, by the end of the Ming period, the Han Chinese had become the largest ethnic population in Yunnan. Dramatically changing local demography, and consequently economic and cultural patterns, this massive and diverse influx laid the foundations for the social makeup of contemporary Yunnan. The interaction of the large numbers of Han immigrants with the indigenous peoples created a 2 new hybrid society, some members of which began to identify themselves as Yunnanese (yunnanren) for the first time. Previously, there had been no such concept of unity, since the indigenous peoples differentiated themselves by ethnicity or clan and tribal affiliations. This chapter will explore the process that led to this new identity and its reciprocal impact on the concept of Chineseness. Using primary sources, I will first introduce the indigenous peoples and their social customs 3 during the Yuan and early Ming period before the massive influx of Chinese immigrants. Second, I will review the migration waves during the Ming Dynasty and examine interactions between Han Chinese and the indigenous population. The giant and far-reaching impact of Han migrations on local society, or the process of sinicization, that has drawn a lot of scholarly attention, will be further examined here; the influence of the indigenous culture on Chinese migrants—a process that has won little attention—will also be scrutinized.
    [Show full text]
  • (Chen Qiulin), 25F a Cheng, 94F a Xian, 276 a Zhen, 142F Abso
    Index Note: “f ” with a page number indicates a figure. Anti–Spiritual Pollution Campaign, 81, 101, 102, 132, 271 Apartment (gongyu), 270 “......” (Chen Qiulin), 25f Apartment art, 7–10, 18, 269–271, 284, 305, 358 ending of, 276, 308 A Cheng, 94f internationalization of, 308 A Xian, 276 legacy of the guannian artists in, 29 A Zhen, 142f named by Gao Minglu, 7, 269–270 Absolute Principle (Shu Qun), 171, 172f, 197 in 1980s, 4–5, 271, 273 Absolution Series (Lei Hong), 349f privacy and, 7, 276, 308 Abstract art (chouxiang yishu), 10, 20–21, 81, 271, 311 space of, 305 Abstract expressionism, 22 temporary nature of, 305 “Academic Exchange Exhibition for Nationwide Young women’s art and, 24 Artists,” 145, 146f Apolitical art, 10, 66, 79–81, 90 Academicism, 78–84, 122, 202. See also New academicism Appearance of Cross Series (Ding Yi), 317f Academic realism, 54, 66–67 Apple and thinker metaphor, 175–176, 178, 180–182 Academic socialist realism, 54, 55 April Fifth Tian’anmen Demonstration (Li Xiaobin), 76f Adagio in the Opening of Second Movement, Symphony No. 5 April Photo Society, 75–76 (Wang Qiang), 108f exhibition, 74f, 75 Adam and Eve (Meng Luding), 28 Architectural models, 20 Aestheticism, 2, 6, 10–11, 37, 42, 80, 122, 200 Architectural preservation, 21 opposition to, 202, 204 Architectural sites, ritualized space in, 11–12, 14 Aesthetic principles, Chinese, 311 Art and Language group, 199 Aesthetic theory, traditional, 201–202 Art education system, 78–79, 85, 102, 105, 380n24 After Calamity (Yang Yushu), 91f Art field (yishuchang), 125 Agree
    [Show full text]
  • The Spring River Flows East a Film by Cai Chusheng and Zheng Junli
    The Spring River Flows East A film by Cai Chusheng and Zheng Junli “How much sorrow can one man have to bear? As much as a river of spring water flowing east” Often cited as one of the masterpieces of Chinese cinema, The Spring River Flows East, made in 1947, is an epic and tragic melodrama set in Shanghai and Chungking around the time of the Second Sino-Japanese War. Newly restored by the China Film Archive, it will be released on DVD by the BFI on 20 February 2017 – the first time the film has ever been released in the UK. A film in two parts, part one, Eight War-Torn Years, tells the heart-rending story of a working-class couple, Sufen (Bai Yang), and Zhang Zhongliang (Tao Jin), whose marriage is torn apart when the war forces Zhongliang to flee from Shanghai to Chungking. Part two, The Dawn, sees Zhongliang return to Shanghai. His fortunes transformed, he has married into a wealthy bourgeois family, but his world is undone by a chance meeting with the now-destitute Sufen. Special features Newly restored by the China Film Archive A Stilted City. Chungking. China (1930, 1 min): a rare glimpse of the ancient city which sits on the banks of the Yangtze river Product details RRP: £19.99/ Cat. no. BFIV2104 / Cert 12 China / 1947 / black and white / Mandarin, with optional English subtitles / 179 mins / DVD9 / Original aspect ratio 1.33:1 / Dolby Digital 1.0 mono audio (192kbps) Press contact: Jill Reading, BFI Press Office Tel: (020) 7957 4759 E-mail: [email protected] Images are available to download at www.image.net > BFI > DVD/Blu-ray BFI releases are available from all good home entertainment retailers or by mail order from the BFI Shop Tel: 020 7815 1350 or online at www.bfi.org.uk/shop 12 January 2017 .
    [Show full text]
  • Search Illinois Counseling Association
    The President’s Message Conscious Compassion & Advocacy During a Time of Violence “If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.” ~Mother Teresa “Why are you interested in Multicultural healthy self-esteem, positive identity and Counseling? You are white,” said the head empowerment. We also have the profes- of the Department of Cross-Cultural sional commitment to serve our commu- Psychology at the Ohio State University nities, to facilitate effective communica- Joyce Marter, LCPC in 1993. tion, collaboration, connection, growth and evolution as a society. Joyce Marter, LCPC is founder and CEO “Isn’t that kind of the point - to increase of Urban Balance, a counseling practice awareness and acceptance of all human During a time of horrific violence, this with seven locations and nearly 80 thera- beings?” replied my 21 year-old self. mission becomes all the more urgent. In pists on staff. Prior to becoming President response, ICA has created two new task of ICA, she was President of IMHCA My request to conduct a senior honors forces. The Anti-Violence Task Force from 2013 to 2015. thesis was subsequently accepted. The is chaired by Chuck Hughes, LCPC study examined the relationships between ([email protected]) racial identity attitudes and preference for and will focus on counselors supporting a counselor’s race. I learned a tremendous one another, our clients, and our com- amount about racial identity development, munities in responding to violence and a process of that moves through the biases facilitating peace. that we all have as part of the human condition and hopefully reaches a point of The Diversity in Leadership Task force is awareness of differences, deep acceptance, chaired by Dr.
    [Show full text]
  • New China's Forgotten Cinema, 1949–1966
    NEW CHINA’S FORGOTTEN CINEMA, 1949–1966 More Than Just Politics by Greg Lewis Several years ago when planning a course on modern Chinese history as seen through its cinema, I realized or saw a significant void. I hoped to represent each era of Chinese cinema from the Leftist movement of the 1930s to the present “Sixth Generation,” but found most available subtitled films are from the post-1978 reform period. Films from the Mao Zedong period (1949–76) are particularly scarce in the West due to Cold War politics, including a trade embargo and economic blockade lasting more than two decades, and within the arts, a resistance in the West to Soviet- influenced Socialist Realism. wo years ago I began a project, Translating New China’s Cine- Phase One. Economic Recovery, ma for English-Speaking Audiences, to bring Maoist Heroic Revolutionaries, and Workers, T cinema to students and educators in the US. Several genres Peasants, and Soldiers (1949–52) from this era’s cinema are represented in the fifteen films we have Despite differences in perspective on Maoist cinema, general agree- subtitled to date, including those of heroic revolutionaries (geming ment exists as to the demarcation of its five distinctive phases (four yingxiong), workers-peasants-soldiers (gongnongbing), minority of which are represented in our program). The initial phase of eco- peoples (shaoshu minzu), thrillers (jingxian), a children’s film, and nomic recovery (1949–52) began with the emergence of the Dong- several love stories. Collectively, these films may surprise teachers bei (later Changchun) Film Studio as China’s new film capital.
    [Show full text]
  • A Brief Analysis of China's Contemporary Swordsmen Film
    ISSN 1923-0176 [Print] Studies in Sociology of Science ISSN 1923-0184 [Online] Vol. 5, No. 4, 2014, pp. 140-143 www.cscanada.net DOI: 10.3968/5991 www.cscanada.org A Brief Analysis of China’s Contemporary Swordsmen Film ZHU Taoran[a],* ; LIU Fan[b] [a]Postgraduate, College of Arts, Southwest University, Chongqing, effects and packaging have made today’s swordsmen China. films directed by the well-known directors enjoy more [b]Associate Professor, College of Arts, Southwest University, Chongqing, China. personalized and unique styles. The concept and type of *Corresponding author. “Swordsmen” begin to be deconstructed and restructured, and the swordsmen films directed in the modern times Received 24 August 2014; accepted 10 November 2014 give us a wide variety of possibilities and ways out. No Published online 26 November 2014 matter what way does the directors use to interpret the swordsmen film in their hearts, it injects passion and Abstract vitality to China’s swordsmen film. “Chivalry, Military force, and Emotion” are not the only symbols of the traditional swordsmen film, and heroes are not omnipotent and perfect persons any more. The current 1. TSUI HARK’S IMAGINARY Chinese swordsmen film could best showcase this point, and is undergoing criticism and deconstruction. We can SWORDSMEN FILM see that a large number of Chinese directors such as Tsui Tsui Hark is a director who advocates whimsy thoughts Hark, Peter Chan, Xu Haofeng , and Wong Kar-Wai began and ridiculous ideas. He is always engaged in studying to re-examine the aesthetics and culture of swordsmen new film technology, indulging in creating new images and film after the wave of “historic costume blockbuster” in new forms of film, and continuing to provide audiences the mainland China.
    [Show full text]
  • Part 1: a Brief History of the Chinese Film Industry 1896 –A Film by The
    Part 1: A brief History of the Chinese Film Industry 1896 –a film by the Lumiere Brothers, premiered in Paris in December 1895, was shown in Shanghai 1897 – American showman James Ricalton showed several Edison films in Shanghai and other large cities in China. This new media was introduced as “Western shadow plays” to link to the long- standing Chinese tradition of shadow plays. These early films were shown as acts as part of variety shows. 1905 – Ren Jingfeng, owner of Fengtai Photography, bought film equipment from a German store in Beijing and made a first attempt at film production. The film “Dingjun Mountain” featured episodes from a popular Beijing opera play. The screening of this play was very successful and Ren was encouraged to make more films based on Beijing opera. Subsequently, the base of Chinese film making became the port of Shanghai because of better access to foreign capital, imported materials and technical cooperation between the Chinese and foreigners. 1907 – Beijing had the first theatre devoted exclusively to showing films 1908 – Shanghai had its first film theatre 1909 – The Asia Film Company was established as a joint venture between American businessman, Benjamin Polaski, and Zhang Shichuan and Zheng Zhengqui. Zhang and Zheng are honoured as the fathers of Chinese cinema 1913 – Zhang and Zheng made the first Chinese short feature film, which was a documentary of social customs. As female performers were not allowed to share the stage with males, all the characters were played by male performers in this narrative drama. 1913 – saw the first narrative film produced in Hong Kong WW1 cut off Shanghai’s supply of raw film from Germany, so film production stopped.
    [Show full text]
  • Congressional-Executive Commission on China Annual
    CONGRESSIONAL-EXECUTIVE COMMISSION ON CHINA ANNUAL REPORT 2016 ONE HUNDRED FOURTEENTH CONGRESS SECOND SESSION OCTOBER 6, 2016 Printed for the use of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China ( Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.cecc.gov U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE 21–471 PDF WASHINGTON : 2016 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Publishing Office Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov Phone: toll free (866) 512–1800; DC area (202) 512–1800 Fax: (202) 512–2104 Mail: Stop IDCC, Washington, DC 20402–0001 VerDate Mar 15 2010 19:58 Oct 05, 2016 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 5011 Sfmt 5011 U:\DOCS\AR16 NEW\21471.TXT DEIDRE CONGRESSIONAL-EXECUTIVE COMMISSION ON CHINA LEGISLATIVE BRANCH COMMISSIONERS House Senate CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH, New Jersey, MARCO RUBIO, Florida, Cochairman Chairman JAMES LANKFORD, Oklahoma ROBERT PITTENGER, North Carolina TOM COTTON, Arkansas TRENT FRANKS, Arizona STEVE DAINES, Montana RANDY HULTGREN, Illinois BEN SASSE, Nebraska DIANE BLACK, Tennessee DIANNE FEINSTEIN, California TIMOTHY J. WALZ, Minnesota JEFF MERKLEY, Oregon MARCY KAPTUR, Ohio GARY PETERS, Michigan MICHAEL M. HONDA, California TED LIEU, California EXECUTIVE BRANCH COMMISSIONERS CHRISTOPHER P. LU, Department of Labor SARAH SEWALL, Department of State DANIEL R. RUSSEL, Department of State TOM MALINOWSKI, Department of State PAUL B. PROTIC, Staff Director ELYSE B. ANDERSON, Deputy Staff Director (II) VerDate Mar 15 2010 19:58 Oct 05, 2016 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 0486 Sfmt 0486 U:\DOCS\AR16 NEW\21471.TXT DEIDRE C O N T E N T S Page I. Executive Summary ............................................................................................. 1 Introduction ...................................................................................................... 1 Overview ............................................................................................................ 5 Recommendations to Congress and the Administration ..............................
    [Show full text]
  • Fei Mu's Aesthetics of Desolation in Spring In
    CHAPTER FOUR BETWEEN FORGETTING AND THE REPETITIONS OF MEMORY: FEI MU’S AESTHETICS OF DESOLATION IN SPRING IN A SMALL TOWN Heroism has strength but no beauty and thus seems to lack humanity. Tragedy, however, resembles the matching of bright red with deep green: an intense and unequivocal contrast. And yet it is more exciting than truly revelatory. The reason desolation resonates far more profoundly is that it resembles the conjunction of scallion green with peach red, creating an equivocal contrast. I like writing by way of equivocal contrast because it is relatively true to life.1 Like wartime cartoonists, poets, dramatists, and other artists who traveled inland to promote the cause of resistance, the Chinese film industry was also displaced to the Nationalist interior during the War of Resistance. The Nationalist government-owned Central Film Studio (Zhongyang diangy- ing sheyingchang 中央电影摄影场) and China Motion Pictures Studio (Zhongguo dianying zhipianchang 中国电影制片厂) were relocated to Chongqing, where the government encouraged the production of docu- mentary and feature films to promote the war effort. However, political instability, inflation, supply problems, and inadequate means of distribu- tion made it difficult to create high-quality films, and both Central Film and China Motion Pictures were forced to suspend filmmaking activities between 1941 and 1943.2 Although film studios in “Orphan Island” (gudao 孤岛) Shanghai, Hong Kong, and Manchuria operated throughout most of the war, working under the watchful eye of Japanese censors, filmmakers in the occupied regions were unable to produce films that explored in depth the experiences of ordinary people in wartime. 1 Eileen Chang, “Writing of One’s Own,” p.
    [Show full text]
  • Ben Jonson and the Mirror: Folly Knows No Gender
    Western Michigan University ScholarWorks at WMU Dissertations Graduate College 6-2001 Ben Jonson and The Mirror: Folly Knows No Gender Sherry Broadwell Niewoonder Western Michigan University Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/dissertations Part of the Classical Literature and Philology Commons, English Language and Literature Commons, and the Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Commons Recommended Citation Niewoonder, Sherry Broadwell, "Ben Jonson and The Mirror: Folly Knows No Gender" (2001). Dissertations. 1382. https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/dissertations/1382 This Dissertation-Open Access is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate College at ScholarWorks at WMU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks at WMU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. BEN JONSON AND THE MIRROR: FOLLY KNOWS NO GENDER by Sherry Broadwell Niewoonder A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of The Graduate College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of English Western Michigan University Kalamazoo, Michigan June 2001 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. BEN JONSON AND THE M IR R O R : FO LLY KNOWS NO GENDER Sherry Broadwell Niewoonder, Ph.D. Western Michigan University, 2001 Ben Jonson, Renaissance poet and playwright, has been the subject of renewed evaluation in recent scholarship, particularly new historicism and cultural materialism. The consensus among some current scholars is that Jonson overtly practices and advocates misogyny in his dramas. Such theorists suggest that Jonson both embodies and promulgates the anti­ woman rhetoric of his time, basing their position on contemporary cultural material, religious tracts, and the writings of King James I.
    [Show full text]
  • HUMA 1210: Chinese Women on Screen
    HUMA 1210: Chinese Women on Screen Instructor: Daisy Yan Du Associate Professor Division of Humanities Office: Room 2369 (Lift 13-15), Academic Bldg Office phone: (852) 2358-7792 E-mail: [email protected] Office hours: by appointment only Teaching Assistant: Song HAN E-mail: [email protected] Office: Room 3001 (Lift 4), Academic Bldg Office hours: by appointment only Time & Classroom: Time: 12-14:50pm, Friday, Spring 2019 Room: LTH Required Readings: • All available online at “Files,” Canvas Course Description: This course examines Chinese women as both historical and fictional figures to unravel the convoluted relationship between history and visual representations. It follows a chronological order, beginning with women in Republican China and ending with contemporary female immigrants in the age of globalization. The changing images of women on screen go hand in hand with major cinematic movements in history, including the leftist turn in the 1930s, the rise of animation in wartime Shanghai, socialist filmmaking during the Seventeen Years (1949-1966), the birth of model opera film during the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976), post-1989 underground/independent filmmaking, and the globalization of cinema in contemporary China. Approaches of film analyses and gender/sexuality theories will be introduced throughout the course. All reading materials, lectures, classroom discussions, and exams are in English. Course Objectives: By the end of this semester students should be able to: • track the changing images of women in history • track
    [Show full text]
  • MIYAKI Yukio (GONG Muduo) 宮木幸雄（龔慕鐸）（B
    MIYAKI Yukio (GONG Muduo) 宮木幸雄（龔慕鐸）（b. 1934） Cinematographer Born in Kanagawa Prefecture, Miyaki joined Ari Production in 1952 and once worked as assistant to cinematographer Inoue Kan. He won an award with TV programme Kochira Wa Shakaibu in Japan in 1963. There are many different accounts on how he eventually came to work in Hong Kong. One version has it that he came in 1967 with Japanese director Furukawa Takumi to shoot The Black Falcon (1967) and Kiss and Kill (1967) for Shaw Brothers (Hong Kong) Ltd. Another version says that the connection goes back to 1968 when he helped Chang Cheh film the outdoor scenes of Golden Swallow (1968) and The Flying Dagger (1969) in Japan. Yet another version says that he signed a contract with Shaws as early as 1965. By the mid-1970s, under the Chinese pseudonym Gong Muduo, Miyaki worked as a cinematographer exclusively for Chang Cheh’s films. He took part in over 30 films, including The Singing Thief (1969), Return of the One-armed Swordsman (1969), The Invincible Fist (1969), Dead End (1969), Have Sword, Will Travel (1969), Vengeance! (1970), The Heroic Ones (1970), The New One-Armed Swordsman (1971), The Anonymous Heroes (1971), Duel of Fists (1971), The Deadly Duo (1971), Boxer from Shantung (1972), The Water Margin (1972), Trilogy of Swordsmanship (1972), The Blood Brothers (1973), Heroes Two (1974), Shaolin Martial Arts (1974), Five Shaolin Masters (1974), Disciples of Shaolin (1975), The Fantastic Magic Baby (1975), Marco Polo (1975), 7-Man Army (1976), The Shaolin Avengers (1976), The Brave Archer (1977), The Five Venoms (1978) and Life Gamble (1979).
    [Show full text]